March 2010 Update  

Greetings from Kenya in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

News

There’s always room for one more?  Well, just as I thought we were totally full, a boy who had been moved from Ahadi in December, “bounced” back.  He was from a Muslim background so we had not been allowed to keep him. A Muslim home had been found for him on the coast, but when it came time to take him there, he refused. The Children’s Department Officer has now given an OK for him to come back to us, and he is one happy boy!

PROGRESS ON THE NEW LAND I spent half a day with an engineer from the local water company who went with me to our land. We also together identified several neighbors who indicated interested in joining together with us in laying pipe from the main pipeline on the highway about 1 ¼  miles away. Now we await a quotation from the water company for total cost.

“The Community’s Role: Caring for Orphans and Vulnerable Children of Athi River District” is a one-day conference slated for 23 March. I am the chairman of the planning committee from our network called Vulnerable Children Caregivers of Athi River, and we are working in coordination with the head of the Child Development Programme Director at Daystar University. The District Commissioner, mayor, 6 chiefs and assistants and opinion-leaders from each locality, school principals/counselors, pastors, police, etc. have confirmed attendance. There are 125 community leaders signed up so far! Two weeks ago, we wondered if it would even take off. We are encouraged by the response and pray for success and that this will just be the beginning of people cooperating to help these needy children.

                                                                     Boys’ news

The 3 boys who finished primary school last year are now settled in boarding schools. We have 15 high school boys boarding and another nine living at Ahadi and being taken to day school (plus 12 primary school boys). All their bills are now paid and they have already been back for a few days on mid-term break.

One of our boys who finished high school a year ago, scoring a B+ on the national exam, has been notified of the university in Western Kenya that he should attend and take a teaching major.  His education will be highly subsidized by the government, but we will need a sponsor to pay some expenses. University will begin towards the end of the year.

The results of the end of 2009 national exam are out for those who finished high school. Most of our boys did not score as high as they had expected. Our highest score was a B-, followed by C+, C, D+, and D-. Pray for us as we council with these boys and decide the way forward. We need wisdom as we think about possibly repeating or getting sponsors for a training college.

One of our boys who finished high school two years ago has been taking accounting courses while living with his mom in a slum.  He now wants to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in Commerce at a nearby university and continue living with his mom.  Costs would be around $1,300 per semester for 3 years. He needs a sponsor.

Financial needs

We thank God for the outpouring of support last month when we were “at the bottom of the barrel.” We have paid our outstanding bills and even had some for March. We were also able to get some basic necessities like new sheets and blankets and two new big pans to cook for the bigger household. A big thank you to each of you who were able and willing to contribute. Now, we are out of the crisis mode.

Next month is the Boston Marathon, and we once again have a friend who is running for Ahadi. We hope to get enough pledges to pay our second term school fees, etc.

A Case In Point

John was a pre-teen when his sickly, single mom died in his arms in their one room place in a slum. His aunties, who had seldom even visited his mom when she was ill, immediately put him and his younger brother and sister in an orphanage. He was upset by that, and ran away to the streets where he was accepted by the other street boys and began a life of scavenging for daily food. A “Good Samaritan” began feeding him regularly and eventually brought him to us. John proved to be well-behaved and fit in nicely at our place. A few years later, we got his brother from the orphanage to try to keep the family together. John has now finished high school, scored a B- on the national exam and is assisting in the small school where six of our special students are attending. He is very deserving, and will be one that we will be asking for help in getting him to university. His aunties, by the way, now allow the boys to stay with them for a few days during school breaks.

Prayers and Praise

1.      Thank God for his provision of finances last month.

2.      Pray for wisdom to decide the way forward for those who finished H.S

3.      Pray for a successful one-day conference for community leaders.

4.      Pray for wisdom in making plans for construction of our Ahadi home.

5.      Pray for sponsors for our boys wanting to continue post high school ed.

6.      Pray for a successful Boston Marathon fund-raising.

In Christ,

Phyllis Masso

Ahadi Mom

Financial contributions in the US may be made to our tax-deductible organization SCREAM--USA and sent to Dave Wassenar, 85 Heights of Hill St., Whitinsville, MA 01588 or contact him at  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  for wiring info from other countries. 

PayPal can also be used using our  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  account. We have successfully received donations so far from England and Australia using PayPal.

Donations in Kenya can be deposited in our NIC Bank account, NIC HOUSE branch. Contact me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it for details.