One place we always visit while in Nairobi with Build.Create.Kenya is Ken’s Shunem orphanage for girls. BCK sells bracelets throughout the year for Ken, as he has started this much needed orphanage by himself ( with his lovely wife), as his passion to help takes priority over the cost to run such an institution.

As we were talking with Ken and his family about life , etc…one of our team members, Sena, asked Ken’s wife to show her where the girls slept. I didn’t think much of it as they disappeared down the hallway.

Sena with the some of the girls

Sena is a teacher back home in the US. Her passion for education came shining through as she worked side by side with the teachers in the slums. It was an inspiration to watch her.

As she came back with Ken’s wife from the bedrooms, her eyes were full of tears. I couldn’t imagine what had happened, but she explained that the sleeping conditions for the orphaned girls were so sad, thin bedding ( or nothing but a couple of blankets), so that the girls were basically sleeping on the metal bed frames. It broke her heart….so she decided to do something about it.

Sena had a side trip planned after Kenya to Europe, but her need to help Ken’s girls took precedence. She used most of her extra money to buy good mattresses for EVERY orphaned girl at Shunem.

It was an act of kindness that packed an emotional punch. I was so proud of her generosity, and the look on Ken and the girls faces when they saw their new bedding was something that will stay with all of us.

If you think about, what can you accomplish with just a good night’s sleep?

Sena and the mattresses. One of my favorite moments of our 2013 expedition.

Wench, bring my ale, what say you?

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