I was lucky enough to meet Mama Mercy 4 years ago when I came to Kenya for the first time. I had gone to Nairobi to pick up my sister when she came to visit me. After 3 months in Makuyu, I was a little lost in the chaos of the city when, suddenly, a 60 year old woman appeared offering her help. It turned out she was also heading for Makuyu so we sat together during the trip. One question lead to the other and we ended up finding out that she had a project which she had started years ago. She invited us to see it.
She told us she had 300 kids in a shelter home. She talked about her ‘’kids’’ as if they were angels from the sky. She told us she wasn’t able to leave a single kid on the street and that just a few days back she had picked up a two week old baby from the garbage. Every time she spoke, you were paralyzed with her way of speaking, the warmth she gave off, the amazing person that she seemed to be and the craziness of everything she was telling us.
When we went back to Nairobi, this time it was to leave my sister at the airport, we had no doubt we would stop by and see her project. At that time I had only seen a few other NGOs from the rural areas of Kenya, some were Spanish, but I never imagined what an orphanage in a slum in Nairobi could turn out to be. In fact, I had never been in a slum.
It was Sunday and we arrived at Mathere Valley at 11am. We had a suitcase full of presents for Mercy; pads, diapers, toys, clothes… when we got off the matatu we realized it was impossible to roll the suitcase on the floor, in fact, we couldn’t even see the floor because of the amount of mud and garbage that covered it. With the suitcase on our backs, we walked down the slum until we reached the Good Samaritan Children’s Home.
We found Mercy as soon as we walked in, and with one of her characteristic hugs, she made us feel like another one of ‘’her kids’’. We left the suitcase in the office and walked around the plot of land. As we walked around, two little children had escaped from the mass that Father Paul was giving, and were accompanying us. Mercy told us the story of one of the girls that was walking with us; she was abused by her father, and Mercy didn’t doubt one second before showing us the marks. By the time we reached Mercy’s room we couldn’t believe the unjust world we lived in.
Good Samaritan has four bedrooms for 300 children, four holes where the kids can make their necessities and shower, an area where a fire can be made to cook, the office and Mercy’s room. We left for Spain the next day with a very different perspective on NGOs in Kenya. To find two babies that could have died if it wasn’t for Good Samaritan gave us hope and certainty that we had come across an NGO that was really making a difference, that was really doing things right and that really needed help.
My sister and I decided to have a photographic exhibition in the Pons Foundation, that very generously gave us a space in which to do it for a week. We were still in contact with Mercy and our idea was to finish the building of the orphanage. I went back in summer to buy the materials with the money we had collected from the now owners of our beautiful pieces of art. I was never able to see what had really happened with the materials I had bought. Now that I am back, I can tell you, they give shelter to the kids when it rains, they give them a place to eat with a properly equipped kitchen and they give them a teacher who gives class to those who are nor fortunate enough to have sponsors who pay for their school.
Once more, I leave Nairobi with more eagerness to go back to that small hideaway in Mathare Valley, where I was so happy a few years ago. I want to be back in Mercy’s world and be another one of ‘’her kids’’ and I feel it’s more than necessary that I share this story with all of you.
Mercy is a 60 year old woman who has dedicated more than half of her life to helping orphaned, abandoned or abused children….Remember her name; Mama Mercy. This woman deserves to be recognized for her amazing work, admired… we hope to collaborate with her for a long time and give her project the recognition that it deserves.
Thanks Mama Mercy!
If you have a moment, you can visit her web page: http://www.africacircleofhope.org/
Álvaro
"With perseverance and tenacity you can obtain what you desire; the word impossible has no meaning." Napoleon
No hay comentarios :