News from our Missions
Loitokitok - Kenya
In a rural region of southern Kenya, Mount Kilimanjaro in the distance, Sister Pat Patton has worked with the Maasai people for nearly 40 years.
In the 1970's, Pat helped establish the first hospital on Maasai land, Loitokitok District Hospital, and initiated many new healthcare programmes.
She surveyed the Maasai's primary healthcare needs and, with the support of the local people, trained over 300 community health workers.
Working within their own communities, they teach how to prevent malaria, blindness transmitted by flies, the spread of tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS.
Boma la Tumaini (House of Hope) followed. It was built to provide a centre where people could learn about HIV/AIDS, be tested and treated if found to be positive, and counselled and supported. Sister Pat and the community health workers are able to visit schools and inform the students of the risks. Boma la Tumaini is recognised nationally as a centre of excellence for counselling and testing.
FRIFAT ( Friends Fighting Aids Together) - is a support group for people who are HIV positive. They meet regularly for information sharing and mutual support. They undertake income generating projects such as making clothes and bead ornaments to support fellow members during times of illness, and they have a piece of land where they grow crops for themselves and for sale.
News from Loitokitok - taken from Sister Pat's annual report 2009
FRIFAT - 2009 will go down as the year of the worst drought in living memory of the people of this area. So many animals died, including livestock and game animals such as zebra, wildebeest, elephant and hippo. Hardy plants died. The people faced hunger, then starvation. A grant combined with donations that we have received, enabled us to buy maize, beans and Unimix as supplementary food for FRIFAT members. We were able to feed 70 families for the whole year. For several, it was a life saver! They said they were assured of a full meal at least one day a week. The local agriculture department arranged to provide (and supervise) 70 members with free maize seeds and fertilizer for one acre of farmland. While waiting for the rains to arrive, successful homemade grow bags were started. Finally in October the rains came and seeds were planted. A good harvest looks promising. One member, Solomon, died suddenly in 2009. He was being treated at the AIDS clinic and was about to be discharged. Since Solomon had no family in the area FRIFAT members took care of him, accompanying him to the clinic and then making the funeral arrangements. When his family arrived they were very touched by the care shown to Solomon. A new member, Ann, reported that when she first came her HIV viral load was 22,000. In combination with antiretroviral drugs, counselling, good nutrition and support from other members her count had dropped to 22 within a few months. This is why we have Thanksgiving Days!
Boma la Tumaini - we have now started outreach work with mobile VCTs (Voluntary Counselling and Testing). We have a small tent which serves as a mobile unit. Two counsellors go to the weekly markets in Loitokitok and surrounding villages. From time to time they visit all the shops, inviting staff to be tested on the spot. One day, at a hairdressing salon, a lady admitted that she was afraid to learn her status. Her customer - a FRIFAT member - encouraged her to live positively.
Your contributions enabled us to do all the little things that make this project 'special' - meeting emergencies, sudden sickness, transport, death of a family member, supplies for home care, thanksgiving celebrations with FRIFAT members, an occasional treat for the staff and so much more - thank you.
