|
Community-led Projects to Sustain the Program
- February 2007
- Grist mill built at the school to grind corn for the community
- Building supplies and labour was donated for the building
- Kitchen was built at the school to establish the lunch program
- Community members donated building supplies and labour for
- Grist mill building
- Kitchen to sustain the lunch program
- Pig barn
- Chicken coop
- March 2007
- Cooks are hired and lunch program begins
- Grist mill operator is hired and mill opens
- Maize and kale garden plots are planted in the school yard
- Children in the "program" volunteer to work on one of the projects
- Teachers mentor the volunteers to teach best agricultural practices
- Grade 7 and 8 children rotate as volunteers to serve lunch and care for the younger
children in the lunch program
- April 2007
- 3 female pigs and one male pig are purchased and housed in the barn
- Pigs are fed on the waste from the grist mill
- 1000 avocado trees are started from seed
- May 2007
- 54 chickens are purchased
- Maize and millet is purchased and sold ground and ready to cook for villagers
walking home from work.
- 3000 tree seedlings are started
- July 2007
- Eggs from the chickens are sold
- Four hens are setting 10 eggs each
- November 2007
- 100 chicks were hatched and will soon be ready for sale
- Most hens are laying eggs regularly
- One pig will give birth in December
- The new trees planted in the school yard have been nicknamed 'Canada'
- January 2008
- The lunch program for the children be upgraded from twice/week to three-times
/ week.
- June 21 2008
- 3 Sows give birth
- One dairy cow and one sheep are purchased by the school; added to sustainability
program.
- Dr. Cate Dewey is in Kenya, and has provided us with an email report that contains
several success stories from Bukati Primary School. Click here for the full June 21 newsletter.
- July 2008
- 5 acres of corn are harvested from the rented land. The students take the kernels
of corn off the cobs, and then dry the corn in the schoolyard, for storage.
- September 2008
- The children in kindergarten, grades 1 and 2 will be fed 5 days a week beginning
in September 2008. This will be possible because of the 5 acres of maize being grown by the school.
- September 2009
- In 3 years, the school has expanded from 600 to over 1000 pupils. There have
been 3 new classrooms built with Kenyan government support. Even so, in June 2009, there were 2 classes of children
being taught outside, under the trees because of the shortage of classroom space. One new classroom is being funded
through a cost-sharing program that provides 20% of the costs by the government after the parents have raised 80%
of the money. In this poverty stricken community, it shows the determination of the adults to improve the learning
environment for their children.
- The second classroom and the desks for the class were built by a group of dedicated
individuals from the University of Guelph. The group completed several fund-raising initiatives to acquire the
money needed for the materials and to hire expert local labour for the classroom.
- We have bought 11 acres of land through the generous donations of members of
the Norval United
Church and the families of Norah and Laura. This is a key component of the long term sustainability of the project
that will reduce the reliance on purchased food.
|
