Cedarbrook Community Church family, we are thankful for your prayers and support! Mothers and babies in Compassion’s Survival program at KAG Githuguchu Church in central Kenya continue to develop new skills and strengths because of your generosity. Babies are healthy and happy, meeting developmental milestones and enjoying the caring nurture of their mothers and families. Mothers are developing self-confidence as they learn practical life skills, such as baby care, homemaking and income generation. Above all, they are developing a stronger faith and an understanding of God’s Word and his love for them.
Pictured above are Margret (see letter below) and her son Jayden.
Ministry Progress at KAG Githunguchu Church
July 2023 – March 2024
-
-
26 babies
and mothers
were served
-
-
1 baby on
average per
month was
treated for
malnutrition
-
-
13 babies
transitioned
to the Child
Sponsorship Program
-
-
2 babies
were born;
both had
a healthy
birth weight
A Letter From Margret, a Caregiver at KAG Githunguchu Church
Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. I am well, together with my family. I am 24 years old and born-again, confessing the Lord as my Savior. I am married to David, and we are blessed with two boys. Jayden, who is 6 months old, is in the Survival program.
Before I joined the Survival program, I always admired the mothers who were in it. I would hear them talking about the lessons learned and the benefits of being in it. I expressed my interest in joining during my first pregnancy, but there were no vacancies. Thankfully, I was enrolled upon giving birth to Jayden.
Since then, I have seen God minister in the lives of me and my family through the fellowship meetings held at the Survival center every month. The health screenings, monthly group monitoring exercises and monthly nutritional supplements have enhanced my family’s health. Jayden has received his immunizations. I also was trained in exclusive breastfeeding, proper nutrition and complementary feeding. During the monthly programs, we mothers get to play with our children in the stimulation room, enhancing our bond with them. From the monthly home visits, we have learned more about food security, female literacy and planning our family.
Among the mothers, we have formed groups where we meet weekly for financial merry-go-rounds and table banking. This has really boosted our daily lives. Also, with the water storage tank received through the Survival program, I have been able to harvest water, thus ensuring it’s available for home use.
May God bless you for supporting this ministry.
Yours faithfully,
Margret
Merry-Go-Rounds and Table Banks
When Margret gathers weekly with a few other Survival mothers from her neighborhood, they enjoy socializing, admiring each other’s babies, catching up on the news, and sharing spiritual insights. However, the primary objective of their meeting is to conduct their own home-grown banking and investment business using creative methods proven effective in impoverished, rural communities.
Merry-Go-Rounds
Every week, Margret and other caregivers contribute a small amount of money to a communal pot. The pot of money goes to a different group member each week. Members determine in advance the order in which they will receive the collected weekly funds. In essence, the merry-go-round is a way of saving money until it comes back to members as a larger sum.
Members keep financial records, elect their own leaders, and charge members fines for arriving late or missing a meeting. Within a short time, a woman may receive enough money to buy a chicken or goat to help support her family.
Table Banking
Table banking equips rural women with the skills and means to save and invest in each other. Similar to the merry-go-round, this savings and lending system relies on members’ group participation. Each member contributes a set amount, which is recorded in her passbook. Members agree upon minimum contributions and can contribute more if they choose.
Members vote to lend a part or all of the collected funds to one or more members, with a set repayment period and interest rate. Loans can be as short as one month or as long as 36 months. At the end of the year, the total interest earned and fines paid are distributed to all the members as a bonus. Cash not loaned out at the end of the meeting goes into a group bank account.
Women’s savings groups are registered with the government, which gives them official status and may make them eligible for loans or grants from microenterprise groups. As they learn how to save and invest their money to help their families thrive, women develop financial skills and a strong sense of pride and accomplishment.
Recent Survival Activities
Mothers learn new skills at the monthly Survival meetings. In one meeting, moms learned how to make a fireless cooker by placing a hot pot of partially cooked food into a basket lined with cloths. The lid and cloth-lined basket trap the heat, enabling food to finish cooking without using more firewood. Mothers save time and money by not having to collect or pay for as much wood. The smokeless, fireless cooking method is also safer. With the time they save, moms can spend time in prayer, play with their babies or work in their kitchen garden. Win-win-win!
A mother waters the kitchen garden that she planted with carrot and cabbage seeds from the Survival staff.
A Survival Specialist demonstrates how a mom can support family nutrition and health by preparing local vegetables for her family.
During World Breastfeeding Awareness week, a Survival Specialist discusses the importance of breastfeeding and proper techniques.
Mothers learn how to make a fireless cooker at a monthly activity. Fireless cookers are easy to make, time- and money-saving and safer than fires.
Celebrate 13 Healthy Babies Transitioning to Sponsorship
Mothers of 1-year-olds in the Survival program at KAG Githunguchu Church recently celebrated their children’s birthdays and transitioned into the home-based Child Sponsorship Program. Moms and toddlers will continue to receive health, nutrition, caregiving, and social and spiritual benefits at the center and in-home visits. Children will develop new strengths and skills as they receive support and encouragement from their sponsors. Enjoy these snapshots of some of the healthy children entering the Sponsorship Program.
-
- Abigael and her mother
-
- Anastaciah and his mother
-
- Lawrence and his mother
-
- Mary and her mother
-
- Samuel and his mother
-
- Tyrene and her mother
Survival Program Spotlight: Spiritual Development
Compassion and its Frontline Church Partners are committed to making Christ the center of ministry efforts. Jesus is the core of our ministry, and his life and teachings shape our programs and reflect the spiritual commitments of our staff. They also guide how we love people, respect communities and cooperate with nations.
For Survival mothers, this crucial emphasis on spiritual development includes Bible study, prayer, hearing the gospel message, spiritual growth and discipleship, and opportunities to follow Jesus. During monthly home visits, the Survival Specialist encourages mothers and provides spiritual support and counseling as needed. In addition, mothers in the Survival program gather together to fellowship and worship, and often share the spiritual insights they have learned within their circles, influencing neighbors and, in turn, their community.
Growing From Strength to Strength
Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward them for what they have done. — Proverbs 19:17, NIV
Cedarbrook Community Church family, may God bless you for your support of the Survival program at KAG Githunguchu Church. Your generous gift continues to equip vulnerable babies, moms and their families with new skills and strengths. You are making a tangible impact on their lives! Thank you for your caring hearts and vision to share God’s love and grace to help release children from poverty in Jesus’ name.