Where did you visit?
I travelled to Kenya in November 2014 with Compassion UK.
How long were you there? And what did the schedule roughly look like?
In total, I was away for six days, although I was only actually in Kenya for five. We left England on the Thursday morning and arrived in Kenya very late Thursday evening. We spent Friday and Saturday at different Compassion projects – Friday was spent with a group of mothers from the Child Survival program and Friday we spent time with children from the Child Development program. On Sunday we worshipped at a local church (that was also partnered with Compassion! The children from the project came and sang for us, as well as reciting some memory verses!). After church we went to Nairobi national park. On Monday we spent the day at another Compassion project, where we looked more at the Respond ministry (for example, the provision of clean drinking water and the impact this had on the local community). On Monday evening, we had dinner with some students from the Leadership Development Program. Tuesday was Child Fun Day, where we spent the day with our sponsored children at a local park. We then left Kenya on Tuesday evening and arrived back in the UK on Wednesday morning.
How many kids did you visit and what were their ages?
I met one child in Kenya. Her name is Dorcus and she is eighteen years old.
Did you feel like the language barrier was a hindrance?
I was under the impression, through her letters, that Dorcus could speak English pretty fluently. I had also been chatting in English to children and young people at the other projects we’d visited earlier in the week. However, Dorcus is incredibly shy so it was hard to maintain a conversation with her, but just being in her presence was more than enough. I was able to explain things to her and talk about different topics and she indicated that she understood. With some of the very small children, like at the CSP, it didn’t matter if we didn’t speak the same language as long as we would spend time with them!
What tips would you share for trying to connect with your child? Any questions you wish you had asked?
I think this largely depends on the child. Dorcus was incredibly shy so I purposely didn’t want to overwhelm her with questions. She seems to be much more comfortable communicating through letters, which is absolutely fine, and this absolutely doesn’t mean I regret going to meet her in person! Now that I’m back home and can process everything a little better, I can think of so many questions I would have liked to ask, but I have the amazing chance to ask these questions through the letters we exchange. When trying to connect with your sponsored child, I try and keep my letters quite chatty, in an age-appropriate way. I find it much easier to express what I am trying to say in this way, rather than trying to be too formal. It sounds really cliché too, but just be yourself! These kids just want to know who you are.
Was this your first trip? If so, would you go again?
This was my first trip organised by Compassion, but not my first trip to a Compassion project. I would absolutely go again in a heartbeat. I can think of nothing more exciting than simply being in the same room as one of my sponsored children and hearing their voice!
If this wasn't your first trip, why did you decide to go on another?
When I returned from my first trip, I told everyone that would listen that I was done with travelling, but when the opportunity to travel with Compassion UK came up, I just couldn’t say no. There is something so special about spending that time face-to-face with your sponsored child that it’s an opportunity I would take again and again (and again and again!).
Would you recommend going on a trip with Compassion to see your kids?
Absolutely. Not only is seeing the work of Compassion an amazing experience, but getting to know the staff, both from the sending country and the visiting country, is indescribable. Knowing that there are people who know my sponsored child personally and genuinely have her best interests at heart brings me such peace. The staff that took us from the UK are amazing as well – I never once felt unsafe whilst I was there.
What was the most impactful thing you saw?
This is so hard – we saw so much in just a short space of time. At one of the projects, we met the grandmother of one of the beneficiaries of Compassion. This grandmother was the boy’s primary caregiver as both parents had moved away from the area. He wanted to stop attending the Compassion project but decided to continue attending when he found out that his grandmother was about to receive a water tank from Compassion. This water tank meant that this elderly lady wouldn’t have to walk miles to find clean water, but instead it would be right at her house. This lady was doubled over from damage caused to her back from years of carrying large bottles of water on her back, so what a blessing this was. We spent part of the afternoon collecting firewood for her, to give us a glimpse into what life was like for people in her area. When we returned with the firewood, this elderly lady was in tears because it meant she didn’t have to climb down the mountain to get it herself (at nearly eighty years of age!). That was a real defining moment for me, and I did have a cry to one of the other ladies on the trip at that point.
What was the highlight of the trip?
All of it. Even the really hard bits. The trip was incredible because of every single moment there, even the quiet moments where not a lot was going on. The “loud” moments like meeting my sponsored child or spending time with the LDP students wouldn’t have been the same without those quiet moments – spending time with each other as a group, people speaking words of encouragement to me, eating dinner with the girl I shared a room with! I wouldn’t change a single moment on that trip for anything.
And if you missed the previous posts, I encourage you to read about
* Jill's Travels to Nicaragua
* Jessi's Travels to Tanzania
* Terri's Travels to Haiti
* Katie's Travels to El Salvador
* Kerri's Travels to Nicaragua
* Judy's Travels with Compassion
* Megan's Travels to Honduras
