Today was our day of rest, or as it has been rechristened by Melody - our "day of adventure"! Our driver had tried to so hard to make it possible to take us somewhere to ride a camel, but that hasn't happened. Instead, we did something WAYYYY cooler!
We kissed giraffes =)
This morning, we drove to a smaller town just outside of Nairobi called Karen. It is named after Karen Blixen (the author of Out of Africa), as it is where she resided and because of the great impact she had on the Kenyan people. In fact, her estate remains and has been converted into a museum.
Anyway, we went to the Giraffe Center (www.giraffecenter.org). The Giraffe Center was a sanctuary established to save the endangered Rothschild Giraffe. I loved it because it wasn't like a zoo - the giraffes have over 100 acres to roam and live. They have a building that sits on the edge of the sanctuary where you can stand and feed the giraffes pellets - they are so friendly and love you if you have treats in your hand. Apparently, it is the thing here to "kiss" a giraffe - hold a pellet between your lips and let the giraffe grab it. Haha - we had way too much fun taking photos and treating the animals. A man from the Giraffe Center gave us pellets and was great about letting us have all the time we wanted with the gorgeous creatures; he even suggested photo-ops and took one of our group for us. Soooo much fun!
After the Giraffe Center, we visited the Kazuri bead factory and shop. I had heard of Kazuri before coming to Kenya and saw the sign on our way to the Giraffe Center, so we went on a whim.
It was incredible!! You can see some of the beautiful work on their website and read about their story: www.kazuri.com
Some info about Kazuri:
Kazuri is a Swahili word meaning "small and beautiful".
Mission:
The mission of Kazuri is to provide and sustain employment opportunities for disadvantaged members of Kenyan society.
In order to achieve this we must produce top quality hand-made and hand-painted ceramic jewelery and pottery. This will ensure that we are well equipped to compete in both the international and local market place. The Kazuri workshop in Karen employs over 340 women, mostly single mothers.
It is equipped with a clinic, providing free medical care for the employees and their immediate families. Kazuri also absorbs 80% of medical bills for treatment received outside the factory clinic.
In the developing world of today’s Africa, the greatest contribution we can make is to create employment, especially for the disadvantaged and this remains our guiding philosophy. The result is reflected in the strength of the Kazuri Family and the beauty of our products.
The updated number is that Kazuri employs over 400 women, mostly single mothers. We were touched by their story and their mission to not only create livelihoods for these women, but also provide them with health care. We were able to tour the factory and speak with some of the women as they made the beads and pottery. Their handiwork is beautiful and they seem very proud of the product that they make. They were so kind to allow us to take pictures as we saw each step of the process. This company's story and membership with the World Fair Trade Organization made me eager to support them. (Kazuri also is a big supporter of a local Children's Home.) Each bead they create is stunning not only because it is one-of-a-kind, but also because of the mission behind them.
It was a great, relaxing day - but now we are ready to spend the rest of the evening preparing for VBS at the BCC tomorrow. (Our last Saturday.) I think the kids will love it - our focus is on Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and we will be making friendship bracelets for the kids to have.
Please continue to pray for:
- The logistics of possibly setting up a scholarship fund for the T.E.C. center
- Our team - health, spiritual strength
- Relationships that have been built
- VBS tomorrow
- Church on Sunday
- Monday - our "goodbye" day at the BCC. This is going to be a hard, hard day.
- The country/government of Kenya - there are some difficult struggles in trying to create their constitution
- Our families - I know they miss us, and us them! Pray especially for our Dads - Father's day is Sunday. Being here reminds me over and over again how blessed I am to have a father that is faithful in showing me my Heavenly Father. So many of these kids don't have that. Daddy - I love you. Thank you for being the very best father to me and loving me enough to show me Christ. And for loving Christ more than me, and supporting where He leads me.
