More personal stories.

Judith Ojiwa’s story

When Judith Ojiwa first came to the Chapel, she was a picture of dire grief and distress. The pain and anguish caused by many years of appalling hardships was evident as she recounted her troubled past.

Her ordeal began in 1995 when her husband of 13 years suddenly committed suicide. He had just lost his job, and in quick succession their suburban home in unfair circumstances that involved a close relative. Faced with an uncertain future and left with 8 children to care for, Judith determined to seek help from her in-laws in the hope that they would sympathize with her and be supportive.

At first all seemed to go well, perhaps due to the grief that they all shared and the strong family ties through her children. But when cultural issues came to the fore, the situation took a downward path for the worst.

A sharp dispute arose one day, when her in-laws suggested that she become the fourth wife to her late husband’s cousin, in keeping with their customary requirement of wife inheritance. But Judith declined this, citing her Christian faith. Her in-laws would have none of this and kept goading her to either change her mind or leave, for anyone who defied this custom was considered ‘accursed’.

Despite the threats, Judith stuck to her guns, hoping that the issue would die down. But it was not to be. Her in-laws realizing that she would not yield to their demands turned hostile and banished her from the home. To add insult to injury, they disinherited her of her late husband’s birthright.

Food was a rarity
Bruised and heartbroken, Judith fled with her children to Nairobi in August 1999, where they struggled to make ends meet while living in abysmal conditions. Food was a rarity and furniture a luxury. Crime was the norm in the area they now called home, though they actually owned nothing worth stealing. It was basically a hand-to-mouth existence. With no relatives to turn to or the security of a father, life in the city was very hard for the children, but they had to move on, one day at a time.

Soon however, Judith, who is a trained pre-school teacher, landed a job in an AIDS orphans center in Olympic estate. The income she received helped a great deal to improve their livelihood. Shortly after, a friend helped her secure a better paying job at Homes Children International, where she worked until 2003. With the income from the new job, Judith was able to move the family to a better neighborhood. She could also afford to take them to better schools, and was able to acquire household goods and chattels. The family was doing pretty well and was becoming accustomed to the comforts of life. But unbeknownst to her, Judith was about to face her toughest trial since her husband’s demise.

Fears were confirmed
In 2003, the Narc Government which had just swept to power on a popular wave, made good its promise and introduced free primary education country wide. While for many this was a cause for celebration, for Judith, it was a cause for worry. Her fears were confirmed shortly afterwards, when she received a termination letter from her employer who was closing up following the transfer of many children to government schools.

Over the next couple of years, Judith grappled with the monumental task of being an unemployed single mother of 8. The family was forced to relive the horrors of penury that had once characterized their past. The situation got from bad to worse as some of her children dropped out of school and her rent arrears kept rising. At times the family would go for days on end without a morsel of food.

As she agonized over her misery, the unthinkable happened: Her landlord whose patience had worn out evicted her and seized all her property. Judith could no longer take this. She was in bad shape. Depression had set in, to the extent that all she could see was an endless vista of pain, grief and rejection. She had reached the end of her rope. She abruptly decided to end it all to escape this pain, just like her husband had done. But first, she would pray. Perhaps God would hear her, she thought. If he did, she would find the will to live; if not, she would die.

It so happened at that time that a friend who had heard of Judith’s plight offered her house for the 2 weeks she would be away. This came as a great relief for Judith and her family. The 2 weeks turned out to be the exact period that Judith needed to get some money and find a different house where her family lives to this day. By a remarkable twist of fate, she realized that she did not have to die after all, for God did care for her. Though all her troubles did not end then, the experience gave Judy a reason to live and hope and to appreciate the fact that God was concerned about her well being and her future.

Came to the Chapel
One day, as Winnie (her third born daughter) was walking along a road, she spotted the Chapel’s sanctuary and resolved to speak to the pastor concerning her family. Having dropped out of school due to poverty, she had spent much time at home and was eagerly looking for a sponsor.

The church was more than willing to help, for the sake of the family. Winnie’s dream of rejoining school was realized while her mother, Judith was given a day job as crèche care taker (on Sunday) and assistant to the children’s pastor (on Wednesday). The church also donated some money for starting a sustainable enterprise that would afford them a livelihood. Judith has since begun a fruit business that is run by her second born son, Chrispine who completed high school in 2004. She hopes to see it grow into a large business enterprise.

With regard to her in-laws, Judith, 42, has no hard feelings. She has decided to let bygones be bygones and get on with life. But she has no misgivings about her decision to shun the marriage offer, for she has since learned that the would-be suitor died of AIDS.

Judith’s countenance has also changed for the better since she came to the chapel. She is very thankful to the Lord for using the chapel to embrace her family and restore her dignity. All that she hopes for now is to see 2 of her boys join high school, like Winnie.

James 1:27 “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world”.

Grace Muganda’s story

The double tragedy of losing her parents was a crushing blow to Grace and her siblings. But even as they struggled to come to terms with this misfortune, it quickly dawned on them that they were no longer welcome at their relatives’ homes.

Grace has vivid recollections of how stern-faced relatives would confront and shoo them away, whenever they approached to ask for help. “They treated us like outcasts,” she recalls painfully, “We were like a curse.” When the situation got desperate, they would trudge to the market place day after day, to gather left-over omena (Daaga)for their meals.

As the specter of starvation loomed large, Grace together with her siblings left for Nairobi, to look for an opportunity to work or return to school. But getting aid was no easy matter, as she was soon to learn. She vividly recalls an incident in which a government official promised to fast track her request for bursary, only if she would acquiesce to his crude demands. “When I went to see our chief to get a bursary form, he wanted to exploit me, but I declined,” she recalls.  This incident revolted her so much that she gave up on the whole idea.  

Afterward she sought help in other places, moving from one institution to another, with no success. One day, as she was walking past our site on Ngong Road, she was drawn by the sound of prayer coming from the sanctuary. Unsure of how she would be received, she stopped, said a silent prayer and walked in…

Grace is set to rejoin school in January (2007). She aspires to be a surgeon and desires to see the many other orphans, who are trapped in the same predicament, find relief. Grace currently lives with her elder brother in Kibera, Mashimoni.  

Faith Wanja’s Story

Faith’s story is about a gritty young girl who fought against overwhelming odds to realize her dream of going back to school.

Faith grew up with her sister and brother in a single-parent setting in Nairobi, where her mother worked hard to give them a decent life and good education. But as fate would have it, she soon passed on, leaving them under the care of her relatives in Embu.

Adjusting to life after their mother’s demise wasn’t easy for the three. And to make matters worse, they had to cope with hostility from their aunts. The constant friction and mistreatment forced her elder sister to leave school early and become a house help. “Our aunts took advantage of us,” recalls Faith. “Our brother left after being treated badly. My sister only managed to reach Std. 6, after which she left for Mombasa to become a house help.” This trend was to repeat itself in her own life when she completed her primary education. Against her wish, she was sent to Nairobi to become a house help.

It is at this point that Faith began to show her grit and determination. For one year, she worked as a house help and quit her job only after a well wisher had helped secure admission to a day school in Riruta area. Soon however, Faith ran out of money. “I had saved some money which I used to buy my school uniform and personal things. I found myself without a place to stay, so I had to sleep on the floor of a church with other homeless people,” she remembers.

And this was how she lived until a “concerned member” of the church offered to host her and pay her school fees. But to her utter shock and dismay his real motive became clear when he begun to make advances on her. When she declined, the irate host kicked her out, plunging her once again into destitution.

By this time, Faith had begun to attend service at the Chapel. One Sunday afternoon after the service, Faith approached a church member for assistance. “I wanted to get employed as a house help so that I could save some money and resume school,” she says of the incidence. “But the lady took me to one of the church pastors after assuring me that I didn’t have to work to go back to school.”

Faith is presently a boarder at Ekalakala Secondary School, Machakos and spends her holidays with Tumaini Ladies Integrational Program (TULIP), Nairobi. She is working hard to become a doctor. In the mean time, efforts are being made to reconcile her to her relatives.

Julia Wanjiku’s story

At 14, Julia Wanjiku can barely recall the harsh moments that marked the break up of her family. Being a toddler may have spared her the pain of seeing the devastation wrought by her dad when he deserted the family after selling everything they owned and taking a new wife. None-the-less the last born of 5 children could not escape the consequences of her dad’s actions as she grew up.

Following the painful break up, her distraught mother could not bear the weight of the family alone. She left Julia under the care of her grandmother in Kiambu and moved to Nairobi’s Kibera slum where she eked out a living selling charcoal. Julia was to spend the better part of her childhood away from her mother and siblings.

After successfully completing her primary education, Julia rejoined her folks in Nairobi. But given her mother’s meager income, she had little prospect of joining High School.
She well remembers how she walked, along with her mother from one place to another looking for sponsorship, and at one point almost giving up. “I had no hope of joining secondary school,” she says matter-of-factly, “We went to four different churches but could not find help.”

Undeterred by her daughter’s frustration, Julia’s mother kept moving, hoping that the next stop would perhaps be her final one. One Sunday in March, both mother and daughter came to Chapel to ask for assistance. They were directed to the benevolence ministry and a short while later, their request was granted.  Julia received a full scholarship!  

Julia joined Zion High School, Kajiado in June (2006), and aims to be a doctor. She spends her school holidays with her family in Kibera Laini Saba.

Winnie Ojiwa’s story
The mention of her father rekindles old memories that bring tears to her eyes. Amid sobs, Winnie recounts the woes that befell her family following his tragic death in 1995.

The first sign of trouble appeared in the form of a major row between her mother and her in-laws, when they proposed that she become a wife to her late husband’s cousin – a suggestion she would not accept. Winnie vividly recalls the harsh moments that transpired, resulting in their banishment from their rural home. “There was a clash between mum and our relatives over wife inheritance. But mum did not want it. Our relatives became angry and took everything dad had left,” she recounts.

Down and out, her family was forced to live in abject poverty, in the midst of the crime-prone slums of Kibera. Winnie dropped out of school for lack of school fees, and together with her siblings, resorted to odd jobs just to scrape by.

But Winnie could not face up to a future without education. Deep within, she yearned to go back to school, so that she could better her chances in life. So from time to time, she would go out to look for sponsorship opportunities, only to return home disappointed.  

In February 2006, when she was at the point of giving up, Winnie chanced upon the Chapel’s sanctuary while walking along Ngong Road. Eager to know if the church would help, Winnie joined the service and waited for an opportunity to speak to the pastor. “I had prayed to God to guide my steps ... When I saw the tent one Sunday, I decided to investigate. I sat at the back and noticed that it was easy to talk the pastor,” she recalls. 

Winnie was referred to the Benevolence Ministry, and a series of interviews and home visits later, her request was granted. A joyous Winnie joined Imprezza High School in June 2006. She aspires to be a lawyer.