What We Do in Kenya

I am often asked what we actually do while we are on a Kenya Keys trip. My answer is always that we do so many things - from visiting schools to planting trees (I always feel like a member of the royal family) from visiting old friends to long planning/brainstorming meetings. However one of the highlight is interviewing Kenya Keys sponsored students.

These students are almost always the first in their families to attend secondary school or high school. They are in a world that is foreign and unfamiliar as they try to navigate fee payments, transportation to their boarding schools, or even how to get the supplies they must have when there is little or no money. What should they do if there is a problem? Mom and Dad are not just a phone call away and are often not in a position to offer a solution. Interviews with visiting US team members or, more often, with the local Kenya Keys staff are a lifeline.

Students, especially those who are brand new to Kenya Keys, are quite shy and fearful at first. They don't want to say something that will jeopardize their sponsorship. The interviewer must first gain their trust. Only then can sensitive things like grades or health issues be discussed.

George spent almost the entire interview time with a student who was about to complete his degree in electrical engineering. Kindred spirits bonding over math and science!

I'm not sure who enjoyed the conversation more!

My job during interviews is to take photos.  It's so fun to coax a smile out of these bright young people.

An experience that Mark, our executive director had in October illustrates the importance of the interviews.  (written by Christy Russell, Kenya Keys US Staff member)

"When Mark sat down with Kenya Keys high school student Mwaka Sombo, he could not have anticipated the series of events her words would put into motion.

Mwaka didn’t want to bring it up, because she had already received glasses, but she still couldn’t see the chalkboard, and headaches came daily. As did toothaches, unfortunately. The throbbing in her jaw was relentless and distracting in class. And not that she was complaining, because she was grateful to be in school, but it was concerning that she and her classmates at the boarding school were losing weight; the meals were getting smaller, and so were they.

This is why Kenya Keys can’t just pay tuition for students and walk away. First, because we care so much about these students, and if they need new glasses or a tooth pulled, or if something really concerning is happening at their school, we want to hear them and help them find solutions. Second, because paying tuition and walking away wouldn’t work - perhaps some would be lucky enough to avoid a thousand pitfalls, but many would stall in their education when they didn’t have money for transportation to school, or they couldn’t untangle the error in the college’s electronic payment system, or when the government entirely changed the tuition payment protocol, or the online application was baffling and crashed repeatedly - all of which happened this year. In Kenya, as everywhere, young people succeed best when they can walk a brave, new path in the company of an experienced guide.

This is why we hire compassionate, committed, and capable local employees in Kenya who understand the obstacles these students face because they overcame them. And this is why we take teams of volunteers from the US to listen to these students and hear their stories, one-on-one, because when we unite our hearts, we end up in a better place.

Back to Mwaka, who made a 6-hour round trip to Mombasa in the company of Kenya Keys staffer Clemence to get new glasses. It was a process, but just look at Mwaka’s smile! A tooth was pulled, which was a relief. 

And soon 30 days of food were delivered to 600 students in 4 boarding schools and an orphanage."

Just in time to be sure they were well fed before their all important exams.

What better illustration of the importance of an interview!