Today was a really exciting day from beginning to end. We woke up and had to be out by 5:30 in the morning for a sunrise safari from the Maasai warriors. During that safari, we saw some interesting animals, including leopards, elephants, hyenas, giraffes, antelopes, baboons, warthogs, and some lions eating a dead buffalo. We also ate breakfast there, which was delicious, and were swarmed by marabustok birds the whole time.
We then returned to the lodge for some lunch and a little time to relax before heading out on our second safari. This time we were hoping to see some rhino since they aren’t common but instead saw zebras, giraffes, cheetahs, ostriches, hyenas, lion cubs, living buffalo, gazelles, antelopes, warthogs, and elephants. We drove to this outlook which gave us a nice view of the valley and some photo ops, as well as an opportunity to hang out with one another. Lastly, we rode off into the sunset in our Jeeps, marking the end of our time on safari and our last full day of the trip.

-Aaron Hoogenraad

Hello to the reader. My name is Zak and I hope you have been enjoying our blogs of Africa. Today I get the honor and privilege to talk about our last day in Kenya. Today is our second day in the Maasai Mara and we got the chance to go on a safari. In the sun rise portion of our safari, we have seen many animals such as elephants, lions, gazelle, and many others. However the animal that was the highlight of the trip was the leopard. According to the Maasai Warriors who are touring us, leopards are one of the rarest animals to find due to their secrecy. During time when we saw the leopard, not only did we see one but we saw a mom and her cub. I felt a sense of pride and honor when I saw the two leopards. Along with the leopards, we saw a lion feasting on a buffalo, herds of elephants and their babies, groups of giraffes eating leaves off trees, and hundreds of cape buffalo grazing on grass. This safari meant so much to me because I’ve always wanted to go on a safari since I was just a little boy so actually being in Africa seeing the wildlife is truly a blessing. We stopped for breakfast near a tree in the middle of the grasslands for a break because we were all tired and hungry. When we ate, many animals surrounded us. There were topi, impala, and a type of bird called a marabustok. The marabustok kept creeping in on us trying to get our food. There were 8 of them that kept coming. Eventually when we got up, it spooked them causing them to shoo away. At the end of breakfast, a giraffe approached us and patiently waited us to leave so it can eat the leaves on the tree. When breakfast was finished we head for the camp. On our way back though, we made a pit stop at the Kenyan Tanzanian border. That is where I danced on the border line switching from Tanzania to Kenya. I also found a buffalo skull siting by a sign with two wildebeest skulls. I held it up and took a picture with it. By the time we got back to camp, it was already lunch time.

During lunch I conversed with friends and spoke with new friends. I befriended the man in charge of the bar, David, one of the waiters, Alex, and the lady who was our waitress, Roselyne. I found it very easy to make friends in Kenya. Once finished, I decided to take a walk around the camp and appreciate the scenery before we left for sunset portion of our safari. Our goal was to find a rhino. Although they are very rare, some people claim to have seen one. While we did look in the hot spot for rhino, our efforts were not rewarded. We only saw buffalo. What we did get was a view that over looked a grand piece of the plains. It was a very beautiful sight, especially with the clouds and the animals that roamed at the bottom. From there, we took a group picture and pictures of the valley. After the pictures we all went back into our cars and drove back to camp. On our way back to camp though, we ran into a huge herd of buffalo. It was so big that the herd surrounded us as we drove through them. The sunset in the distance continued to shine brighter and brighter as it turned into shades of pink, red, and orange. The light broke through the clouds. As we continued our way back, our long journey was rewarded. We have found cheetahs. And not just any cheetah, we found a mother and two brothers. They sat in the distance as the clouds buried the sun in the distance, making the image look like a painting. The cheetahs began to approach us, the spread themselves apart to cover more ground. They walked right past us and off onto the distance. When we caught up with them we found them standing on a mound of dirt as if they were seated on a throne, their mother being the queen and her two sons being the princes. It was magnificent and majestic to see these animals in their natural habitat. Seeing these animals close up made the kid me happy, it is as if I got to be a kid again. The finale to our trip was the sunset. Reds and pinks bled through the sky as the clouds covered the sun as a lone elephant walked in the distance. The clouds were highlighted yellow and red, tucking the sun away. As the sun hit the bottom of the horizon, the lights waved and swayed making the sky look like a river reflecting pink light. Colors exploded in the sky creating a master piece like no other. When the curtain I clouds shut and the show ended, we continued our way back to the camp.

This entire trip, from VBS to visits in the slums, from meeting my sponsor children to going to the Maasai Mara, this trip has not only opened my eyes to a whole new world but it has blessed my heart. I thank God for this experience because I got to spread His love and I get to tell this story to others to possibly influence them to do the same. Ending this trip has opened my eyes and it has made me grateful for the things I have. A saying that I made has truly changed my perspective on life. “People with nothing turn it into everything, people with everything turn it into nothing”. What this saying means is I take things for granted. I have everything I need in life to thrive and in my eyes I have taken so much of it for granted. There are people with hardly anything and they make it into everything they need. What I learned from this trip is to be grateful and joyous of what I have because there are people with hardly anything who are not complaining. So, it is with a gracious and thankful heart for me to say thank you to my God, supporters and my team. This trip could not have been the trip it is now without the people in it. These experiences could not have happened without them. I am truly blessed to have been a part of this trip. Thank you all, God bless.

-Zak Ramiro

What an incredible experience! No words to express the beauty of Kenya and its people!
It’s been a blessing to share my first time in country with this incredible team. It has been an honor to lead them! Always ready and with a smile on their faces to do what the Lord had for us. From their flexibility to adjust to “Kenya time”, to VBS, to the house visits, to the flight in the small planes on our way to the safari, never a complaint! The Lord has stretched us all  in different ways and as a team we were able to do His work.
The safari was another way to experience Kenya and see God’s creation in its element. It was a beautiful way to culminate this trip!
From the bottom of my heart I want to thank parents and families for trusting me with their children! You have done an amazing job raising these young adults! I can’t wait to see what the Lord has for them.

Blessings,
Señora

Thank you, Lord, for an amazing Kenya mission trip!  As you’ve probably read in the other blogs, we had a great time serving the MOHI learners and experienced an incredible safari.
Huge shout outs to our GO Ministry leaders on this trip- Lisa Mitchison and Jessica Luna! Your leadership, knowledge, and familiarity with everything that needed to happen was invaluable. To my fellow CCHS Kenya mission team leader, Señora Oddo,, thank you for your caring and direct leadership of our team. The way you led our learners demonstrated your love and care for them.  To our amazing CCHS team, you all were such a blessing, not only to the MOHI kids, but to families in the Mathare and Kiamaiko communities, the Maasai town of Talek, to the Maasai families during our visit to their village, along with your willingness to be flexible, to jump in with both feet, and your dependability to do it all with joy and  enthusiasm was incredible to witness. I have been so blessed to be a part of this team. To all of you back home praying for us, thank you for your love, and support!
Coach Scott

What can I say about this trip that fully expresses how special it has been? Throughout this week I have been able to see how the roots I’ve planted on previous trips have grown into something beautiful and I’ve also made new and beautiful memories. I’ve grown deeper in my relationships here, made new ones, and most importantly I’ve deepened my relationship with the Lord and found myself more in tune with his calling on my life. Today we flew into the Massai Mara which is undisputedly my favorite place in the entire world. Right as we landed I saw my good friend from last year Tinkoi. While we caught up I realized the importance of showing love to every single person because that is Jesus’ calling on our lives. I realized that not only did God intentionally create every single individual person I see passing by, but He loves all of them just as much as He loves me and everyone needs to know that kind of love. A few days ago I got to spend the day with my sponsor child from Marsabit, Sabdio. Seeing her has definitely been the highlight of my trip and getting to see how much the love from me and my family means to her really put my whole view on missions work into perspective. I can’t wait to come back to see her and the rest of my friends here (that are really beginning to feel like family) as soon as the Lord allows me to. So from my home in Corona, to the Mara, to the corners of Marsabit, there are 8 billion human beings intentionally made and beautifully loved by the creator of the universe and this trip has shown me that I need to share that beautiful love that has changed my life to as many as I possibly can.

-Caleb Roberts

The day started pretty much the same as the other days. We had to get up early for our flight and so we could get breakfast. The bus ride was really quick and fun, talking with friends and everything.

Once we got to the airport, it was such a long wait. Time passed rather quickly though talking to friends while waiting. After the wait, we got on our small planes since we got split into two separate groups. The plane ride itself was pretty quick and the view was beautiful! Apparently there was a giraffe that was there on lift off, but I missed it sadly.

When we landed, we were met by the Masai warriors. There was another giraffe at the place we landed at we could see, but it was a bit far away. After waiting a bit, we got in our vehicles and got to enjoy the sights on the ride to our lodge. Once we got there, we got to relax and eat lunch. Then we went out to the town to get our Masai blankets before we headed out to the Masai village. At the Masai village, they welcomed us with their cultural dances before they took us into their village. Once inside, the Masai people explained how their tribe worked, including hoe they make their houses. After that, we were shown their little shops that we could buy things from, and we could even buy the Masai swords directly from the Masai warriors. Once we had finished shopping, we went back to the lodge for dinner.

The dinner we had was great, and after that, we went to bed early so we could get up early enough for the safari day.

-Erek Novak

Today we had the opportunity to go to two schools, Kiamaiko Main & Kiamaiko Ngei, and read to the PP1 (preschool) to 4th grade classes. We started at Kiamaiko Main for our first rotation. My group (Chris, Zak, and I) started in the PP1 B class and since they were too little to fully understand English we were also accompanied by two 8th graders from the school, Elden and Dannie. As we took turns reading a page they were able to translate for the kids. After we read, we then surprised the kids with bubbles! They were so excited and joyful, it was so much fun to watch them jump around and laugh as they popped the bubbles! Afterwards we moved onto our next class, 4B (fourth graders). I was so excited because I had remembered this class from our first day of VBS and they had remembered me too! I was so happy to see them again! Not only did we read and blow bubbles, but with this class we also taught them how to play Heads-Up-Seven-Up! Chris lead it out, Zak walked around to make sure the class wasn’t looking (despite his efforts all of them were), and the teachers and I were able to play with them! It was so much fun!! Afterwards, we got on the bus and drove to the next school, Kiamaiko Ngei. For our first rotation in this school we had Charine, a 9th grader, to help us as we read to the 1B class (first graders). After blowing bubbles, we had enough time to play rock-paper-scissors before the bell rang. Then, for our last rotation, class 4B, we had Jimmy, an 8th grader, to help translate. Although in this class, after reading, we had a big rock-paper-scissors tournament, sang songs and danced with the class! Overall, VBS was so much fun!!

After lunch, we went up to the rooftop where the MOHI learners and staff gave us a send off with dancing, singing, and prayer. Afterwards, we got on the bus and drove to a market. Here we were able to spend some time walking around and buying souvenirs. Once it was time to go, we jumped back on the bus, drove to Java to get milkshakes & smoothies, and went back to Grace House to do our daily debrief and eat dinner.

-Angelina Nunez

Today was our last day at Kiamaiko with the kids. Sienna, Tali, and I were all together and we got to read stories to PP2 through grade 3. We started off at Kiamaiko Main and it was such a wonderful experience because we would read in English and then a middle school student in MOHI would translate to Swahili for the kids. In the first class, with PP2, the little kids all swarmed us laughing and jumping when we brought out bubbles so they could pop them! In the second class, with grade 3, we ended up having a full on dance party and they taught us like 10 songs and dances, both in English and Swahili! Then, we took chai as a team and headed to Kiamaiko Ngei to do two more rotations of reading! The first class we were with was PP2, and they sang so loud and recited around 5 Bible verses in unison for us from memory! The wonderful translator Whitney was so sweet and I was able to spend some quality time just talking to her and getting to know who she is and what she likes to do, which was one of my favorite parts of my day. Then we went to our final class, which was grade 3. After we read to them, we sang, played Simon says, and had a rock paper scissors battle, which got so intense. When the last kid won, we all jumped and screamed for him! Then, we took lunch and headed to the roof for our farewell. There was a group of students who prepared a dance for us and each kid came and grabbed our hands and we all danced with them! We prayed and another group of students came and presented us with 2 dances. After, the MOHI staff and students gave us cake and we got to spend some time with sponsor kids. The MOHI Staff and students presented us with Maasai blankets and sent us off. I had to say goodbye to the social worker Joyce who I made friends with over the serve days and it was sad to leave all the wonderful people I have grown to know and love this week. Our team then headed to the market to do a little bargain shopping! One moment that stands out from the market was when I was able to pray over this man who sold me some treasures. He was so kind and I was sharing with him about what we had been doing to evangelize in the slums and with the MOHI kids and he was so happy praising God! We headed back to Grace House and walked to the YaYa center to go to Java and ate some delicious chocolate cake – shout out Soph! The night ended with a special farewell dinner outside at Grace House! This day like the others was so beautiful and memorable and I am so speechless for the amount of love, joy, and blessings I have received and been shown from strangers who call me family.

-Tegan Smith

Today has been a day full of constant joy and laughter. Caleb did his devotion this morning and mentioned a verse from hebrews 13 “ And don’t forget to do good and to share with those in need. These are the sacrifices that please God”. We started the day with doing worship on the roof of Kiamiko Ngei for about 30 minutes, and it was so beyond beautiful. Then we went straight into VBS for the 7th, 8th, and the 9th graders in Kiamiko. In my first rotation with Rennatah we got through making the origami super slow and ran out of time. During the second rotation the kids already knew how to fold the paper so it went by so fast. Rennatah and I ended up playing Simon Says with the group and they were so excited to play a super fun game with us. When VBS was over we went straight into the boardroom and took chai with the team for about an hour. After taking chai we started doing home visits. Kalea, Chris, and I are in the same home visit group and we are so blessed to go into one home today. We were able to pray over Phoebe and Sammy and the rest of the family for peace over the home and health for the mother. After home visits we took lunch and drove back to gracehouse. When we got back we all sat and prepped for tomorrow and did our circle up and went over the day that we had. After debrief we went over to Yaya and went to the market and Java house where we got milkshakes and muffins, and ended the day with dinner.

-Timmy Marshman

Today we started off with us huddling before we left and Caleb gave us a devo, and we prayed over our day and left to go to a MOHI school, in Kiamaiko Ngei. We came here to do a VBS for 7th-9th graders, I was pretty nervous to do this VBS because these kids were older and very close to my age however once we got there and did the first stations it was so much fun! We started off by doing worship on the roof and it was so fun, they showed us a song they do for worship and we showed them some songs we do for worship. When we started VBS, I was partnered up with Sienna to make cootie catchers, we started with the 9th graders and when we walked in they were very quiet however as we were going over the steps with them, they started to ask for help and warmed up to us. We all wrote questions in the catchers to ask to each other. Once we finished creating them we were all so excited to play because we all wanted to know about each other, then the bell rang and we had to switch to the 7th graders. We went through the process of teaching them and they had a lot of fun making them. I wrote in my catcher “Messi or Ronaldo” because I know they like soccer and they really liked that question, all of the kids answered “Ronaldo” and when I was leaving they asked me “Messi or Ronaldo” and I said “Ronaldo” and they all laughed and then the bell rang and we switched to the 8th graders and this was my last and favorite class. The second we walked in they all started cheering and clapping and I was so happy to know that they actually liked us. We made the catchers and then we took a picture with them and they started raising their hands so that they could play the game with us to know us better. I was having so much fun asking and answering their question, they asked me if I had any pets and I showed them pictures and they loved them so much, they were so energetic and fun then the bell rang and we said bye and they all were yelling bye.

After we took a 10 minute break and had chai! We then went in our groups to do home visits, my group was Timmy, Christopher and 2 social workers from MOHI. Each social worker had a kid that we walked home, and one of the kids we walked home was Ava’s sponsor child named Sammy. We walked home one of the children but we didn’t get to meet the family because the mom wasn’t home. Then we went to Sammy’s home and his mom was there and she humbly invited us in her name was Phoebe. One of the the social workers talked to her a little bit and then I asked her how she was and she said good and I asked her how life was and she said it was going and then Christopher asked about her husband and his job and she asked for us to pray for that. Then I asked her if there was any thing else that we can pray over her for and she said her other kids tuitions, for more income, and for her sickness. Then Chris, Timmy and I prayed over her, her family, and her requests and she was so thankful for us being able to pray over her. Then it started to rain and the social workers said that we had to go back to the school, and I was sad because we couldn’t go back to the first house but the time we spent with Phoebe was really nice.

Once everyone got back from the home visits we got on the bus to go Grace House to debrief for the day. We debriefed and talked about our day’s and then we went to the Yaya center markets and I got some earrings and then we went to Java house and I got a black forest cake with a strawberry milkshake. Then we went back to Grace house and I hung out in the roof top of the hotel with Tegan, Caleb, Angelina, Rennatah and Erek and then we ate dinner!

Overall today was such a lovely day and I feel so blessed to be here and God is constantly showing me so many things through the kids, the people, and the environment around me. I feel so loved by everyone and I can’t wait for tomorrow!

-Kalea York

Today I was getting ready and I was met with the best surprise…THE RAIN! The morning was beautiful and it was so fun to experience a rainy Kenya because I never had before. When we got to the school the kids were singing the “Jambo” welcome song which was so cool because it is one a lot of us know so we got to sing along. They led us up to our break room and then we got ready to start.

I started on the top floor with the older kids. I am on story team so my job was to share our missions verse (Matthew 13:44). With the older kids we made cootie catchers which they are actually so good at. Then as a puppets team we ran down the multiple flights of stairs to see the littlest kids. With them we did a story with puppets. The kids are so funny with the puppets. We put them against the windows before going in and they freak out. All of the rotations I did were so much fun and very successful as I was able to teach the kids that Jesus is in their hearts and he loves them so much!!

After we went into our break room for chai and samosas (which are the best things on the planet). We figured out that because of the rain we wouldn’t be able to do home visits which was sad but it meant we were able to go to each grade for 10 minutes and hang out again! This was so cool because we got to just interact with the kids. I ended up teaching the kids to do the splits which was hilarious.

The next thing on the agenda was dinner and this morning we got an amazing surprise. They announced that we would be going to Mary and Wallace’s house (the founders and heart behind MOHi). This was such a cool/unique/strange/amazing experience. Dinner was so so good. We had “Ken-mex” and Mexican food is the way to my heart so let’s just say I was ecstatic 🙂 After dinner we got to debrief our time here in Kenya with the couple along with ask them questions. It was surreal talking to them. They are such incredible people with so much wisdom to share. This whole trip has been so unreal and this day was just the icing on the cake!

-Sophie Metter

Today started off amazing, we were greeted with a breezy rainy morning as we were getting ready. Today was our second day of VBS at Kiamaiko. I am on the tattoo team, which we are able go to the classes and are able to interact with the kids level PP1 to Grade 4! Each grade is really different and amazing in their own way and it’s so amazing to be able to interact with their classes one on one. Usually after giving them all their sticker tattoos we have a lot of spare time to get to know them and for them to get to know me too! They like to ask me what my favorite color is, my pets and their names and seeing my parents and my siblings.

After we did VBS we had lunch, which is always such a good time to just chill and hangout with my peers. It’s when everyone comes together and tells what their experiences during VBS were. It’s so fun to hear stories from others and laugh together during this time.

Once we were finished with our lunch, Dennis, our main Social Worker, let us know that we would not be able to do house visits since it was a little flooded because of the rain earlier that day, and that we would have some extra class time with the kids, to just let us and them be ourselves inside the classroom. I would walk into the class and they would always have such a joyful expression on their faces. They would start by introducing themselves, and then I would do the same. After that I would have to fill in the time with some games or questions. The games I played with them were Simon Says, I had picked one of the kiddos to be Simon so it wouldn’t just be me, we jumped and sat, and then we would have a tic-tac-toe tournament, I had 2 kids come up to the board and play each-other, the winner got to pick who they played against. It was so fun because they would have the whole class invested in their choices and where they put their X or O. Finally at the end of the period of time, I would eventually say goodbye and they would be so upset but we took some pictures all together and I got some videos of us. It’s so amazing having the opportunity to interact with them a lot more closely.

Then, after all our small rotations were over, we also had the great opportunity to go over to the Junior High just a few streets away from Kiamaiko. We were able to do a small tour of the class and join in on one to introduce ourselves and just talk to the students there. Erek and I went into one of the classes together, and we stood there awkwardly for a few minutes but after that they started to ask us questions and it was just so connecting.

Finally, we had been informed earlier in the day that the founders of MOHI would be in country, which was very rare, and they had invited us over to their home to have dinner which is insanely honoring to be able to be invited into their home to have dinner. We had a very delicious meal and were all in community. Right after, we had our debrief with Mary and Wallace. We talked about our experiences, our highs and lows and we were able to ask them questions. It was so emotional but so blessed to have been there with them, talking about our experiences about the schools and the slums, about the children and the staff and how incredibly blessed we are to just be here and serve them. It was such an honor to have been in their home, to pray over them and MOHI and gain advice from them, and from each other. It was such an amazing day of experience and learning, blessings and prayer. God truly is at the center of everything.

-Rennatah Villegas

Today was a wonderful start to VBS. Though stressful, everyone did great running each classroom individually. I had the pleasure of being a part of the story/puppets team and was able to share our theme verse of Matthew 13:44 with so many kids, and ask them tons of questions! The kids had so much fun in every single rotation, and many of them sang me their songs and recited their favorite Bible verses. After getting to spend that time with all the kids, we had the pleasure of doing home visits once again. I got to visit two homes of kids from Kiamaiko school, and kids walked to their home with me. Both families were reliant on the grandmothers, who supported their grandkids in all of their expenses. They were so welcoming and gracious. After home visits, I was surprised to be able to spend a little bit more time with my sponsor kid, and though he was very quiet, it was a huge blessing. It was a huge success all around, I’m so so proud of the whole team, and I can’t wait for tomorrow!

-Shane Fitzgerald

Today was an amazing and special day! We started our morning with breakfast from Grace House which was amazing!! Then we did our morning circle up which included a great devotional from Caleb! We then all got on the bus and headed to Kiamaiko for our first day of VBS!! Once we arrived we were greeted with a very warm welcome!! There were lots of kids outside of school to greet us with a song welcoming us! We then started worship with the kids and got to sings praise songs with them! Then we went straight in and started VBS rotations! I was on craft team so I got to hangout with the kids and do coloring pages with them! It was so nice getting to talk with the kids and get to know them!! Then we moved on to doing home visits! This was a really cool experience because I got to reconnect with someone I meant last year! Her name is Joan and she attends MOHI in the eighth grade! She joined me on house visits last year and she was able to again this year! It was really special getting to see her again and getting to know her more! We also got to go to her own home and meet her mom! Then when we got back to MOHI I was able to meet up with my sponsor kid again and have lunch with her! It was so special getting to spend more time with her! We then made our way back to Grace House for the evening! It was really nice to have some down time and hangout with a bunch of different people on the team! Overall, today was an amazing day!

-Autumn Bell

Today was filled with lots of fun! We started the day off with devotion which I had the honor of leading out, then we headed straight to orientation at Pangani. At orientation we were able to learn about MOHI, how it started and their mission for the next few years. After orientation we headed to the slums where we did house visits! Here my team was able to go to a house within the slums and pray over a woman who needed job provision and a peace of mind. This was a really cool experience and something that I will definitely never forget. Then we were able to get a tour of the school! This was really cool because every classroom that you went into the kids welcomed you! All the teachers were so sweet and very welcoming! After the house visit we had a very delicious lunch, thanks to the staff at Pangani. After lunch we got to see our sponsor kids! This was so much fun and such a special time. I got to meet my sponsor kid Peter which was really special. After time with our sponsor kids, some of us did some shopping at the MOHI store which was really cool! Overall, today was full of joy! I loved how every single kid you saw just wanted to hug you and give you a high five, it was amazing!!

-Maddie Shaver

Today was so fun! We started off with an amazing (as always) breakfast at Grace House. Today, we went to Pangani Headquarters to do our orientation, go do some house visits, and meet with our sponsor kids! Orientation was long, but so so good. There we heard the history of MOHI and how it was founded. It is so inspiring to hear a story about how God has worked through people to bless others. We listened to the goals of MOHI and the plan for its future. Next, we went into the slums of Nairobi to visit some families in their homes and pray for them. On the way to the families house, we walked past the area that had flooded last year. It is rare to see so much empty space in the slums, as everything is so crammed. But, the space is in use! People have started to plant crops and rebuild homes. In the families home, we met with a mother, father, and son. We listened as the son told us about his upbringing through MOHI! It was such an amazing success story to hear. All of his siblings were also in MOHI schools, and are all now in university. The father talked about his experience with MOHI and missionaries, and expressed his gratitude for us and for this program. After, we met with our sponsor kids. I got to meet Garvin for the first time! He is my friend groups sponsor child who we sponsored last month! It was so so amazing to meet him and he is SO CUTE! I might be biased, but I think he’s the best 🙂 I also met with my family’s sponsor children, Judy and Isaac! It was so fun to see them again and to talk about everything that’s happened in the year that we’ve been apart. Through these experiences today, my appreciation and love for MOHI just keeps growing. I am so grateful for everything they do for families all around Kenya. So now I am counting down the days until I can see Judy, Isaac, and Garvin again.

-Sienna Thomas

Chris Scott

I have had a very interesting beginning of the Kenya trip. I had unfortunately gotten a small cold the day we departed for Kenya. However, God blessed me with the patience I needed to push through, and He is continuing to heal me quickly. The traveling days were not too bad. Most of us were able to pass the time and get through the two 9 hour flights. We then arrived at Grace house (which has incredible food by the way) and got some rest. Today, we went to a church service where we sang Kenyan worship songs, danced, had our own worship team members sing a song, and listened to the pastor’s message about having faith when waiting for the LORD. The message was really good and the people there were incredibly welcoming and kind. After church we then went to a small market where we bartered for a variety of things from bracelets to daggers. Overall, things are off to a great start and I can’t wait to see the other things God has in store for us.

Tali Rizkallah

Today was our first day in Kenya! We had breakfast and went to church, which was super fun. There was a lot of dancing and singing, and worship team really jumped in, even when we weren’t fully planning to sing a song. After, we went to Java and got some drinks, then went back to Grace House and had lunch. Once we finished lunch, we walked to the market! It was super overwhelming at first, but once we did a walk-through, I felt pretty good with Sienna and Angelina. We bargained and bartered quite a bit, and we all bought some stuff! I got a couple things for myself and my family. Overall, we had a great time today and I can’t wait for tomorrow!