See our top 10 photos from 2024, showing how your generosity has impacted the lives of young women and children in rural Kenya! Faith shares what she has learned in the classroom at Neema and what she plans to do with her tailoring skills after graduation.
Hellen, Neema Counselor and Social Worker, says, “Getting education empowered me as a woman with knowledge and skills which I also use to empower the young girls at Neema.”
The graduates said that Neema has really transformed their lives. They not only learned new skills through the training, but they also developed a personal relationship with God thanks to the morning and evening devotions at Neema, and felt that the counseling services increased their self-esteem and improved how they relate with others.
“I used to do casual work, I saved and I started a business frying chips, but it did not end well, so there was this day that I prayed to God and told him that I needed work. Like two weeks later there was an advertisement [for work at Neema]. I checked the requirements and decided to give it a try and through God's doing I was employed.”
As a teenager, Winnie was abandoned by her father and her mother passed away. She had to drop out of school by 9th grade because she lived in extreme poverty and couldn’t afford school fees. Like many vulnerable young women in rural Kenya, she became pregnant.
While at Neema, young women (and their children) are provided with essential medical care that would otherwise not be accessible. Transportation to healthcare centers ensures that students and children can visit doctors, undergo imaging and testing, and receive physical therapy when needed.
Eunice, Neema’s Business Skills Development Mentor, says, “My relationship with God has been everything in my life. It has helped me to never give up and through church I was able to get a friend who directed me to Neema to apply for this job position.”
"I came here with a lot going on in my life feeling so stressed but I am leaving here healed and better at heart.” - Esther, a guardian to one of our first-year students
Eunice has a great passion for seeing young women’s lives transform. She explains how much she loves seeing young women becoming new versions of themselves.
Ruth has a very special connection to Neema—she was once a student. As a former student, Ruth knows better than most the positive impact Neema can have on the young women that go through Neema. Life growing up was not easy for Ruth. Neither of her parents had a job, and they had to do casual work in order to support their family. Ruth went to school until eighth grade, but she was unable to do her final exams as they could no longer afford school fees.
I had never been to Africa, although I had a desire. Well, God decided it was time. From the very first time I heard about Neema I had a burning desire to go. I had never been on a mission trip and was concerned with how I could contribute. When I was told that all that was required was a true interest and compassion for these girls, I knew I could do that.
In Kenya, while public schools are technically free, families still bear the burden of costs for textbooks, uniforms, lunch, and other fees. For families surviving on less than $2 a day, these expenses are impossible. And when children attend school, they are unable to contribute to the family income, making it even harder for families living in extreme poverty to justify sending a child to school.
Now families are equipped with permaculture education to start small-scale businesses that boost household income and improve their children's futures. From their new crops, families are improving nutrition, generating income from selling extra produce, and cutting expenses on produce. This not only alleviates food insecurity, but also empowers families to send their children to school. When families can afford to pay school fees, children will access a higher education level that can empower them out of poverty.
Neema isn’t just about education — it’s about finding new life in Christ. Young women discover love, forgiveness, and a path to a brighter future — one built on a foundation of faith and the unwavering support of a caring community.
At the crack of dawn, girls like Naomi fetch water from communal wells, tend to crops in the fields, and prepare for their trek to school. But growing up as a girl in rural Kenya requires resilience.
We feel extremely grateful that 153 people from 12 countries supported Neema’s Solidarity Stomp this past weekend, and took a stand for young women in Kenya. We are extremely grateful for this show of support! Thanks to YOU, our students and their children will continue to access life transformative medical care. See below to see photos from this year’s virtual run!
“We wanted Lilian to join Neema because we were not able to get her through education,” says Francis, Lilian’s father. “[My wife] Leah became very sick [last year], and [Lilian’s sister was already] ahead of her in school, so the financial strain made us decide to send Lilian to Neema instead of traditional school.”
After completing eighth grade of traditional school, Lilian had no choice but to drop out—with a total of six children and her mother unable to work, it was not feasible for the family to pay for school supplies to keep each child in school.
With nine children under their roof, Ruth and Faith's family relies on casual work to put food on the table. Allowing their daughters to be at a school is a sacrifice for them since the girls can’t bring in additional income by doing casual labor. But after three years at Neema, their skills in tailoring and permaculture farming will be critical to provide for their parents and siblings.
After learning that not all families are able to experience the joys of reading due to lack of access and funds, first grade students at Delaware County Christian School in Pennsylvania created counting books for the twenty children at Neema. The mothers at Neema loved having an opportunity to read to their children!
