Differently-abled children (those with special needs and disabilities) face great hardship in the Kibera slum of Nairobi. They are often left at home while parents struggle to find daily work. Kapu Africa is blessed to partner with a nonprofit agency that includes the differently-abled in their ministry. We give them Tender Mercies, our nutritious bagged meal to feed their students.
Little Rock Inclusive Early Childhood Development Centre, founded in 2003, is dedicated to providing growth and learning to disadvantaged and special needs children living in Kibera. Their goal is for children to reach physical, emotional, and cognitive development milestones and gain school readiness skills. They work to touch each child in a unique way.
The children served by Little Rock IECD range in age from 3 years-old to third grade. Differently-abled children stay at the school past third grade. The other children transition into primary schools.
Here are the thanks of some of the parents:
"It is very sweet. It gives us energy and strength. If you eat it, it fills you and you don't feel hungry easily. We come and pick it from school especially the days we have no money to buy for our family a meal and it has really helped us. Thank you very much."
"We love it so much. It has really helped my family and they get to eat a healthy and balanced meal and it gives us the strength to carry out various activities. We are thankful to the donors and May God bless them and may they continue providing it for us."
"It has really helped my children and me. We eat it daily. My family has become healthy and strong. We are very thankful to the donors for providing us such delicious food."
"Since Corona started, my husband lost his job and Little Rock provided Tender Mercies for us and it is what helped us not sleep hungry. It has helped my daughter grow healthy and strong. She loves it so much. To top it off, it has a sweet aroma. Thank you very much and may God continue blessing you."
"I eat it daily for lunch and dinner. It is very sweet. You can add something like cabbage or greens to the meal. It also helped heal my wound and it gives me energy. Thank you very much and may God bless you and may he continue opening doors for you."
"It made me strong and healthy. It also helped my children very much. My son who is special needs has become very healthy and I am very happy. God bless you again and again."
And here are the comments of two students about Tender Mercies:
"It gives energy to the body. It helped me in class especially in concentration and remembering things. It helps my body do exercises well and gives me the needed energy. Thank you very much and may God bless you."
"It gives me the strength to go on with my day to day life. It has helped me grow healthy and strong. It helps in concentrating on things that you do especially in class.
Below, high school students meet every Sunday for Bible study, and then Little Rock IECD distributes the Tender Mercies for the students to prepare at home to share with siblings and family.
None of this would be possible without the generous support of our donors. The thanks in the comments above are directed toward you. In their words, we say, "Baraka" ("God bless" in Swahili).