I Will Be The Change

"We were the pride of the community. All the parents wished and prayed that their children would have a chance to go to MOHI. We had Christian values and got good grades," says Lucy as she reminisces about her time at our Napuu center.

Lucy joined MOHI in grade two as soon as the school opened. She was among the first children to be recruited. Lucy and her family had a sense of ownership and pride in the school.

She fondly remembers her years at Missions of Hope Napuu Primary School. Lucy speaks with pride about how well she and her classmates performed in their final primary school test. "We hold the record for the highest mean score ever attained in Napuu; even till now, it hasn't been beaten," Lucy says with a proud smile.

"Being at MOHI was the best!" Lucy exclaimed. She talks about the activities they had that exposed them to so much. "Every February, we would go to the Pangani Center in Nairobi and interact with students from other centers, play games, have Bible study, and fellowship." She was a great singer and she was part of the music and drama club. This passion for singing continues even now.

When it was time for Lucy to attend high school, she enrolled at a government school called Turkana Girls High School. MOHI assisted with her school fees, enabling her to graduate in 2022. "Moving to a new school was difficult. That was when I realized all the little things that MOHI did for us. I missed the morning devotions before class and all the different programs we had in school, like VBS," Lucy reminisced.

It was at MOHI that Lucy's love for people and justice grew. In her culture, it is not common for girls to be sent to school. While she had the opportunity, she made the most of her time at MOHI. "The biggest difference between MOHI schools and the other schools in Turkana is the social workers. Our social workers took care of us and educated our parents and the community about the importance of taking their kids to school. It really transformed the community," said Lucy.

Lucy witnessed how the social workers and teachers in Napuu invested their time in promoting education and protecting girls from early marriages, giving them a chance at a new life. Growing up, she witnessed injustices such as land disputes and forced early marriages, and she felt compelled to be the voice for the voiceless and defend the defenseless. "I thought to myself, who can defend my people? I decided that I wanted to be a lawyer," says Lucy. “I will defend them."

In 2022, while Lucy was in her senior year of high school, her mother passed away. Lucy is the youngest of six siblings, and her father passed away when she was young. Lucy lived with her mother and took care of her younger cousins, whom her mother also looked after.

"While I was in my senior year, my mom would often fall ill; she had asthma," Lucy explained. Sometimes Lucy had to go home and take care of her mother when she became sick. "All my other siblings had gotten married and lived far away or were difficult to reach," says Lucy. "That's how my mom passed away. One day,  when my younger cousins and I were in school, she had an asthma attack and there was no one to help her."

That incident led Lucy to change her career choice to something closer to home. "My mom's illness should not have taken her life. Now I want to go to school and study clinical medicine. I want to return to Napuu and help those in need of medical attention. It's not just my mom who needs it," Lucy said.

Lucy has a big heart for her community. After finishing high school and while waiting to be accepted into university, she returned to MOHI's Napuu center. While there, she helped out with the kindergarten students. "I realized that I had a passion for young people. My teachers noticed it and told me about MOHI’s Angaza Discovery Camp. They thought that I would make a great camp counselor and encouraged me to apply, so I did," said Lucy.

Lucy trained to become a camp counselor at MOHI's Pangani center. With the money she earns from working at the camp, she plans to save it to sustain herself once she joins university.

The impact that MOHI has had on the community and on Lucy has been immense. Sponsoring a child through MOHI ensures that just like Lucy, many other children have the chance to make a positive impact on their communities. You too can make a difference in a child’s life.