Christmas is here and, in keeping with the season, I want to share a story packed with hope and good news. And I hope you’ll make more stories like this come true.

Elosy is 15 years old. She lives with her mother and younger sister in a small village near Elsa’s Kopje neighboring the Meru National Park. Her father was killed by robbers 8 years ago and now her mum is the sole provider.

Her mother runs a simple grocery shop but what she earns barely pays for rent and food. This story is all too common in rural communities across Kenya.

Elosy dreams of being an electrical engineer. With the help of her school, she’s working hard to make her dream come true. She knows it’s only with hard work and determination that she can live a better life.

It’s rare that families can afford to give their children the chance of a life that we take for granted. Education in Kenya is out of reach of most rural communities, meaning a life of poverty and hardship for so many children.

But you can help children like Elosy. So far, the Land & Life Foundation has given 19 youngsters the chance to fulfill their dreams through our Wildlife Warrior Scholarship program. We still have 8 more children who desperately need funding and next year, we’re hoping to change even more futures.

Remember a time when someone helped your wish come true? This Christmas, make that person be you.

Here’s how you can do it:

  • $100 will just about cover a family trip to the cinema, but that same amount will send a pupil on conservation training, vital to their education
  • $200 might buy you a dinner for two, but it can pay for a child to receive tuition for a whole term
  • $600 gets you a scuba diving trip, but it also pays for someone like Elosy to attend school for an entire year

Please show your gratitude this Christmas and join us today to grant youngsters like Elosy their wish and a promising future.

Smiling children at Plaster House

Our work at Land & Life Foundation always aims to give help to the people and places that need it most. Arusha Plaster House is one of the best examples where we’ve made a real, positive change for the children of our local communities.

105e

Working with Elewana’s Arusha Coffee Lodge, we’ve been supporting this home for children who need surgery since 2008 and we’ve seen it grow from a small set up in a guest house to a thriving centre providing surgery, therapy and education.

What exactly is Arusha Plaster House?

  • It’s a medical centre that provides pre and post surgery care for up to 100 children at a time
  • It performs corrective surgery and has specialist orthopedic, plastic and neurosurgeons to help children live the lives they want to
  • It provides therapeutic services for the kids when they’re staying there, to make sure they’re ready to get back to their community after surgery
  • It even has a classroom so having an operation doesn’t mean missing out on vital education

The real success of the Plaster House is that it turns what can often be a negative or traumatic experience for children into something where they receive expert treatment in a clean environment, surrounded by professional medical and care staff. The children leave Plaster House as stronger people, both physically and mentally.

Our efforts in supporting the centre in partnership with Arusha Coffee Lodge helping put smiles on the faces of hundreds of children. Remember, by encouraging people to stay at Elewana’s Arusha Coffee Lodge and support Plaster House, you are also contributing to those smiles.

As always it’s a team effort to be proud of, every day, and thanks for all your support in helping make the difference.

World aids day

World AIDS dayOn this World AIDS Day people around the globe are coming together to join the fight against HIV, showing their support for people living with HIV, and commemorating those who they have lost.

At Land & Life Foundation, we’re very proud of the work we do to support people with HIV and their communities. We often think of Kenya as a natural paradise but it has the joint 4th largest AIDS epidemic in the world, a million and a half people are living with HIV and over a million children have been orphaned because of AIDS.

So Land & Life Foundation initiatives such as the Aitong Medical camp are vital to the future health of our people. At this year’s camp, 240 people volunteered to be tested for HIV and learnt how to avoid getting and spreading HIV. It’s not only the people who got tested who will benefit – what they’ve learnt will be passed on and help keep the community safer.

Spread the word today and help keep everyone healthy and safe.

We look forward to seeing even more people at the 2017 Aitong Medical camp – more information to follow soon!