The moment you set foot in little Embiti and into the classrooms, you will be warmly welcome by the children and the school faculty. The innocent gazes of the little ones, the songs they break into during their recess time, the smiles and chuckles when you interact with them, often creates a sense of “belonging” which leaves an imprint in anyone who visits the school.
The school lies just about an hour and half from Elewana’s Sand River Mara. Visiting guests who would like to visit the local Masai community are often encouraged to make a stop at the school. From such visits, little by little, we have been privileged to bring about progress in the school. Over the years we have distributed a couple of in-kind donations; school books, stationery & supplies and funding for the construction of the only toilet at the school, was one of our highlights in 2017. However, following more visits and interactions with the school faculty, we became privy to the prevalent challenges faced by the school in its entirety.
“While it may seem small, the ripple effect of small things is extraordinary” – Matt Bevin
Weekly donations turned to monthly donations, which in turn translated into bricks and pipes. FInally this culminated in the school receiving a 20,000 litre capacity concrete tank, full plumbing works & connection to the community’s borehole and installation of guttering system that will enable them to harvest water during the rainy seasons to store for the dry.
Previously, the children used to walk a couple of kilometres to the borehole in search of clean drinking water. Providing a solution for the water shortage at the school means no more tired little feet and in turn no more wasted time away from their studies. This has only been made possible through the generosity of donors who have visited the school and our other partners/supporters.
Going deeper still, we received amazing news from the Scopa family & friends regarding the completion of their crowdfunding campaign for little Embiti School. Following their visit last year, the family committed to raising funds. These funds were intended to provide a new classroom, to enable the students to continue with their studies beyond grade 4. The Scopa family & friends have done remarkably well with their fundraising strides and donated over $14,000 which will have a huge impact in Embiti and in turn, will be felt by the wider community.
An education is an opportunity to escape poverty, not only for themselves but for their families and villages. An education can be life-changing for these children and their families but only if they can continue to attend school – Emma & Emily
The above quote was taken from Emma & Emily’s crowdfunding page: A school for every kid. The family has already wired their generous funds and construction of the new classroom is set to begin soon, following a visit to the school in the last week of Febby our Project Manager, our Structural Engineer and Contractor.
