COCI is committed to the futures of children in Africa who have suffered so much from armed conflicts, extreme poverty and the AIDS pandemic.

 

 

 

Children First

Children's First Organization (CFO) in Kisumu, Kenya became a COCI Project in 2002. CFO became one of COCI's Signature Programs in 2005 and nearly 10 years later, the program has grown exponentially. There are currently:

 

16 Resident Orphans, 125 Pre-School Students,  26 Outreach Homesteads caring for 58 orphans, 3 Micro-Industries, 11 Full-Time Employees, and 5 Part-Time Employees

Funding such a program is not easy when you live in a country with a per capita income of less than $2 a day. Facilities were primitive and the threat of closure for lack of funding was always there.

 

Our work in Kenya is focused on providing children with a safe, nurturing living and learning environment that prepares them for the future. Through our financial assistance, we have provided supplies, teachers, and improved facilities for early pre-school education in preparation for the young students to successfully take the entrance exam for the public school system in Kenya. Buildings that did not have doors now have electricity. New sleeping quarters have been built for the resident orphans, as well as classrooms to replace prior open-air instruction for the pre-school, and clean water and support for rural orphans on homesteads. It is with this expansion that CFO has been able to be such a powerful force in their local and extended communities.

As the unforgiving conditions in Kenya affect more than the children, we serve, we are also working towards community sustainability and giving them the opportunity to take a greater part in a more prosperous future for all. By providing funding for raising chickens, it created a micro-industry for broilers to be sold for profit, and an organic "Mandela" garden to further central sustainability and self-sufficiency.  

 

In 2007, a well was completed to service the CFO homesteads, the first and only source of clean water in the area providing a healthy resource and community pride.  COCI is honored to have a strong network of dedicated volunteers for this program headed by COCI's Program Director, Jill Thomas, a pediatric nurse from California. Ms. Thomas makes annual trips to Children First, spearheading the program's sustainability and development, working in partnership with CFO staff and community in providing hope and comfort to the community and showing great sensitivity to the culture and needs of the population.

Children First was started in the 1990's by Joyce Odongo, a native Kenyan. Mrs. Odongo is a retired pre-school teacher with 10 children of her own who set up a preschool and took orphans into her home in the Nyalenda slums surrounding Kisumu. Providing a safe and structured environment the children attending the preschool receive safe daycare and education and the resident orphans, organized into small family units, and are cared for by women affectionately referred to as "mamas".

This successful model has proven that children will thrive when loved, honored, nurtured, educated and protected in a family environment. The future for the children at Children First is indeed brighter, but there is still more need for expansion. The current facility limits the number of children we're able to serve, and the needs of the community continue to rise.

 

In 2009, we recorded that your funds helped us to provide the following for these shining stars in Kenya:

COCI, through generous donations from The Bridgeway Foundation, organization and individuals, has been the sole support of Children First since 2003, aiding it to become a recognized non-governmental organization (NGO) in Kenya and a strong model program.

 

Education:
Preschool preparation for primary school entrance exam; School fees, uniforms, shoes and supplies for public primary school; Tuition, with room and board for secondary education; Resident orphans receive individual tutoring as needed for school success; Staff receives opportunities for continuing education.

Health:
Current immunizations; Treated mosquito nets; Clean water supply; Medical facility visits if necessary, part time on staff visiting nurse, First Aid Kits with training provided to all three programs, and an InstaProduct nutritional program.

Self-esteem:
Pre-school curriculum with positive self esteem objectives; Care givers, teachers and guardians workshops on self-esteem; Positive self-esteem development as part of CFO goals. Resident orphan self expressions groups held weekly by visiting registered nurse/staff.


Community:
Resident Orphan Program's "sibling" groups formed by the children with a chosen resident orphan spokes person; Children participant as volunteers in activities involving all three programs; Cultural exchange with letters, pictures, artwork with individuals outside of CFO, locally, nationally and globally; Outreach Program committee formed by participating guardians to enhance community building, communication and work groups to share the responsibilities between the homesteads.  Active Parent Teacher Association at CFO Preschool and growing community volunteership.

Self-sustainability:
Broiling chicken micro-industry and garden; Product representative and distributor of Insta-Product; Developing crop and chicken farming between Outreach Program homestead groups; Networking with agencies, NGO organizations and philanthropists within the local, national, and global communities.