Light School Uriri, Kenya

Donate and help us to raise money for a school bus! www.buythebus.ca

Jack Bambo - saving Kenya through education and wildlife preservation

With friendship and education as tools there is no challenge that Jack Bambo can't tackle. Sponsored by the Catholic Church in his third year of university and also by an 80 year old German woman, Elisabeth Klett, so that he wouldn't have to defer from school, Bambo founded the Uriri light school and also provides refuge for over 10 orphans and 13 vulnerable children. The generosity that he experienced from strangers has now been multiplied tenfold as he's providing education for over 310 students in this small village about 7 hours outside Nairobi.

"I believe we are all one. Your strength is my weakness and we must share what we are doing," says Bambo. Wandering around the dormitories and classrooms, the smiling faces that greet you are example enough of kindness returning full circle. The boys are in the dormitory trying to learn how to cook pancakes but they've used too much oil and decide to leave cooking to the girls.

In this small village everyone stops to greet us, shake our hands and to meet their children. I'm always baffled by the extreme generosity and kindness that I experience travelling from my own country where we seem to have it all but are too busy to enjoy actually living our lives. Here in Uriri there was maybe a couple hours of electricity every day and no running water but a kind smile can take you to the moon and back.

Bambo grew up in a family of 5 with parents that were farmers and relocated to Uriri after post-election violence in 1992. While working at a magazine and spreading awareness about illegal logging, he took a loan and started building a school. "I gave what I can and what I had was land," states Bambo. Along with an organization called Arrive in Kenya, they have helped provide medical screening for malaria, typhoid and STI's.

With his dominating force on social media, they also helped to get 15 kids living on the street sniffing glue or being stubborn about school to come and get an education with them.

What once started as a dream in a one room class has now become a recognized venue for quality education. For some kids, the trek to school could be kilometers each way and that's why we've decided to help Jack raise money for a bus so that these kids can have a chance to change the world for the better, just like their teacher has done. I mean, Obama’s parents lived down the street- who knows where amazing people could come from.

Find out more to volunteer here: https://www.arrivekenya.org/