Doreen lives with her uncle and her aunt. Her duties at home include carrying water, helping in the kitchen and running errands. There are 3 children in the family. Her uncle is sometimes employed and her aunt maintains the home.
For fun, Doreen enjoys swimming and playing group games. She attends church activities and Vacation Bible School regularly and is in high school where her performance is average.
Because of your sponsorship, Doreen will have new opportunities to learn and grow physically, mentally, and spiritually. Thank you for your concern and prayers.
Doreen lives on the plains of Kaloleni, home to approximately 500,000 residents. Typical houses are constructed of cement floors, brick walls and tin roofs. The regional diet consists of maize, beans, fish, rice and kale.
A common health problem in this area is malaria. Most adults in Kaloleni are unemployed but some work as day laborers and earn the equivalent of $74 per month. This community needs schools and employment opportunities.
Your sponsorship allows the staff of Kaloleni Church of God Child Development Center to provide Doreen with Bible studies, hygiene education, sports and games, talent shows, tuition, nutrition supplements and remedial classes. The center staff will also provide parenting education for the parents or guardians of Doreen.
North of the equator, Kenya is hot and dry. South of the equator are the humid coast, the temperate highlands and tropical Lake Victoria. Volcanic mountains and the Great Rift Valley occupy the west. Although the highlands around Nairobi are fertile, only 11 percent of Kenya's land is farmed.
The majority of rural farmers and herders represent more than 40 ethnic groups. Forty-five percent are Protestant, 33 percent are Catholic, 10 percent are Muslim and the rest practice indigenous beliefs. English and Swahili are the official languages. Compassion works mostly in south-central Kenya.
Before the coming of the Europeans, Kenya was peopled by waves of cattle-herding African clans. The coastal areas were also home to Arab traders. The Portuguese, Dutch and British, who gained control in 1896, later targeted this trade. During World War I, Kenya served as a British base of operations against the Germans in East Africa. After the Kikuyu-led Mau Mau Rebellion of the early 1950s, Kenya gained independence in 1963 and Jomo Kenyatta became its leader.
Self-rule continued in 1978 when President Daniel Toroitich Arap Moi took power in a constitutional succession. President Moi stepped down in December of 2002 following fair and peaceful elections. Mwai Kibaki was elected president for a five-year term. He was re-elected in 2007 after controversial elections that resulted in violence, leaving over 1,000 people dead. A coalition government was formed, putting a halt to the violence.
Map of Kenya
Child's Location: Southeast of Nairobi
