November 2, 2009

KOP DISCONTINUES ITS FINANCIAL SUPPORT OF THE JUBILEE CHILDREN’S CENTER AND TERMINATES ITS PARTNERSHIP WITH CHILD OF DESTINY - AND ITS FOUNDERS - JOE MWANGI SYMMON AND ALYCEJO MWANGI.

After supporting the operation of the Jubilee Center since January 2003, the Kenya Orphanage Project Board of Directors decided in August 2009 to terminate the financial contributions and monthly transfers of funds to Kenya.  This was motivated by Joe Mwangi Symmon and AlyceJo Mwangi - founders of Child of Destiny – refusing to disclose - and back up by audited statements - how the financial support they are receiving through Child of Destiny in the US is being used in Kenya. 

In September 2009, 12 children were expelled from Jubilee, some of them with nothing but their flip-flops.  A KOP representative was sent to Nairobi and with the Kenyan government’s authorization, relocated 10 of these children to new boarding schools.  KOP is supporting these 10 children financially and paying for their school tuition.

In October, Monique Boekhout, President of KOP, went to Kenya hoping to meet with government representatives and either Joe Mwangi Symmon or Alyce Mwangi who reside permanently in California.  The Kenyan government tried to promote a reconciliation but Child of Destiny did not show up. 

Several government agencies were sent to inspect Jubilee.  Many irregularities were discovered:  The Jubilee Children’s Center has been operating illegally and is lacking the proper certifications and authorizations to house and school orphans.  Procedures have not been respected such as having a nurse on site, a social worker, the right amount of teachers, etc.  Nutrition has been neglected resulting in many children being underweight.  Improvements must be made to existing buildings such as tiling the toilet facilities that are really bad, improving the kitchen where food is improperly stored.  There are questions about structural problems in several buildings that could create a dangerous situation for the children.  The existing staff is not qualified and their credentials need to be checked, etc.The government authorities gave Child of Destiny a detailed report of the inspection shortcomings. Child of Destiny was given two months to fix these serious problems. 

Kenya Orphanage Project remains very committed to the children and will continue to monitor the situation.  Should the Jubilee Children’s Center be closed by the government, alternatives would be considered to continue to help these innocent children.

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"Sometimes the challenges that African children face seem overwhelming, but it's through small gestures like sponsoring individual children that we begin to make a difference."
 
   - Lynsley Smith, sponsors Francis
 
 
Kenya Orphanage Project (KOP) knows that it doesn't take much to change a child's life. With compassion and humanitarian efforts combined, so much can be done. Already, over 130 children's lives have been transformed. They no longer fear what tomorrow will bring, but rather rejoice when tomorrow arrives because they know they are safe at Jubilee Children's Center. These children no longer feel the hunger in their stomach, the cold on their skin or the dread of what will happen to them on the streets. Instead, they focus their energy on learning in school, playing with friends and dreaming about what they want to be when they grow up - as children should.
 
KOP is dedicated to the orphans who arrive at Jubilee Children's Center. Our efforts are to ensure that they have a chance to survive in this world despite the neglect, harsh conditions they have faced, and the statistic that a child who has lost his or her parents is four times more likely to die than a child who has at least one parent alive.
 
With the help of our Kenyan partners, Joe Mwangi Symmon and his wife AlyceJo Mwangi, founders of Child of Destiny, and who select the children, we not only try to heal the wounds from the past and care for them now, but we are committed to the success of their future. KOP has high aspirations for the children. They are the future of their country and our world. These children are the answers to help their country prosper and contribute discoveries and talents to the world. All they need is a chance. After all, every child deserves an equal opportunity to succeed.
 
Jubilee Children's Center provides the children with a warm and comfortable home, clothes to wear, three meals a day, caretakers who love them, and most importantly a solid Christian education. All the children at Jubilee Children's Center receive primary and secondary education. Once they have graduated from high school, they will go on to start their vocational training or college education. Education is crucial to the children in becoming self-sufficient and ending the cycle of poverty that affects majority of Kenya.  KOP provides funds monthly to Jubilee for the daily operation of the center and has created an endowment fund, the KEEP Fund restricted to higher education of the children.
 
 
Kenya Orphanage Project (KOP) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization whose mission is to support the ongoing operation and development of Jubilee Children's Center (located in Ruai District of Nairobi, Kenya) and provide continuous education for those children whose parents have died of AIDS. We are guided by the following Vision and Mission Statements:

Vision Statement  -  KOP is committed to support a safe, happy, healthy and productive life for the children of Jubilee Children's Center in Nairobi, Kenya.

Mission Statement  -  KOP and friends of the Kenya Orphanage Project will support Jubilee Children's Center in Nairobi in the following ways:

• Through cost effective fund raising and securing in-kind gifts for the construction and development of the orphanage campus.
• Through a long term dedication to support with financial and in-kind giving the operations of Jubilee Children’s Center.
• Through ensuring continuous education for the children and expanding the possibilities for a brighter future for them.

Our Hope
AIDS is a serious problem in Kenya and most of the children at Jubilee Children's Center are the unfortunate victims of the attack of AIDS on their parents. We hope that the work we are doing at this orphanage and school will be able to give back innocence to the children, and through our teaching and nurturing we hope to make them productive citizens of the world.
 
Your Help is Needed
Won't you please join our friends and supporters to help these innocent victims of AIDS overcome the desperation and hopelessness so we will be able to support the orphanage and complete the remaining phases of construction? The completion of all the phases will allow us to expand the capacity of the center to 300 children. Becoming a Kenya Orphanage Project supporter enriches your life in ways we can't begin to describe. We encourage you to become a supporter and find out how it feels to change a child's life, and perhaps your own as well.

 

Photo by Ching Fu

Dennis and John