I am writing let you know about the continuing urgent need for food in Kenya as the severe drought conditions persist, and to let you know how we can help.

The situation has not improved since I left the country in mid-September; indeed it worsens day by day. I learned this week that even those who have some access to water for irrigation (which is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain) are finding that their crops are being spoiled by pests as a result of the prolonged heat and drought. Even under the best of circumstances – that is, if the October rains arrive and are plentiful but not ruinous – the earliest that crops will begin to produce food for consumption is January 2010. It is my fervent prayer that January 2010 will be the beginning of a bountiful period for our Kenyan friends and I hope you will join me in that prayer.

In the meantime, it is my intention to continue the effort of providing food for those with little ability to obtain it themselves, such as the villagers at Solio Ranch. Now that we have gone through the purchase and distribution process once, we know what is required: funds for food and transportation and lots of people to facilitate the distribution. Our Kenyan friends, led by Pastors Joseph and Sarah Waweru, are ready and able to recruit and coordinate the people to facilitate the distribution (indeed many of those who still have food are extremely eager to help those who have little or nothing); it is only the funds that they lack. Accordingly, starting today and continuing as long as there is an urgent need, I am going to collect funds to buy food to distribute to those who have none.

Burning Bush, Inc. has agreed to participate by accepting funds (which will be tax-deductible) earmarked for this project. Based on my experience in September, we know that about $3,000 is enough to purchase and transport a truckload of food that will feed about 300 families for several weeks. Thus, as soon as we reach the $3,000 mark, we will send the funds to Pastors Joseph and Sarah, who will use the money only for the purpose of purchasing and distributing food to those in the most need. After that, and continuing until the crisis has passed, each time the funds earmarked for this effort reach the $3,000 mark, we will send the funds on to our Kenyan friends to purchase and distribute another truckload of food. Please know that even small amounts make a difference: for example, just $10 will buy enough food to feed a family for several weeks.

Please consider joining me in this effort to alleviate some of the hunger. If you are reading this somewhere other than the Burning Bush website, instructions for making tax-deductible contributions can be found at www.burningbushkenya.org. Please designate your contribution as “Food for Kenya” if you would like it to be used for this effort. And please feel free to contact me at calexdc@gmail.com if you have questions, want more information, or just want to talk about what is happening.

Blessings,
Cindy Alexander

In 1992, concerned about the environmental impact of people living in the forests of Mt. Kenya, the government decided to relocate this population. Many of these people came to Ndathi and lived in shanties in the village until they received a parcel of land on the former Solio Ranch to farm. The land was rich and fertile but undeveloped, with no source of water or power and no means of transportation to or from it. In spite of this, the displaced people living in Ndathi, as well as others who had been relocated from Mt. Kenya, were happy to have a plot of land to farm, and eventually seven villages of 200–400 people grew up.

The three-year drought in Kenya has made it impossible to grow anything on the land, however, and conditions there have become more and more desperate. When Cindy learned of the critical need for food, she decided to do what she could to help. She contacted friends and family, colleagues at the Justice Department in Washington, D.C., where she works, and fellow students in her graduate program at Catholic University. Within days, she collected more than $2,200.

When Cindy arrived in Kenya, she asked her friend Njeri Kaburu to help her figure out what to buy, and they went to Nyeri to purchase the following food and supplies (Cindy covered all transportation costs separately; they are not included in the costs below):
• Cornmeal – 14 50kg bags (cost was 23,520 Kenya shillings or about $322)
• Rice – 14 50kg bags (cost was Ksh 34,300 or about $470)
• Corn – 16 90kg bags (cost was Ksh 41,600 or about $579)
• Beans – 8 90kg bags (cost was Ksh 46,400 or about $636)
• Cooking oil – 28 10kg boxes (cost was Ksh 24,920 or about $341)
• Soap – 35 boxes of 12 bars (each bar is 18 inches long) (cost was Ksh 13,650 or about $187)

Both Njeri and Cindy were taken aback by the sheer quantity (this was nearly 8,000 pounds of food!) and had to hire a large truck to take everything back to Njeri’s house, where they stored it while they worked out distribution logistics. They calculated that they could give about 140 families the following:
• 5 kg of cornmeal
• 5 kg of rice
• 2 kg of cooking oil
• 10 kg of corn
• 5 kg of beans
• 3 bars of soap

Cindy then consulted with other Kenyan friends, Pastors Joseph and Sarah Waweru, who agreed to help organize the distribution effort. Together they chose Village 7 at Solio Ranch to receive the food. They chose Village 7 because its residents had formerly lived in Ndathi, where Njeri, Joseph, and Sarah (and most of the people with whom Burning Bush is associated) live. Joseph suggested they cut the amount of food per family in half in order to feed more families since the need was so great, and Cindy agreed.

Two days later, Cindy hired another truck to take the food to Village 7, where the villagers had been waiting for them all day (getting a truck is not always a simple process in Kenya, and they did not arrive until mid-afternoon). Joseph and Sarah Waweru, as well as Njeri’s mother, Susan Kaburu, accompanied Cindy, and many others met them there to help with the distribution. Cindy was shocked at the desolation of the land, saying, “I can attest that there is not even one green thing in that desolate-looking place.” She later learned that one of the villagers who used to live in Susan’s community came up to her when they first arrived and thanked her profusely, saying “we are actually starving here.”

After their arrival, they met briefly with the leaders in the village, who had made a list of the elderly and infirm people in the village. They wanted those people to be called first in the line and to receive a double portion of food. The leaders then began the requisite ceremony, at which Cindy was introduced and asked to speak to those gathered. She says, “I can’t remember what I said exactly and I’m sure it wasn’t too articulate, but I do remember saying that this food was a gift from people from my school and my work and other friends and family, and I let them know that many people in the U.S. know about their situation and are very concerned, and I said that we hoped that this would be an encouragement to them.”

After the formalities had been observed, the people lined up to receive the food. Later someone observed that this was the most orderly food distribution effort they had ever seen. The process took about 2–3 hours. Many people had brought bags that were too small because they had not expected to receive so much, so the group improvised by giving out the empty soap and cooking oil boxes. Cindy was worried about having to turn people away but was told not to worry because everyone is used to that and understands. But at the end of the day, she was jubilant when she saw that not only had every person in the line received a share of the food, but a small amount was left over (this was delivered to needy people in another village).

In an email to all who had contributed, Cindy wrote, “To be honest, I felt as if I had witnessed a miracle. Thanks to your generosity, an entire village will be fed for at least several weeks. Of course, a few weeks of food for one village will not solve the country’s problems, or even the village’s problems, but it certainly gave 305 families a great measure of hope and encouragement.” She went on to say, “The villagers were extremely grateful and pronounced blessing after blessing upon all of those who contributed to the effort; I only wish that all of you could have been there with me to receive those blessings in person.”

Although there have been a few light rain showers, the drought continues in Kenya, and the villagers on the former Solio Ranch are still desperate for food. Burning Bush is looking into ways to keep helping from afar. If you are interested in contributing to this effort, please email info@burningbushkenya.org.

Based in Washington, DC, the American Psychological Association (APA) is a scientific and professional organization that seeks to advance psychology as a science and profession and as a means of promoting health, education, and human welfare. With 150,000 members, APA is the largest association of psychologists worldwide.

Anne Kaburu reported, “Things at Samaria are good, though not as busy as two years ago [i.e., before the political unrest of December 2007].” Inflation has put health care beyond the reach of many people, causing the patient census at Samaria to drop. But as Anne went on to say, “Our prayer is that everyone who seeks help here will be able to find it.”