Habitat for Humanity: First Trip

On Saturday, I went on a Habitat build to Eldama Ravine in Rift Valley. We had to be at school at 5:30 in the morning and we came back at 5:30 in the evening so it was more tiring than usual. To be honest, this trip was a little disappointing for me because it wasn’t as much fun as the other builds I have gone on. On all the other builds I’ve gone on, we started off by digging the foundations, then we carried bricks and mixed cement, and if we had enough time, we would start putting the bricks into the foundations and filling the gaps with cement. The last step was my favorite and I always had fun doing it. This time, we spent the whole four hours digging the foundations and we still didn’t finish.  Normally, seventeen of us dig the foundations for two houses in less than three hours, so I felt like we didn’t accomplish as much as we should have this time around. I feel like we should have helped more and used more effort. However, I don’t think it was laziness, I just think it was a different terrain that was causing the problem. We used to build houses in Maai Mahiu, which is in the Rift Valley, and is very dusty, so the ground was easier to dig, but this time the ground was wet and hard and rocky, so it was very hard to dig.

GIN: Wema Centre

In this week’s GIN meeting, we had a great presentation from a 12^th grader, Mariam, and she talked about her summer in the Wema Centre. This placed is located near the Mombasa coast where the organization gives homeless people (mostly kids) shelter, education and food. It was shocking to hear about how kids were coming from all different backgrounds, some lost their families and some were pushed to the streets. When Mariam mentioned that kids were going through prostitution for money, I felt so motivated to help these kids, and thought that this is a serious issue that we need to do something. But not everything is all depressing and such, Mariam told us about Janet, a girl in the streets, who got straight A’s and is now living happily with her family after graduating college. I thought that these issues are extreme, especially in Africa, and since we are in Kenya, we should go something ourselves, not just talk about the issues. We actually talked about how we should help Wema Centre, and hopefully we will have a chance to in the nearby future.

Wema Centre: http://www.wemacentre.org/

GIN/GISS: Jump Foundation Leadership Training

During this weekend, I have learned soooooo much that you cannot imagine how meaningful this training session was. I cannot describe how amazing and fun it was, even though it was extremely tiring after about 10 hours of traning (we started early in the morning and ended in the afternoon 8:20am-5pm). To be honest, the two days got me really interactive with others who you wouldn't normally talk with, and I have to say that this opportunity was one of my best so far.

To explain bits and pieces of this training, this leadership training was inteded for the 25 leaders selected to lead the GISS conference that will be held February, 2013. In order to make this summit successful, we definitely needed leadership training to gain confidence, know how to become a good leader or what makes a good leader, and needed great motivations for why we are so into this. This session was extremely meaningful because this made me lead myself to becoming a good leader. I was not confident at first, but we played a lot of games and activities to get closer to one another, which made a good team for everyone.

I even made comments like "The 2013 GISS was the most amazing personal and community experience of my life because I was able to become a change maker as well as lead myself to think about who I am and how to become a better leader. I have managed to plan, act, and succeed on everything that had to be done." This type of prediction comment was so interesting because it's positive and motivating. I will always remember in my mind that I need to become a change maker, not a prisoner who is locked up, to successfully lead the conference. 

Jazz Band: ISK Gala

Today, we performed in the UN Recreation Centre for the International School of Kenya(ISK) Gala. This performance was actually a lot better than the first one, and I thought it was because everyone knew that practice makes better and the new atmosphere got us motivated in playing better. This was a great opportunity for me because it was my first time performing in the UN, and everything was really interesting. I really enjoyed the music that we played, the solo that Mr. Ligon, our jazz band teacher, had led, and overall, the mood was amazing! I hope that in the future we come again and perform. Even though we only played a few songs, the short and strong music was very effective.

GIN: September 20th, 2012

GIN is planning an event to raise money for children in Shanglia! Shangalia is an orphanage-art school in Gangemi. If you are part of the shangalia service team you go on the service trips every wednesdays to play with the kids or teach them various subjects! To support this group, our club planned for two main events: Goals to Go and the Shangalia team performing in our school. :) Goals to Go two years ago was a HUGE success (even though I wasn't there, I heard that it was) so I am really looking forward to this event! The Shangalia performance is also very exciting because these kids are extremely talented. Last year, I was part of the Shangalia service team and I have seen many performances from them. I am hoping to raise a lot of money because I know that the Shangalia kids deserve it.

These are some pictures and videos of the Shangalia team from last year:

 

Operation Smile :)

Operation smile is an organization for children wth cleft lips, cleft palate, and other facial deformities around the world. This club raises money to pay for their surgeries, for kids who can not afford to pay the surgery because it is expensive (one surgery costs $240, if you think of it, it is expensive, but it's not that expensive compared to saving a child's life. A child's life will change forever in just 45 minutes of surgery). It is truly amazing how bright a child's smile can be after the surgery is done.

Apparently, this year, we are planning on collaborating with the Composer's Club to raise money. I am lookng forward to support many kids to bring their beautiful smiles :)

Visit the homepage for more information :) http://www.operationsmile.org/

Operation Smile Video! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01aTvJSsA68

Jazz Band: Welcome Back Community Picnic

Jazz Band performance in Welcome Back Community Picnic!

Unfortunately, I have to say that the first performance this year was not that great. After all the saxophones left the club and new students joined, the jazzy quality of the sound definitely dropped a lot. Some people even said that the flute was the loudest (normally the flutes are ignored much under the grand sound of the brass instruments) But through this performance I learned that practice is really important as well as the harmonious sound that creates excitement for others. I am looking forward to our next performance in the UN Recreation Centre.... hopefully we will perform much better! :)



I am on the right, my eyes are half closed..



Golf Club!

Every Monday, Gold club awaits for you!

Today, it rained. It started to rain as soon as we were heading to the Windsor Golf Club.... It was my first meeting, but the rain kept pouring, so Ms.Thompson, our golf teacher, had decided that we should go back because the heavy rain doesn't seem like it will stop any time soon. As I was returning home, the rain stopped.... I reurned home in vain without any practice. It wasn't raining for weeks, then, when I was just about to start...... RAIN!! It was really frustrating, but I had too much work to do so I was relieved at the same time.

This is my Junior Membership Card :)