McLavertys at RVA: Outreach Day w/ Simba Dorm

It is hard to believe that the first term is nearing its mid-point. Next weekend the girls will all be heading home to visit family and friends. We will miss them all for sure! But before we let them head out, we all participated in RVA’s first outreach day on Saturday, Sept. 29^th.

I had the pleasure of visiting the IDP camp with 6 of the girls from our dorm. This camp is located in the basin of the Rift Valley. This camp is a mix-match of houses and tents and home-made structures that these displaced people have lived in since the elections of 2007. It was a sunny, hot morning as we all embarked to the valley in an RVA school bus. All together, there were 42 students, 5 staff members and 3 RVA national employees. We were all full of excitement and energy as we embarked on our journey. We were able to scrounge up some used balls and lollipops to bring to the children who lived there.

Once we arrived, we split into three groups. One group was

to stay and play with the children and two groups were to head out to visit the residents of the encampment. Our group was one that went out to visit and pray for the specific needs of the people. In order to reach their living area, we had to hike a little over a mile and climb through a water washout area formed during the rainy season. Even after hiking we were all still glad to be here!

As we walked, we met families who are persevering under difficult conditions. Water is scarce and we are just now heading into the dryer time of year. The tents and houses are small and have no ventilation, other than the holes in the tarps used as a roof. There will be no protection from the rains when they come. There were many children and they all followed along as we walked. We spoke to the residents and heard of their difficulties and prayed for their specific needs. After an hour or so, we began the trek back to the bus to meet up with the others. It was amazing to see the way connections were made in such a short time

On the way back to Kijabe, we stopped to let the kids explore a rift in the Rift Valley. Seems as though 15 months ago, or so, there was a “ground shaking” over the next 3 to 4 months this rift was formed and is now part of the permanent landscape. It is awesome to see how God continues to leave His mark on His creation! The kids only had 5 minutes to explore but they made the most of it!