TESTIMONY SCHOOL GROWTH

THIS IS THE LATEST photo of what has been taking time to build.   The NEW Dormitory and Classroom Block for Testimony School.    The Block will provide Boarding for 60 boys in the Secondary Section of the School, together with FOUR new classrooms providing for a SECOND stream of Secondary Classrooms, PLUS a new Library.      All built in a light grey volcanic lava stone.     The dorm will be on the ground floor and the classrooms above,     All should be completed and ready for use by early January.     This will, it is hoped bring more patronage to the School as our area has been short of high school places for some time.       Since the late 1990s the high school has limped along with just one stream of Form 1 to 4,  and it has not paid its way, having to rely on the Primary Section to prop it up financially  -  you should know that the School (though private) subsists from incoming Fees from outside families wishing their children to attend.
The entire cost is taken care of in this way - teachers salaries, text books, consummables and development all paid for by parents of local children seeking to learn in the School.       These Fees also provide for all the Orphans resident in our four Homes to learn FREE from Nursery to the final year of High School.
NOW with the provision of a 2nd Stream in High School it is hoped that the School will be able to take care of all of its running costs without any part of it running at a loss.      

THE SWIMMING POOL is situated to the left of the photo above, where our old Basket Ball Court was   (now re-sited to the School Field.   To the right of the NEW building  opposite you can catch a glimpse of the Nursery School beyond /and just behind the tree the school laboratories.
As you can see the Pool has been excavated.   It is a standard 'school' pool of 25v14 meters with a depth at the shallow end of 1.5 meters running to 3 meters at the deep end.
A great deal of EARTH and ROCK came out of the hole - much of which we have been able to use for other purposes.      The Maintenance Worshop and stone house that used to be on the right side of the pool have been re-sited or knocked down to make room for more space.      The toddlers 'Paddle and Splash' pool will be bottom right of the photo, just out of sight.        We hope and expect other schools and groups to use the pool, and we also hope we encourage a competitive interest in the sport.    We will be one of the FEW schools having a pool of their own.         AND during week-ends and holidays the Children from the Homes will be able at times to have free use of the fascility just for themselves.    WOW.

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Naomi 10,  Dominic 8,  and Janet 12 and caption

THREE VERY HAPPY FACES!!      Yet these three children have come through the loss of a caring mother, loss of home and security, and times of what must have been fear and anxiety.     Even now they are still, technically, in transit to the unknown!         They lived together with their unmarried mother in poor, but caring circumstances in a suburb of Eldoret, until one day, quite suddenly their mother was taken ill and admitted to hospital.      She suffered from AIDS, but had managed to survive quite well until recently.       It seemed she had no time to leave word of instruction to any concerning her children, and so they remained living in their small house alone, and increasingly hungry.      Eventually their situation became so noticeable that it was reported to the District Children's Office.  Many weeks had be then gone by, and their Mother had passed away in the hospital.      Finding the children near to starvation and quite forlorn and scared, the Children's Office brought them to us early this week.       They had made a quick search to see if there were any family members existing that might want to care for the children, but had come up with nothing.    But they wanted more time to extend their search before finally committing the children to an institution - could WE have them until the end of December when they would make a final decision as to what should happen to them?  We said YES, of course, and well I think you can see the total happiness in these youngsters - even though the future remains uncertain.      NOW at least they feel SAFE, and protected - even though they know their Mum has passed away.   Please spare a prayer for them.    We hope they will have a very happy Christmas with us, and catch sight  even more of God, and His Love for them.

This year we have Admitted 13 children into the Homes, including the three above.      About the same number of left us to start their own lives as working men and women.       Most of them are working in and around town, and call in often to have a chat, and to encourage themselves.    It is not an easy transition to leave a family home of 30 or more and suddenly fend for yourself in a small rented room, rather scantily furnished and lonely.      They have all made that transition in the end, and prospered enough to marry and start making their own home with their own little family.       We try to be available in this transition period, and make visits and invite visits.         

Currently we have 133 resident in our FOUR homes.

In TESTIMONY HOUSE

 Hesketh and Alice Muli and their three children have 31 with them, fourteen 

of whom are girls and eighteen are boys.

In JACARANDA COTTAGE

 Joseph and Beatrice Rop have 34 children, 

 of whom six are girls and twenty-eight are boys.

In DRAKELEY COTTAGE

 Francis and Eunice Lahol and their two children have 30 with them, nine 

of whom are girls and twenty-one are boys.

And in TYNDALE COTTAGE

 Micha and Senge Yego and their two children have 37 with them, twelve

 of whom are girls and 25 are boys.

Our current Age groups now range as follows -

0   -   5 =  2  boys   2  girls

6  -  13 = 40 boys  18 girls

13 -  17 = 29 boys  12 girls

 18 ++    = 22 boys    8 girls

All the children from Nursery to Form 1V of Secondary attend Testimony School FREE of charge - the School covering the cost of each child via the Fees paid by the parents whose children attend the school from the District.     THUS the Homes only have to find the Fees of those attending College or University after completing their Secondary Education.     WE usually have an average of about 20 in Higher Education at any one time.

The School has a population in excess of those attending from our Homes of approximately 600 students.

AND NOW CHRISTMAS WILL soon be with us - unlike most of the world WE do not start to observe or notice it until about the 18th December - except in the Supermarkets !!      For our 13 newest children it will be the first time to have a Christmas with us and usually it is a real experience for  them, and one in which they have their first revelation of Jesus and God's love for them all.      Much prayer goes into this time of year, and usually quite a lot of activity both spiritual AND secular.     A lot of play and a lot of laughter as well as just enjoyment of being AT HOME and NOT ALONE.

God Bless you all during the week to come, and Thank you for praying for us, and for being part of the continuing demonstration of His Love and Care.    

Much Love in Him

John and Esther & Daryl and Carol

                  'The Greens'