Hungry For Life (HFL) and our partner, Everlyne Embenzi, are working with a small orphan home called Shiphrah Centre in Nairobi. Thanks to compassionate and generous Canadians, this little home has been receiving help with student tuition for many years. HFL comes alongside to help with support, monitoring and reporting.
Martha Njeri has a giant generous heart, a lovely smile, infectious laugh and a deep faith. Her home is warm and welcoming, and the children are happy and well looked after. There are upwards of 100 children attached to the home, ranging in age from several months to university.
She grew up in a very nominal Christian home. She explained the troubles and problems she encountered in her family, in her marriage and on the street; she asked the Lord to speak to her and reveal himself. Her 'test' was that she needed a word from the Lord to not go back to an abusive man who had fathered her children. The Lord spoke through Psalm 57. At that time, she realized she wanted the power of faith and not just the form of it; she wanted the faith and perseverance of Daniel and anyone who knows her, sees that she has found it.
Martha knows what it is like to be a neglected child, to grow up poor and have no food or education. Now that she is an adult and has a strong relationship with the Lord she wanted to find a place in her community. She felt led to help children who were in situations like those in which she had been living.
Shiphrah is a midwife in the book of Exodus who refused to follow Pharaoh's genocidal instructions; it is said that Shiphrah is one of the earliest, and in some ways the most powerful example of resistance to an evil regime. Shiphrah is an appropriate name for this home, just as Martha is a powerful example of love and resistance to the status quo of child neglect in her community. She has earned a strong reputation in the community and with government workers, doctors, police officers and others. The home has a board of community members that are passionate about caring for her and the children and helping her in her work.
Martha feels so accomplished when she helps her children. Her heart's desire is to see them succeed - to know God and to be caring and loving adults in their communities. She also sees the limitations of her work; her dream is to one day train others to care for more children so that all abandoned children in Kenya will have a safe and loving home in which to grow strong.
Support has helped improve the facility and accommodate the growing family. A new kitchen and a three-story structure that includes a dining hall and dormitories have greatly improved life at the home.
If you can imagine the budget required to feed more than 80 children each day, you will understand that a great deal of support is needed to keep the home running. Medical care, school fees, books, uniforms, student support, and assistance with the feeding program are among the greatest needs at the home.
