The Colors, Shapes, and Needs of Kenya (July-August 2010)

I volunteered at the Watoto Wa Baraka (WWB) / ‘Children of Blessing’ (in Swahili) orphanage in Makuyu, which housed over 30 youths. My work included:

• • developing social and in-class activities with the children to cultivate individual growth and strength

• • planting trees to be used for commerce

• • preparation of meals for the staff and children

• • field work — visiting patients in remote areas, and monitoring their health and providing aid to their conditions.

I even had the opportunity to hand deliver items I brought with me on the trip to the orphans. It was wonderful to see a child’s reaction to receiving a gift from someone new and unfamiliar.

Maasai villagers & mud hut homes in Nkoilale

Visiting a primary school for girls in a local Maasai village in Nkoilale. Fellow women volunteers and I had the opportunity to introduce ourselves to the students and briefly share our own individual paths to our professional careers.

In support of the global water crisis effort and awareness, I participated with the non-profit organization, Well Aware, in the successful drilling of a well for a Maasai village in rural Namanga, Kenya. My photographs documenting the event were exhibited at the Nordic Hall, Scandinavian Living Center in Newton, Massachusetts.

Having this new development in water resource meant less distance the children needed to travel to retrieve drinkable water on a daily basis, and thus spending more time in school. New community projects would be built around the water well to improve the area’s infrastructure.

Lions in the Safari

Elephants in the Safari

Elephant Nursery and Rehabilitation Center

Giraffes in the Safari

Animal Orphanage and Giraffe Center, Nairobi

Wild Monkeys

Zebras in the Safari

Other Beauty & Beasts in the Safari

Footage from the Safari