The Shinners Womens Group

I went to visit the Shinners Womens Group here in Kisumu last week. I believe that I reported previously that the Shinners are a group of concerned middle class Kenyan women who struggle to assist orphans and widows residing in Abunga, the worst slum in Kisumu. I went with Karoline, Konilla and Elizabeth, three leaders of Shinners, into Abunga to meet some of the women and children whom they support. Nadine and I and some friends three years ago visited many of the same houses and people that I visited last week. One is a 86 year-old woman whose 7 sons have all died of AIDS. She is taking care of 28 children and grandchildren and even great grandchildren.

Among the grandchildren is Victor, now about 17 years old. When we met him three years ago, he had just graduated from primary school, first in his class and he had won the award for the best drummer in Kenya. With Darlene’s help we paid for part of his secondary school education. Unfortunately, he is currently out of school because he cannot scrape together the fees to continue. He is working to earn the money to go back.

His sister got pregnant for the first time at age 15 and now at 18 she has a second child. She completed only two years of schooling.

The house that the old lady lives in is the same as the one where she lived three years ago, even more run down, with even more holes in the roof, which leaks with every rain. There are so many children running around, and none of them attend school, even though primary education is supposedly free in Kenya. In truth, these children cannot afford school because there are fees levied at every school to supplement the small amount the government provides, and each child must have a uniform (1100 shillings), shoes (600 shillings) and notebooks and pencils (200 shillings).

There is no employment for people, especially since the violence. Men lay around idle, often spending the day drinking the indigenous brew. Women work by brewing and selling alcohol, or by making and selling chapattis.

We calculated that in a day, after meeting all their costs, they each earn about 60 shillings ($.85). And they have to devote the entire day to the task. The people must carry water long distances. The sewage just runs in open gutters between the houses, most of which are made of mud with leaky roofs and tilting walls. Anyone who has visited any slum in urban Africa has seen conditions like these, but they seem even worse in Abunga.

After visiting Abunga, we went to the Shinners office where the women distributed foodstuffs to a group of about 15 widows,
all of whom are caring for many children.
The dedication of the Shinners to assist these women was really heartwarming, and the gratitude of the widows was overwhelming.

Some were in tears they were so grateful and touched.

I asked the Shinners to give me an estimation of how they would spend 40,000/- ($600) and how they would spend 100,000/- ($1500). They said that the immediate need was to assist with food and that is how they would spend 40,000/-. The larger amount would be used for assisting the women to revive their small businesses that they lost during the recent violence. For example, one lost all her equipment to run her hair salon (cost 15,000/), another had her kiosk torn down (15,000), another needs start-up funds to sell chapattis (2,000/), another sells small items of food and needs to restock (2,000), etc.

Yesterday, I gave the Shinners 40,000/- ($600) from HEAL. Most of the funds came from the generosity of Darlene, whom the Shinners and the old lady remember well, and the rest from Nadine and me. The Shinners are most grateful.

- Bob

P.S. – One nice thing about supporting the Shinners is that their office and small nursery school that they run for the children is fully supported by a kind man from the Netherlands. So all other funds donated go directly to the children and widows in Abunga – not to infrastructure or any salaries.