Today was a culmination of a very busy year at St Bernadette Mary School, many highs and thankfully not too many lows!!
At 9am a large crowd of parents had gathered, we also had some guests come for the day and soon Mr Joe our Master of Ceremonies started the closing programme with a prayer followed by a wonderful song from our Standard 1 Class.
This was followed by a wonderful graduation ceremony for our KG3 pupils, they were just so proud in their hats and graduation gowns. Each child got a certificate and all were very happy to perform a goodbye song to their KG teachers, next year they will move to lower primary.
Next up was a very funny poem by Noel on a football match between Manchester United v Chelsea, this had Mama Mary smiling as United trashed Chelsea 3-0 according to Noel’s expert commentating which had everyone laughing & clapping. The pupils at St Bernadette Mary School are all very gifted in different way, the art & poetry display was very thought provoking as many of the pupils used this means to convey their sense of hopelessness due to the high level of corruption which exists in Kenya at the minute.
Our own GLO boy Kanoti drew a very harrowing picture of a rich man stepping over a starving child, this is the way many of the youth in Kenya see the government and elected officials but they realise education is also the escape route from a life of poverty. We were all moved by how aware they are of their surroundings and how poor people struggle to survive in this very unfair and ill divided world.
The most important part of the whole closing programme was just who was going to receive “The St Bernadette Mary Spirit Award”. Thanks to Eileen Fray for sponsoring this prestigious award which was given to a wonderful caring girl Leah Onesmus in Standard 6. Leah is a great role model for all the pupils but the girls in particular at SBM School, she is very well mannered, disciplined and a very studious pupil.
Like our former girl Neema Kazungu who won the award in 2013, Leah asked for the prize of a pregnant goat so she can start her own herd of goats, its a very wise choice and one her mother was very happy with. Mama Mary & Papa Kevin presented an overjoyed Leah with her pregnant goat which will now be cared for like a newborn baby, it was a joy to see the happiness on her face.
Leah comes from a very poor hardworking family, her mother works on the land and her father drives a picy picy ferrying people from Mtepeni to nearby Mtwapa, she has three siblings who all attend St Bernadette Mary School. Life is difficult for this family so the new goat will help them on a daily basis with milk and then a little kid goat very soon.
We take this opportunity to thank our donor family for their generosity enabling 350 pupils to an excellent standard of education, we thank our teachers for their dedication to the school and we also thank the parents of the children who struggle on a daily basis to give them food & a roof over their heads. It is very rewarding to see the changes this educational facility is making to so many at both The GLO and surrounding area, Mungu ibariki St Bernadette Mary School.
Education promotes equality and lifts people out of poverty. It teaches children how to become good citizens. Education is not just for a privileged few, it is for everyone. It is a fundamental human right. Ban Ki-moon
