To be a manager means to forget self and serve. I can say it has been a wonderful experience being at The Good Life Orphanage since March 2014. I can count on the many blessings that God has showered to the little innocent souls since I came to this place, the management staff has been of great support to me, I being a nun am called to live the merciful love of God and serve with Joy, peace and humility, something that is in the entire management staff.
The work that our caregivers are doing is excellent, working with children who come from different background demands total commitment & self surrender, which thankfully our staff have in abundance. To work with children you have to be like them and think along with them sometimes. In each house we have a capacity of 12 children so everyday is very busy but also so rewarding, without the dedication of the Mamas & Aunties these children would not progress and become grounded young adults.
Also a special word of thanks to our support staff, our askaris and shamba workers are an important part of the GLO team and without their devotion to the project it would be impossible to operate the orphanage on a daily basis.
Sadly during 2014 we had to cancel all our planned volunteers due to security issues within Kenya, this has been a massive blow to us as along with the financial assistance they give to our running costs, the children also enjoying interacting with the people from different walks of life. We have spent the last three months being very active promoting the orphanage to local businesses and it has paid off.
We started our Christmas early by receiving visitors, who came to celebrate. The Company of Orange Kenya Mombasa Branch who came and brought Christmas gifts for our children, we had a wonderful day celebrating and look forward to their return visit.
Secondly we appreciate The Wambua and Valuers Company for the recent visit to the orphanage,it was a wonderful experience for the children to see fellow Kenyans helping a local project. Again they brought donations which are much needed and we are very thankful for.
Also our sincere appreciation goes to Holy Ghost Spirit Small Christian Community from the Holy Ghost Cathedral who made a surprise visit to the Orphanage bringing donations and spending the day with the children.
We thank all our Kenyan visitors, spending time with the children is having a very positive impact on their outlook and makes them feel part of the wider community. Uncle George from Serena Beach Hotel has become a regular visitor who enjoys spending time with the children, we appreciate him taking time out of his very busy schedule.
Also a very special thanks to The Bonnington Family, we can always count on Dani, Bryan and Russell to visit our project. The children love to see them and Dani is like the Pied Piper once she arrives.
Last but by no means least was the surprise visit by Bethan Lewis, I have never seen the children so excited and it was wonderful to see their faces when Bethan arrived with Papa Kevin & Mama Mary, God Willing the security issues will be solved in 2015 so our volunteers can return to enchance the GLO experience for both the children and themselves.
One of the highlights of 2014 was The Spirit of St Bernadette Mary School Award on 13th November 2014. With a lot of Joy and excitement Abdalla Chogo one of the GLO children was the worthy winner this year during the closing day of SBM. After examining the full case history of Abdalla I can say he has really progressed during his time here and he regards Mary & Kevin as his parents.
Finally I must say Asante Sana to our founders Mary and Kevin Maguire who had the urge of helping the innocent ones. I know it’s not an easy journey as it is so demanding but thanks to a wonderful support base in the UK & Ireland your efforts have brought a smile to these children.
To all our dear Donors may you be blessed; your support has made a difference to each & every one of us, both children & staff. We wish you all a Merry Christmas and Health & Happiness in 2015.
A very Happy Christmas to all the staff and children at the GLO and SBM School! It has been a pleasure to read all about the news from the orphanage and to see so many smiling faces. I hope that 2015 will see many visitors and much happiness for you all xxx
Hello to all the children and staff of the GLO! Have a wonderful and Holy Christmas. I cannot wait until I visit you again, and to see all the things you are learning and how much bigger you all are. Blessings on you all from Fr Jim!
JAMBO all. It has been a year of turbulence in Kenya but throughout this time GLO have continued to give devotion to all the children with every care, much love and guidance. I wish every member of staff, Mama Mary and Papa Kevin and of course the beautiful children a fantastic festive celebration and a healthy Happy New a Year . Sending you love and prayers. XXX
Jambo, So lovely to hear all the latest news .Christmas blessings to all at GLO Lovely to see the wheelchairs as they will greatly help these children to move around.
Hope all the unrest is settled in 2015 and volunteers can again come out to help you
Merry Christmas to at The GLO ! The pictures and stories are all lovely to see on here ! Best wishes for 2015 ! I truly hope to visit and meet you all sometime in 2015 xx Lots of love Tom, Aideen, Ciara Niamh ,Tara xx
To all at the GLO,
We wish you a happy new year and look forward to raising money in the year ahead to send over to you. We are happy to be able to support such a worthwhile work, even with small gifts.
Thank you for sharing your news and photos. We will keep a look out for what the new year brings.
Keep up the good work
The children of St John with St Mark school, Bury, UK