Around Town

Joy, Bonding, Unity and Love in Kibera [PHOTOS]

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On our last day at FAFU, I look back in amazement at how fast the week has passed. We have learned so much in the short time we have been in Kibera, and I don’t think any of us will forget our time here. Each morning, Simeon, the founder and director of the school, shared a word with us, and it was intended to be our motivation for the day. I would now like to share the lessons we have learned during our time at FAFU:

Joy
Bonding
Unity
Love

[Editor’s Note: This week, we are publishing posts from Julia Douglas of the New Canaan YMCA as she writes from Nairobi, Kenya, where she’s volunteering with a team working in the world’s second largest slum, Kibera. Read all of Julia’s posts here.]

Around Town

As Playground Plans Erode, a Silver Lining Emerges

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The idea to build a playground at FAFU was conceived almost two years ago, and since that time the New Canaan YMCA has been working to make that vision a reality. Along the way, we partnered with Kids Around the World, a nonprofit, which specializes in bringing playgrounds to children who are the “victims of war, natural disaster, injustice, and economic stress.” The organization has constructed playgrounds in 60 countries over the past 20 years, and continues to grow its presence around the world. Kenya has one of the most challenging customs agencies to navigate, and according to Dave, with Kids Around the World, there is no way to ensure your items arrive to the designated location in a safe and timely manner. Our playground has been one such item. The playground arrived to Kenya in December 2015, and was finally cleared by customs late Tuesday afternoon.

Around Town

New Canaan Y Reps Welcomed at FAFU in Nairobi

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There are so many things I could write about today, and honestly, to look back and reflect on everything is somewhat overwhelming. Instead, I’m going to focus on one small part of the day that had a powerful, and I’m sure lasting, impact on the group: Our immediate arrival at Facing the Future in the Kibera Slum of Nairobi, Kenya. FAFU is not accessible by vehicle, as it is located on a very narrow dirt pathway. In order to reach the school, you need to have your vehicle drop you off and then walk the remainder of the way. It’s only a 5-minute walk, but in that short time you step across active railroad tracks and jump across a trench filled with waste.

Around Town

New Canaan YMCA Group Arrives in Nairobi, Kenya

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[Editor’s Note: This week, we are publishing posts from Julia Douglas of the New Canaan YMCA as she writes from Nairobi, Kenya, where she’s volunteering with a team to build a playground in the world’s second largest slum, Kibera.]

We arrived at Jomo Kenyatta Airport after more than 24 hours of travel, and the exhaustion quickly shifted to excitement as we stepped off of the plane. We had finally arrived in Kenya, our flights had been fantastic, and we were ready to begin this adventure. The initial visa and passport checks went smoothly, and we proceeded to fill the carts with luggage and duffle bags full of school supplies. We had 12 bags in total, most of them labeled with New Canaan YMCA logos, to say we stood out a little would be a gross understatement. We continued our preparations to leave the airport, and feet from the exit we were stopped by a customs official asking to speak to the leader of our group.

Around Town

Doing Good Abroad: New Canaan YMCA Reps Leave Friday for Africa’s Largest Slum

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[Editor’s Note: Starting Monday through next week, the New Canaan YMCA’s Julia Douglas will publish daily updates and photos of her observations and experiences from Kibera, the world’s second-largest slum, located outside Nairobi, Kenya. Sign up here for our daily newsletter to receive her posts first thing each morning, along with New Canaanite’s always-local news feed.]

Mary Coleman, membership director at the New Canaan YMCA, said she’s always wanted to participate in Peace Corps-type work. An especially well-traveled person already, having visited places such as India, Japan, China and Korea, in addition to Europe, Coleman believes that volunteering to provide manpower abroad would be “very fulfilling.”

“To participate and give back and learn and understand, and to better relate to the community again what it is we are doing here at the Y,” Coleman said Thursday afternoon from a meeting room at the South Avenue facility, with four other women who on Friday will leave together for a 10-day excursion to the largest slum in Africa. “I’m hoping it will be very sobering, life-altering, and that I will bring back some important messages to my family and the community.”

Coleman—along with 10 other people including the YMCA’s Nicki Jezairian, Carolynn Kaufman and Julia Douglas, as well as Anne Goebel, a Stamford Hospital nurse who serves as the Y’s wellness nurse coordinator—on Saturday night will arrive in Nairobi, Kenya, and travel the following day to Kibera, a slum of one million people living in an area about the size of Central Park. Under a partnership that dates back to 2007, the New Canaan YMCA has worked with a child development center in Kibera that provides food, clothing, classroom materials, medical attention and other essentials for hundreds of kids who live there.