VOSH

Volunteer Optometrists in Service to Humanity.

The organization sends volunteers to every part of the globe to do free vision exams and to hand out glasses, drops, and self-help information to the underserved. This is the third year that a VOSH group from Indiana has come to Nairobi to work in the Kibera slum, and my father and I have been lucky enough to accompany them as volunteers.

After my father arrived yesterday, our first stop was the Nairobi Hilton where we dropped off our bags. Yes, that’s right. The Hilton. We then set off on a walk around the city, so that dad could fully embrace his culture shock, as opposed to only glimpsing it from the safety of our 15^th story window (which is quite enjoyable, I might add.) In addition to getting a kick out of the “Office for the Eradication of Corruption” and it’s large wooden “Anti-Corruption Suggestion Box” (which I might add is locked behind the security gate and out of the reach of passers by), he also loved the street vendors and hawkers. He purchased two top-quality neckties for $1.50 each. And even now, 24 hours later, he still laughs when he remembers that both the “University of Arizona Law Review Journal 1995” and “Who’s Who of America’s High School Students – 1976” are available ($0.50 each) from the sidewalk booksellers. Other than that, I’m going to wait and allow you to hear his impressions in a “guest blog” to appear some time in the next few days.

As for the group members themselves, they arrived en masse around 9:30 last night. We had a brief meeting at which we reviewed the schedules and received our “complementary” safari hats and bead necklaces (when you’re paying $200 a night for a hotel room, nothing is really “complimentary.”) The group is mostly comprised of doctor-types ranging from mid thirties to… significantly older. At this point I’ve only gotten to know a few of them, but it seems that they run the gamut from “I’m going to Kenya to help the less fortunate and learn about the world” to “I’m going to Kenya on Safari.” By and large they seem pretty interested in doing good in the world, and looking at the stacks of boxes of free eyeglasses they plan to distribute, I’m pretty sure they will. I hope to get to know a few of them pretty well, as they are definitely some interesting and outstanding individuals in the mix.

The group will be in Nairobi until Friday afternoon, doing exams and distributions in Kibera for the majority of that time. Afterwards, the group is heading on a four-day safari while my father and I head north to visit REPACTED, Nuru Ya Jamii, and my host family in Nakuru.

This morning we started those visits, heading to the Olympic primary school (Grades k-8; 36 teachers; 2500 students) to set up black plastic curtains on the windows of the classrooms that be pressed into service as exam rooms over the coming days. While a few members of the group worked on that, the rest of us played with, gawked at, and were gawked at by the children. It was a pretty silly experience, being with all of these older Americans and tiny young Kenyans. Neither group really knew how to interact with the other one, and I think it was fairly awkward on all sides.

After a while we climbed aboard the bus and were off to the “Nyumbani” (home) orphanage for “Watoto wa Mungu” (children of God). The orphanage currently hosts 106 HIV+ children, most from ages 1-16. They have a profound impact on the lives of these children, giving them access to resources they would otherwise have never had any chance to receive. In addition to clean and safe housing and nutritionally-customized meals, they also have daily meetings with nurses, clothing and sporting equipment, and periodic testing and health monitoring, all for free. The head of the orphanage even went to court to win the orphans’ right to attend school, something that they had previously been denied on the basis of their HIV status. The orphanage is the oldest AIDS orphanage in Kenya, and is certainly one of the most successful that I have seen or heard of. The standard of living for the children is tremendously high, and the access to nutrition, sanitation, and outstanding medical care has undoubtedly saved or extended their lives. The manager told the story of a child who arrived several years ago at the orphanage, having been told that he had “less than a week to live,” and who, with the assistance of ARV therapies and better nutrition, is still alive today. While stories like this one are undoubtedly uncommon, this particular home is indisputably effecting positive change.

We returned to Nairobi this afternoon, and after a little downtime/shoppingtime/bloggingtime, we will be off for dinner at the home of the owner of the safari company that has arranged this entire event. It promises to be opulent beyond belief. I’m not going to lie, I feel a little out of place. But several of the doctors are of the down-to-Earth variety, and I think my dad and I will be able to hang with them and keep our heads down. Even so, I am finding that it is very uncomfortable to spend $200 on a hotel room (okay, my dad is paying, not me) and eat lavish meals after spending the afternoon in Kibera. I kind of wish we could stay at a budget hotel on the outskirts of town and send the other $190 back to Nakuru. I take a little consolation in the fact that several of the doctors have already volunteered to buy large numbers of the Red Ribbon pins from the support group back at Nuru Ya Jamii, and that we are here doing good work. But it’s still weird.

Anyway, I’m off to clean up, but I hope to be back here tomorrow, hopefully with a post from me and another from my dad.

Love,

Chris

PS Thanks to both Mom and Emily for the “The Pats won 56-10” text messages that arrived 5 second apart this morning. I’m glad to know you’re still thinking of me.