If you read last month’s newsletter, you know that our town of Maai Mahiu was devastated by a flash flood. Since then we have been doing everything to restore our town back to normal. We realize that this is not a fight that we could do on our own. As such, we decided to embark on the journey to restoration as a united front.
First, we had to see how badly the community was affected so the first priority was Identifying the number of individuals in a particular household; Identifying the number of school-going children; the property lost/damaged and the value of property lost/damaged, and finally the nature and value of businesses that were swept away. Immediate and long-term needs among others. The data that we found was quite shocking! We found that even basic needs such as sanitary towels and diapers had now become a luxury. People were sleeping on the floor of any place where they can rest their head, so beds and beddings became increasingly important! Water tanks were washed away so even access to water within homesteads was increasingly becoming a challenge!
Ubuntu in collaboration with Naomi’s Village Children’s Home, Valley Light Children’s Home, Just One Africa and Rift Valley Hope decided that this was a challenge that couldn't be handled solely by one organization! With that in mind every Thursday we would meet to speak on how we can meet each family at the point of their need. We saw what each organization could offer and what the other could assist with. After pooling our ideas and resources, we then decided to have a drive. On June 14th our weeks of planning came to fruition and we were able to give household and personal goods to the most affected flood victims of the tragedy from a month ago.
Many people came to the drive with just the shirt on their back. Together we provided beds and beddings, water storage tanks, food packages, cooking utensils and sanitary towels among others. The effects of the Flash flood will be felt in this community for some time to come but we will remain united always there to support one another.