When was the last time any of us received a handwritten letter? Nowadays people almost never take the time to write a letter or note. It’s so much easier to send a quick text or email.
The Activity
This past month William Aludo held a mentorship camp for students from his hometown of Rongo in western Kenya. One of their activities was to compose a handwritten letter to send to students at Harwood Union Middle School in Duxbury, VT, rebooting our Messages of Mercy Writing Program between students in the USA and Kenya.
The students who wrote these letters come from varied backgrounds, but they hold a few things in common.
All of them speak at least three languages: English, Kiswahili and their native tongue. They enjoy football (soccer), basketball, politics, acting and singing. Several of these students have lost if not both, then at least one parent, and almost all of them have faced the challenge of coming up with sufficient funds for school. Each one of them have dreams and ambitions far exceeding those I had at age 14 or 15. Some have large families that include cousins who have lost their parents and have nowhere else to go. Many say they want to help others who are in need by building health centers, feeding the hungry and helping people who have less than themselves.
William scanned their letters and photos to me, and this week Tracy Guion, EC’s new Messages of Mercy coordinator brought the letters and photos to students at Harwood to introduce them to friends on the other side of the world. William even wrote one to Ms. Jacki McCarty, the classroom teacher!
The Update
Tracy called to give me a quick update after the presentation was over. She said she had put all the scanned letters from Kenya into envelopes and printed photos of the students who wrote them. When the Harwood students began to open their letters, the anticipation in the room went from excitement to engagement.
One of the letters opened was from a 14 year old boy named Martin, the youngest in a family of five. Both of his parents are gone. His hobby is fixing electrical equipment and he says that he wants to become “one of the greatest electrical engineers in the world”. He can speak and understand three languages and is learning a fourth. Martin knows that his career choice needs creativity and perseverance.
The Impact
