Inishowen Fund

The Inishowen Fund and this webpage were set up to recognise the work of the volunteers from that area particularly Bridgeen Harkin and Marty Hasson who have volunteered in Kenya for the past 3 years; Colleen Hasson and Ciaran Harte who volunteered for the past two years; Sharon Harte and Marian Doherty who joined  in 2011 and Ciara Lees in the first year 2009. I thought I had a great appreciation of all they have done but only in constructing this page do I realise the extent of how much they have achieved.  They are an inspiration to us all. This page is also in appreciation of their supporters from Derry, Donegal and further afield.

Bridgeen, Ciara & Marty Presenting Cheques to Sr. Mary Killeen

Inishowen Volunteers

Bridgeen Harkin from Buncrana and Marty Hasson from Derry have been volunteering each summer in Nairobi, Kenya for the past 3 years. Each year they fundraise to bring money to the projects they work on. They have been joined by Ciara Lees (2009), Colleen Hasson and Ciaran Harte (2010, 2011) and Sharon Harte and Marian Doherty (2011). They have put enormous work into fundraising in addition to the valuable work they do each summer. In recognition of their great success and the generous support of the people of Inishowen, the Inishowen Fund has been set up.

Teaching Deprived Children With Sr. Barbara in St. Catherine School	In 2009 the volunteers worked in St. Catherines primary school which serves the children of the Mukuru Slums. Many children miss out on education sometimes simply because they must spend their days working or begging to support the family. This results in older children who have missed years, in classes with far younger children. One to one teaching by the volunteers helps these children to catch up with their own age group.	With Their Students

Makadara Clinic	In 2010 the Inishowen volunteers funded the computerisation of the Makadara Clinic. Set up in 1959 by the Mercy Sisters, it serves the population of the Mukuru slums area, where healthcare is inaccessible to a large sector of the population who live below the poverty line. It is attended daily by on average 200 patients, some 50,000 consultations per year. All records & systems were still manual. All patients’ records, test results, diagnoses and prescriptions will now be on computer records allowing the dispensary, stock control and appointments to be automated. An improved, more cost effective service will result.

Willie Doherty presents a cheque from City Cabs for €4,000 to volunteers Bridgeen and Colleen and John Slattery of Africa Direct

Inishowen Fund –  2011 Spectacular Fundraising:

The volunteers year long fundraising efforts were given a great boost by Kevin Deehan and City Cabs with a very generous donation of €4,000.

St. Catherine’s School & Community Support

In 2011 the volunteering group increased to six. Bridgeen, Marty, Coleen and Ciaran were joined by Ciarans new wife Sharon and by friend Marian. The group excelled themselves, bringing out over €19,000 to various projects and establishing the Inishowen Fund.

The Inishowen Fund is set up in recognition of the great work of the volunteers and the great support they get in the region. This year the fund contributed €6,000 for the work of St. Catherines School Community Support Office run by Sr. Barbara. The school was established to cater for the poor and over 1000 children come from Mukuru slum. But some families could not even feed and clothe the children to go to school. Sr. Barbara supports these families and other families are assisted to care for 60 orphans. This year needs are even greater due t

o a particularly extensive fire effecting 10,000 in the packed slum. Some families lucky enough to salvage sheets of corrugated iron were able to rebuild their one room homes but were left without the basics such as clothing and bedding.

The Inishowen Fund brought vital funding at a very needy time and then the volunteers worked with Sr. Barbara for 2 weeks helping the affected slum dwellers…..see Bridgeen’s article below.

Volunteers Return from Nairobi

by Bridgeen Harkin

The Inishowen group of volunteers returned from Nairobi after completing two weeks charity work with Africa Direct.  Bridgeen and Martrice Hasson have volunteered for the past three years, Ciaran Harte and Colleen Hasson have travelled for two years and this year Marian Doherty and Sharon Harte have completed their first trip.

Sharon, Colleen, Ciaran, Marian and Bridgeen visiting the Massai

This year the group split into two.  Colleen, Ciaran and Sharon went to St. Catherine’s Primary School to work with groups of children aged 5-8 years who have been ‘left behind’ in class due to some learning difficulties. The other three girls worked closely with Sr. Agnes who makes home visits and helps the poor and destitute families in the slums. Every house had a poverty story to tell.  Stories include daily rape of women, hunger, starvation and total hardship. Children may only eat once a day and are often so hungry they have to beg on the streets.

With the money we had raised we decided to support another project in Kitale.  We donated €3,000 to replacing small, igloo-shaped houses, made from plastic and materials found in the dump, with mud houses which Africa Direct has been funding for some time.  The advantages of mud houses are numerous: disease and infection have been eliminated, the people can stand up straight in the mud houses, local people build the houses themselves, creating employment and community spirit is improved.

Marian and Marty visit a slum house.

We also got the opportunity to sponsor some of the children in the local schools. We bought them school bags, uniforms and shoes.

These are just some of the ways that we can help improve the lives of these people and bring happiness into their lives even for a brief moment.  We would like to thank the people and businesses in Derry and Buncrana for their support during our fundraising. Without their help we would not be able to help the people of Kenya.

Cheperaria Secondary School

Cheperaria in North West Kenya is a very poor neglected region suffering badly from long term drought. The school is a new girls school 50% funded by Africa Direct. The Inishowen volunteers funds furnished classrooms and fitted out the kitchens and catering for training courses in cooking, nutrition and catering.

Visiting Cheperaria School During Construction, student Amy and Chairman Martin

Opening Day

Kipsongo, Kitale

When it comes to poverty Kipsongo (town dump in the local language) outside Kitale must rank with the poorest. When the local Good Shepherd Sisters moved there in 2008 with Africa Direct funding to start training young women, it became apparent that the effects of poverty were too pervasive to start there. First they needed to work on the womens’self esteem and restore their dignity. Illness and disease were rampant. In August 2008 their were 8 deaths in a community of 350 families.

	Experienced advice was that until they moved out of the appalling housing, made from scraps of waste plastic sheets, treating illness and disease would not succeed. The community can build mud housing for little more than €200. A construction program started in 2009 and all “paper houses” will be replaced by mid 2012. Many months go by now without deaths. The Inishowen Fund with support from The Inishowen Romanian Fund funded 4 houses and also contributed €2,000 to the Kipsongo Medical Fund.

Community Build a Mud House.

A class of pupils in Nuu

Famine in Somalia has been world news. Nuu in North Kenya south of Somalia has also suffered years of drought and food prices driven up by the Somali famine are making food unaffordable in Nuu where hunger is now widespread and famine threatens. Africa Direct funded a Mercy Sisters school extension with co-funding from Irish Aid. The pupils and their families are now suffering. Sr. Mary Killeen has been sending food supplies from Nairobi. Following a visit from the Inishowen volunteers, Africa Direct funded a food relief truckload in August part funded by the Inishowen volunteers.

Many Thanks to:

All of the Inishowen volunteers’ supporters.

Allied Ships Ltd.

Inishowen Romanian Fund.

Citycabs, Derry.