Charles Pfeifle

Author's posts

Nov 10 2016

School trip

The trip was for a large part thanks to a generous gift from a friend and was a huge success! De bus ride to Paradise Lost in Nairobi was in itself an adventure. They were greeted by a guide and went for a tour of the fauna in the park, after which a visit at …

Oct 20 2016

Time is up (again)

In the meantime my month here has flown by. It was quite busy, with coordinating the building, the necessary backlog of bookkeeping, shopping for things for the kitchen and other things needed, taking pictures, as well as selecting them and putting them and the stories on the site, meeting and talking with all concerned in …

Oct 18 2016

Cleaning up the neighborhood

As chance would have it (or it was meant to be) I met several Australians and a Kenyan who started a clean-up group for the streets in the area (Kayole Mtaa Safi – “clean up the area of Koyole”). They are working their way through the streets once a week, using shovels, rakes, pick-axes, and …

Oct 12 2016

How important is the finishing work?

We are now getting to the point that the difference is becoming clear between building in a Western country and Kenya. As noted before, the building is well-done – it has a solid foundation, sturdy walls with heavy concrete pillars, and a good concrete upper floor. The differences are clear in the finishing. I have …

Oct 02 2016

After a week

In the meantime het railing is done on the stairs and on the balcony, most of the water lines are in, and electrician is starting with the wiring. The building is a good, sturdy structure, and safe. Much of that you don’t see. The foundation is very important for a good building, but is in …

Sep 26 2016

Back in Nairobi

As noted last time, we had to stop building because of lack of funds. This period also gave me a chance to regroup and get organized to go back to Nairobi, where I just arrived. It’s always good to be back and be welcomed by all the kids and those involved with Matunda, but also …

Aug 25 2016

And then we had to stop

It’s disappointing, and it wouldn’t be right if all went according to plan, but the costs have gone up clearly more than was planned for. We´ve seen this coming for a while, as it seems that the financial plan didn’t include a few necessary items, among other things the cost of the concrete floor for …

Jul 30 2016

We’re getting closer

Now it’s time for the roofs. The first was the wooden construction on the main building, with red metal sheets as covering. The same is true of the kitchen, but the roof on the toilets needs to carry a large water tank that will be used for rainwater collection, so it’s made of concrete. And …

Jun 29 2016

De building continues

I’m back home in the Netherlands again, but the building is continuing. Joash is doing a great job of organizing and Joseph is doing the same with building as our contractor. The upstairs walls have been going up, as well as the kitchen and toilets building. The same goes for the doors and windows, outer …

May 29 2016

Time to go

The building is going fine. The walls are now being done for the kitchen and toilets, as well as the outside wall. The concrete floor for upstairs is still drying, after which the walls for upstairs will go up. Of course, when I leave the building will continue. I will continue to communicate with the …