Dear Family and friends,
As many of you know, Jo and I have been working on our charity Matunda Community Centre in Nairobi, Kenya, since 2009. We and our supporters have greatly improved the lives of about 25 children, ages 3 to 16, living in the slums of Nairobi. Several are now able to attend school for the first time. They all get two meals a day, healthcare when needed, and also important, a good example of life-style choices and lots of TLC
We are grateful that many of our friends and relatives in the Netherlands support Matunda. Schools have held rallies, businesses have donated, friends have organized to collect money, and donate monthly or yearly. Some of our friends and relatives in the USA have also contributed.
Sponsors
Thanks to individual sponsors, 13 children attend school. The other pre-school age kids stay at Matunda, under the care of Mercy, our Director. Jesintah is our cook, all-around help, and she and her husband serve as caretakers. The schoolkids come to Matunda every day after school and during their school vacations.
When we partnered eight years ago with Matunda, a grass-roots non-profit, about 20 kids found refuge and care, and were kept off the streets in a very small, leaky, corrugated metal shack. Throughout the years, we have held rallies and organized annual walks in Holland to raise money for a new building. Last year just before Christmas, we accomplished our goal and moved into what is a “palace” for these kids.
The building
Our new building is a six room, two-story building, with a separate kitchen and bathrooms. Instead of burning charcoal (a health hazard, and made from ever-decreasing forests), we now have a gas-burning stove. Thanks to support from the World Bank, there is now a sewer system, running water and electricity in the neighborhood. We are connected to all three.
We now have the room to add more children to the group. We also have a variety of potential plans for the extra rooms: educational and community activities, a business, rental, etc. Some of these business ideas should lead to more financial self-sufficiency for Matunda, something that is a main goal for the future.
Unfortunately, we were not able to finish the building due to a lack of funds. We still need to plaster and paint the upper rooms, tile the floors, and buy more children’s furniture and storage cabinets.
Matunda wants you!
That’s where you come in! Building the new center has depleted our resources dramatically. Like anywhere else in the world, building went well over the budget, and living expenses continue to increase at an average of 7% annually in Kenya! To finish the building and support more kids, we need your financial help.
We are currently working on a proposal to the IRS to be recognized as a tax-deductible organization in the U.S. (this is still pending). We obtained this status in Holland in 2010.
Please consider making a donation and forwarding this e-mail to family and friends to help us increase support for the children at Matunda.
Check out our internet site matunda.info (also in English), and our Facebook-page, facebook.com/matundaorphans. Feel free to contact us personally via matunda@pfeifle.nl.
The kids (and we!) will be grateful for your support.
Charles and Marianne (Jo) Pfeifle
Matunda Netherlands
Contact us for bank account information.
