Here is our update from the sponsorship co-ordinator, Rieder Mwambanga: It has been a month full of painful tears for some of our beloved friends, who ended up losing one of their family members. Although success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life but by the obstacles which he/she has overcome whilst attempting to succeed. Most of the members were heartbroken by the situation but we were sticks in a bundle whereby they are unbreakable, because we were united from the start, up until the last minute when she passed away. It was a sad moment for one and all because we wanted to achieve our goal of making sure she recovered from her illness. She has been through a lot of pain and sleepless nights and the Almighty will now take care of her. I would like to pass on my gratitude to all the doctors, nurses, family members and all the sponsors who joined hands to make sure that the late Mama Emmanuel was getting treatment at the Coast General Hospital.

This month I also received gifts from one of the sponsors from England by the name of Sandra, who sent presents for Safari and Emmanuel. We wish to say thank you for them and to let you know that the boys really appreciated and enjoyed them. In other news, our boys did well in their September exams, with only Emmanuel slipping a little from position two to number four. He was really annoyed with the result because he wanted to maintain his position or improve. Charo in Class 3 was in the No. 1 spot for his class, Safari Class 2 came second and Kaingu Class 2 was in the fourth position in his class. They have all been working hard because they aware of the school trip that is coming up. They therefore have to pass their October exams in order to secure a chance to go on the trip. I would like to also say that Billy has been doing a great job for our programme so far and that he has been busy throughout. With him there is strength.

Many thanks, Rieder

Dear all, The month of October saw all four boys receiving their end of September exam results, and we are pleased to announce that all four did very well. Their results are just reward for all the hard work the boys have put in over the last few months. In other news, the boys are eagerly awaiting the Mtwapa Academy School trip which is to take place in mid-November. The trip is a chance for the boys to see some of the many sites that Mombassa has to offer with the trip taking them across the Likoni Ferry, to Wild Waters and finally a visit to the airport. For many of them it will be their first time to Mombassa and even to see an aeroplane up close!

The month of October also saw Safari being taken out of school for a few days with a bout of Chicken pox. Fortunately it was not a serious case and Rieder was able to take him to a nearby doctors practice for a check up. He was seen by a doctor and given some medication to take and advised to miss school due to the infectious nature of chicken pox. Within a number of days the spots were greatly reduced and very soon Safari was back to full health and was glad to be able to return to school.

Many thanks, Billy

Here is an update we have received from our sponsorship co-ordinator in Kenya, Rieder Mwambanga, we hope you enjoy it. Thanks, Amy and Rich

Hi everybody,

I would first like to thank all Milele volunteers and sponsors at large for their good heart and the help you provide for the needy and the community in our Milele programme. We appreciate everything that you do for the Milele sponsorship programme and hope that you keep up the good work!

In regards to the Milele project this month, I have undertaken a trip to the rural area where our four sponsored boys originate from. Visiting Takaungu for the first time was a good experience as it allowed me to get to know the boys families as well as letting them know who I am and my role within Milele. I have also spent time this month making sure that the payments of the boys school fees and their feeding programme were submitted on time and used effectively.

I also take this opportunity to thank you for bringing Billy along to us. We hope that he will do great things during his time here and that the work will be of value to the local community and children. We have been working hand-in-hand towards this profile and hopefully we will achieve our goals.

The Milele boys who all attend Mtwapa Academy School are just starting their end of month exams this week and we hope that they will do well. Fingers crossed! We appreciate all your effort and we thank you for all your help.

Thanks, Rieder

We are very pleased to announce that we have a brand new sponsorship co-ordinator who has agreed to work with us on a part time basis to ensure the boys are always healthy and happy, to keep us up to date with their progress at school, to help the children and their sponsors to communicate effectively and to arrange payment of the childrens school fees, uniforms and school lunches.Rieder is 22 years old and lives nearby in Mtwapa. He is also the librarian at Mtwapa Academy, and is devoted to this job, working every day to make sure the children at the school get the most out of the library. He has been dedicated, reliable and dependable in this role, demonstrating really touching care and love for the children he works with and spending extra time, far beyond the call of duty, tutoring those who are falling behind in lessons. We are very pleased and excited that he has taken up our offer of working with Milele and are sure he is going to develop with us and be a huge asset to the programme.