They asked the staff to provide prizes for the talent show. Most people made cookies, or something like that. Not me; I wanted something BIG; significant even.

Without beating a joke straight into the ground, what I offered seniors in high school was a CD of Neil Diamond’s Greatest Hits.

This being RVA, the kids cheered mightily when it was announced, although several kids asked me if it was a first place prize or a LAST place prize. They had a special time in the show, and they asked who wanted the exciting prize. At least a dozen kids ran forward, but quickly sat down when they were told they had to SING a Neil Diamond song in order to win.

I just don’t understand kids today.

Fred and I were talking, and I asked him where he got his haircut. He told me he was going to a different place. The reason was that the previous barber did not disinfect the blades, and he had gotten worms in his head. Something you wouldn’t think about in the states, but a real issue here.

This is finals week, and so we celebrated by having three of the guys in the dorm and both babies come down with chicken pox. There is a shot you can give for chicken pox now, but you have to be one to get it, and the twins don’t turn one until Sunday. They have been pretty miserable, and we are looking forward to them getting through it, hopefully before their birthday.

I was able to go down to the orphanage to celebrate a special event. One of our friends in the states raised money to replace the dining tables in the orphanage. A younger kid came up to me and said `Thank you. It is very nice to eat sitting down.’ I didn’t know what to say except what I usually say: it came from people in the United States who love you, but I couldn’t quite get all the words out this time.

We are grateful for all the support for the school lunch program. We have enough to feed two schools for a year. Kamuyu School has 250 students; Nyankinyua has 350 students. They both have 1st through eighth grade students.

We worked with local church and community leaders, and they felt like these schools were the poorest in the area. Both involve exciting drives through non-existent roads.

I went to Kamuyu first. The biggest issue they have is that they have no water. They are trying to build a tank which would collect water in the gutters of their buildings during the rainy season, but they do not have the funding to complete it. They cannot offer a drink of water to a child. Many of the children walk several miles to go to school, and they do it without any water except what they can bring themselves.

Next I went to Nyankinyua. Both schools are similar in structure. They have rock walls, no windows and dirt floors. At Nyankinyua, they were growing seeds in the floor of one classroom. I’ve enclosed a few pictures of what the classrooms look like.

When I told the headmaster our plan, he began to weep. He told me that it was so hard for him to see children be so hungry, and he was very grateful to have the help. We will begin in September, because the term is almost over.

As I drove away, I passed some children who were still walking home, and they had already walked four miles. None of the children had shoes.

This is what I signed up for. I am so grateful for all your help. I’ll be going to the schools each month to get updates, and learn what a day is like for the children.

The adventure begins September 2nd.

Your pal,

Steve Peifer