TURKANA DIARY 8: A beacon of hope

Selfie with the children

What strikes me the most is how little is needed to change people's lives in Turkana. It costs £300 to keep a child at boarding school for a full year. With this money, a child has a bed to sleep in, is given three meals a day, receives full education and is given the opportunity to develop into a fine young adult. Without this, the child faces the hardship of village life, eating very little only when food is available, with no bed on which to sleep, no access to water, no toilets, nor any form of education.

We cannot solve all the world's problems, but I know that we can make a real difference for the children and young adults in need that cross our path. Hence, I decided that I wanted to do something to help the children of Turkana by setting up a children sponsorship programme, so that donors could sponsor the education of a child and follow their development.

I proposed this to New Ways, the UK charity which have partnered with the mission in Turkana to help the local community thrive by fundraising for many projects over the last 25 years, and I was grateful that they decided to take this forward.

This programme is special to me because I have met these children, I have seen their challenges, their suffering and their joy. I still have their pain and their smiles in my eyes, and I know that a small sacrifice for one of us is a life changer for them.

I am hopeful that, as you are reading this, you may also consider being a beacon of hope for one of these children. As sponsors we give them an opportunity to have a better future, but we also benefit from following the development of these children, which makes it a mutually enriching programme. If you would like to sponsor a child of Turkana, please contact me at manlio_trovato@talk21.com and I would be delighted to facilitate that. (Or fill in the form below in the Links)

I spent less than two weeks in Turkana, and it was an extremely enriching experience for me. I left Turkana with my heart aching for the extreme poverty that I had seen with my eyes. And yet, I left with an immense sense of joy, which these children had communicated to me through their contagious smiles. But I also left with a sense of gratitude, for having had the opportunity to visit Turkana, see a different way of life, meet these extraordinary people and the missionaries, and for having so many wonderful friends who have shown sincere empathy with their donations on my fundraising campaign or with warm words of support.

One of the things that I loved the most in Turkana was that, wherever I went, there were always a lot of children, and they were always joyful. It's been fantastic to be with them. I have met many children, and I cherish the memory of spending time with them. They would often gather around me, and we would have a massive selfie together. How joyful!

I said that the people of Turkana are better. That's because they can accept their suffering, they don't complain, they are resilient and carry on, but above all else because they are joyful. They have nothing and despite that, or perhaps because of that, they are contented. In our world, we look for happiness in what we have or can have. We must find again joy in our heart, like the people of Turkana, not in the things we have. Maybe we can learn from them, maybe by helping them we can also help ourselves.

Yours,

Manlio

LINKS

To sponsor a Turkana child, please visit: Children Sponsorship Programme

To contribute to Manlio's trip crowdfunding, please visit: Manlio for Turkana

To support New Ways, see: Fundraising - New Ways

Read all the Turkana Diary stories here: www.indcatholicnews.com/search/TURKANA%20DIARY