We wanted to take the time to highlight some people who have
been a huge part of our life here in Tenwek- our house helpers! Without them, life here would be very different!! When we first
arrived in Kenya almost two years ago, we knew that we would be hiring a house helper. First of all, I (Erin) would be teaching all morning and we figured we would need help with all the extra chores that living in Kenya requires (since there are no modern conveniences like dish washers, dryers, clean water, clean vegetables, etc). Also, we knew it would give someone in need a job, and for us to hire someone would be very inexpensive.
So, we began the interviewing process and while the other
candidates seemed fine, we really felt a connection to Regina. We hired her our
first week and she has been a blessing to us every since! She is the wife of
the assistant chief of her village and mom to 3 girls. She is an amazing cook,
a great cleaner, loves my kids, reminds me to lock my doors, and gets things clean
that I've given up on, etc. She also is a great cultural teacher, and has been a great mentor into all things Kenya. We just love her! We have been to visit her home
numerous times and even took our families when they came to visit. Every weekday, Regina gets up early and works her farm before making the 30 minute walk to our house.
After work she often sells bananas around Tenwek as supplemental income before
walking home. Eric's sister said "Regina is the most amazing women I have ever met."
Chopping Wood at her home
Cooking Ugali for us when we came to visit. No stove, this is fire in her "kitchen"
Regina’s birthday was last week- April 26th. With
my (not so secret) love of birthdays, I decided to throw her a birthday party!
I’m so glad that I did, because she told me it was the first one she’s ever
had!! Oh, for shame! We had a great lunch with some of the other wonderful
house helpers from around Tenwek who are her friends. It was so fun.
First birthday cake!
With some of her friends- I love these ladies!
(Emily, our other house helper, is the first one on the left)
She loves our boys well
We are going to miss her so much when we are gone! I joke
with her that I am taking her to America. She tells me she’s coming!
We also needed to hire someone this year to watch Tucker/AJ
a few hours each morning while I teach 3rd grade. We found a
wonderful lady named Emily who has been helping to watch missionary children
for many years. She is patient and firm with them (which they need!) and we
have been blessed to have her around too! Without asking, Emily often does other helpful things around the house...all while keeping AJ and Tucker alive and out of trouble (which itself is a full time job.)
Our last helper is Geoffrey who is a gardener. We don’t
really need a gardener, but he needs a job, so we hire him one day a week to
tend to our garden, rake leaves, etc. We are thankful for his help as well.
Many of the house helpers around Tenwek have become my
closest Kenyan friends. They are hard working, wonderful people. They care
about my kids, are always happy to see me, greet me with much kindness and are
so helpful. They have given me a glimpse into true Kenyan life. So thankful to
the Lord for these brothers and sisters in Christ!
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