Umoja Orphanage

A great thing about Tenwek is that it attracts a lot of wonderful physicians from all over the United States to come for short, or long, periods of time. Unfortunately, being at home with Liam, I don't get the chance to meet many of the Physicians that are here only one or two weeks. Logan gets to work with them, or at least meets them during morning report every day at the hospital.

But one physician who is visiting now, Dr. Paul Jarrett OB, I have had the pleasure of meeting several times. He shared his testimony with a group of us last week and Logan and I had him over for homemade pizza Friday night.

Dr. Jarrett has served at Tenwek off and on for 10 years. He and his wife and their 10 children (!!!) would come for 6 months on, 6 months off every year. They started several ministries through the years, one of which is an orphanage, Umoja. They felt not only a medical calling, but also a call to help the homeless and abandoned children in this area.

Dr. Jarrett invited us, the McLaughlins, and a few others to accompany him on a visit to Umoja Orphanage this weekend. Logan was not on call, so we gladly accepted. It is not far, maybe 15 minutes by car at the most. When we arrived we were greeted with applause from the children lined up at the gate to welcome us. As we exited the car, every child and adult came forward to shake our hands and say hello. I did my best to greet them in Kipsigis, but most of them just giggled.

Dr. Jarrett had a glow about him all day. He was home. This was his heart. What a joy to see the place through his eyes, knowing the prayers, sweat, and money behind making Umoja possible.

Dr. Jarrett and Joseph, a Kenyan who runs Umoja, gave us the grand tour. They showed us the school room, which had hand-written signs and a few printed posters hung on the otherwise bare walls. I couldn't help but think back to my elementary classrooms which were so intricately decorated by the teachers with posters, fabric, and brightly colored signs with the alphabet, numbers, etc. These students sit on wooden benches, or perhaps the floor if there is not enough room. Considering many of their backgrounds, these boys and girls are very fortunate to receive an education at all.

We were shown the dorms next. Joseph again thanked Dr. Jarrett for giving the kids trunks and boxes to keep their things in. Dr. Jarrett said, "Oh that was many years ago." Joseph said, "These are the ones! They are still here!" It is so special for each child to have something they can call their own.


The mattresses at Umoja are very, very nice. They are wrapped in a plastic covering, which helps them last longer with the little ones wetting the bed. Major fundraising had been done in the States to get these mattresses, and Dr. Jarrett was so excited to see the good condition of them.

We toured the grounds while Joseph pointed out the large rainwater tank they are blessed with. There are half PVC pipes running from the gutters of all the buildings into the tank.

They even have a water filter, so the children are able to drink very clean water. What a rare blessing!

Joseph has a small farm at Umoja where his chickens produce eggs that help support the orphanage. Many missionary families buy his eggs each week. Liam was mostly interested in the sheep. He had heard Mommy and Daddy's "baaa" when we read him his animal books, but hearing it in person was something else! He loved "baaaa"ing back and forth with the sheep.

We then went into their meeting room where we sat facing the children. They sang us several songs while we enjoyed chai.

Dr. Jarrett gave the kids a sucker while he shared a little bit and showed them pictures of his family back home. Then Joseph, his mother, and his wife spoke. This is when we lost Liam! The great outdoors was calling to him!

He wasn't into sitting quietly, so we played and explored outside with Lawrence, our driver. Liam barked at their dog, played with Lawrence's hat, and got a couple scrapes on his knee from the rocky terrain.

When we returned to the meeting room, Dr. Jarrett asked if I would teach the kids a song. He had seen our Mother's Day program and said these kids would love it. So, I pulled out the trusty ole Jesus is My Superhero and the kids jumped right in.

They are very quiet and well behaved, but when the music came on, they really smiled and danced along. They asked me to write the words for them so they can sing it again and again.

What a joy to take a break from what we do everyday to see what these Kenyans have committed their lives to doing in service to the Lord. There are about 40 children living at the orphanage, with many more asking to come and live there.

Joseph told me there are only two empty beds at Umoja. These children have lost their parents for many different reasons, but we can be assured that they are loved, fed, educated, and told about Jesus Christ.

Please pray not only for Tenwek, but its other ministries including the village Medical Clinics Logan has visited and orphanages like Mosop and Umoja where some of God's sweetest children live.

"Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it."

And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them.
Mark 10:14-16