Community Profile
CARE for AIDS launched operations in the Ujamaa community in 2018. Ujamaa is a slum community located on the Likoni district of Mombasa. There is a large community of Muslims living in the area and we are excited to see the impact of a program like CARE for AIDS in the area over the coming years.
Center Staff
Health Counselor, Josephine
Josephine joined the CARE for AIDS team in 2017 and serves as the Ujamaa Center’s Health Counselor.
Spiritual Counselor, Raphael Msangi Ruphus
Raphael grew up in coast region at Kwale County in Waa location. Today he is married to Jeniffer and serves with CFA. He joined in 2017 because he wanted to change people's lives. It brings him happiness to assist others. He dreams of continuing his own education, pursuing a degree in theology.
Center history
Year graduates Faith-Decisions Orphans prevented
2018-2019 76 2 226
2019-2020* N/A N/A N/A
2020-2021 TBD TBD TBD
*The cohort in the 2019-2020 class was impacted by delays in the CARE for AIDS program caused by COVID-19 lockdowns and health precautions. To learn more about how we responded to the pandemic, visit this page.
Graduate Profiles
Valary, 2021 GRADUATE
Valary is a 27-year-old single woman from the northern coast of Kenya. She has 4-year-old twins (a boy and a girl). Recruiting Valary was not easy. CARE for AIDS staff met her in a health facility and at that time, she was very sick. She could not walk without support and she was discouraged. She also had a lumbar disorder.
Valary was lonely, had no friends, and was frustrated with life. She felt hopeless, but after joining the program, she was surprised to find 79 other clients there. Knowing that there were many others living with HIV/AIDs motivated her. She found a new family.
In the program, Valary received counseling and proper medication. This caused a big change in her life. At her graduation, Valary walked by herself to get her certificate. She has various skills and has specialized in beadwork and doormat making, which helps her take care of her twins.
Valary is now an independent, happy woman who is forever grateful for the empowerment she received from the program.
Katherine found out she was HIV-positive in 2005 after her husband passed away because of AIDS. Sadly, he had refused to see a doctor about his condition. When he passed, Katherine went to the hospital and got tested. When she found out she was positive, she had her kids tested and her youngest daughter was positive as well. They started on ARV treatment together. Now the sole provider for her family, Katherine began selling firewood to make money. Eventually, she added baby diapers and socks to her supply and began selling as well. Once she had enough money, she built a small kiosk next to her house where she could set up her business each day. She was making enough most months to keep her children fed and their rent paid, but she felt alone and tired.
Katherine found out about the CARE for AIDS program at Ujamaa from a friend who was part of the program in a nearby community, Mtongwe. She joined Ujamaa center and has made many new friends in the program. For Katherine, the best part of the program has been these new friends who feel like family. They visit one another in their homes and encourage one another. Katherine no longer feels alone in this journey.
She has already started using what she’s learned in the seminar skills training to add items to sell in her shop. She is now making and selling keychains, bead necklaces, table decorations, soap and stain remover. She’s also teaching her daughter the skills she’s learning and they practice together after her daughter gets home from school each day. Katherine wants to go far and doing something meaningful with her life to glorify God. Her dream is to make enough that can share her profits with those who have less.