community profile
Ngong is a town near the Ngong Hills along the Great Rift Valley within Kajiado County located in the south western part of Nairobi City. HIV Prevalence is 4.4% in the Ngong community with an estimated total of 23,056 HIV+ community members in the area. Most community members are living in extreme economic poverty, with a community unemployment rate of 9.3%.
The CARE for AIDS center in Ngong launched in 2019 in partnership with Deliverance Church Ngong.
CENTER STAFF
Spiritual Counselor: George Kamau Mburu
George joined the CARE for AIDS team as a spiritual counselor in 2019. He is committed to guiding clients toward a deep relationship with the Lord and is passionate about his work.
Health Counselor: Ruth Murugi
Ruth is passionate about serving those in her community who are marginalized. She joined the CARE for AIDS team in 2019.
CENTER HISTORY
YEAR GRADUATES FAITH-DECISIONS ORPHANS PREVENTED
2019-2020* N/A N/A N/A
2020-2021 71 13 241
2021-2022 TBD TBD TBD
*The cohort in the 2019-2020 class did not graduate in the 2020 calendar year because of 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.
client profiles
Nicodemus, 2021 Client
Nicodemus is from Olepolos, a village near Ngong town. He is a cobbler and one of his legs was amputated after an accident at a construction site in Tanzania where he was living with his family. After the accident, he was not able to access good medical treatment in Tanzania, so he relocated to Kenya. This meant separation from his family. In Kenya, he accessed treatment but it was too late for him to keep both legs, thus the amputation.
When Nicodemus joined us, he was stressed and disturbed. He didn’t seem to have a good focus in life. His cobbler work was not doing very well and neither was the economy. Nicodemus had a keen interest when we started the program. He is an early bird and is never late. As the program continued, he opened up and mingled very well. He showed resilience and determination to change.
When we started the skill seminar, he grabbed the opportunity and was quick to identify one skill he would work on. By now, Nicodemus was transformed from the quiet man we knew to a very outspoken and vibrant person. He was an encouragement and inspiration to many. Nicodemus took the beadwork seminar to learn how to make necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. Now, he has stocked his makeshift shop with the items.
We formed savings groups and Nicodemus was elected as chairman of his group because of his ability to quickly adapt and embrace change. In his new position, Nicodemus has shown great leadership skills; after one month, he was able to register the group with the government and they have a certificate. Currently, he's leading his group and has shown determination and focus to pick one skill they have learned to be their group business skill. They are pooling funds as capital for them to start once they hit their target.
Nicodemus is now a smiling, very happy man. He testified that CARE for AIDS came at the right time and he appreciates that the support given is not sympathetic but empathetic. It challenges him to be responsible. It’s also helping him wake up to have a positive attitude towards life. He now believes that he was destined for greatness.
Lucy, 2020 Ngong Client
Lucy joined the CARE for AIDS program in early 2020 at the Ngong center. A few months into the program, COVID-19 prevented the class from meeting in person, but it didn’t stop Lucy and her classmates from participating in telecounseling. Lucy’s family struggled from severe economic poverty, which was exacerbated by the lockdowns throughout the year. She was also suffering from ulcers, a common opportunistic infection for people living with HIV. Through the telecounseling platform, center staff were able to prescribe medications for Lucy’s ulcers and provide her and her family with emergency food rations to get them through the lockdowns.
Lucy is thrilled to be meeting in person with her classmates again in 2021 and looks forward to catching up on the seminars they missed. She is excited to continue to learn and grow in the new year.