The last few weeks now have brought about great changes to CBSM. We were able to buy some further lots of land and begin building the foundations for our new CBSM Education Center.

These great strides forward towards building permanent facilities have occurred through the amazing efforts of volunteers from far away and near to home.

The project management and funding is realised through our partnership with CBSM-Kimilili in Switzerland.

We tip our hats to all of you who have offered your emotional, financial, and practical assistance. It is inspiring for all of us to witness your dedication in supporting us in our endeavours in creating a safe and rich learning environment for our children.

We also have to, of course, mention all the members of the CBSM community who have given us so much of their time, skills, resourcefulness, strong backs, and their unending willingness to help where ever help is needed. We are truly grateful.
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With a new year now upon us, CBSM has been quite busy in and around Kimilili, Kenya.

We recently said goodbye to 10 volunteers from Europe who have been quite involved in fundraising and the building of a new CBSM school.  The school is in its early development stages, but will be made out of concrete materials as opposed to cow dug and sticks which the current school is made out of. 

Breezie, our Peace Corps volunteer has been very busy in Kimilili.  She has started a health club which she teaches to CBSM’s students in classes 4-7, which she is really enjoying.  She teaches them a variety of topics and most recently she has been teaching them about self-esteem, an important aspect of adolescence.

The children really look forward to seeing her every week and enjoy the activities she has been getting them involved in!

At the CBSM school Breezie has been planting gardens with nutritious vegetables and is trying to create sack gardens, which is soil in sack bags with sukuma seedlings (resembles kale).  Sukuma seedlings are somewhat out of season and Breezie has been hunting for them in and around the city. 

We can’t wait to see how they turn out!

We hope everyone is enjoy their 2012 as much as we are!

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From all of us at Community Breakthrough Support Mission (CBSM) we would like to thank everyone for their donations and support throughout 2011. 

We were able to accomplish so much and we all look forward to the year to come.  

We have many projects and ideas on the go along with many wonderful and passionate volunteers.

From everyone at CBSM we wish you a happy and healthy 2012!

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CBSM Taxi Fleet 09/18/2011
 
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Taxi Fleet CBSM is happy to announce that we have been working along side two local youth groups to create our very own 'Taxi Fleet'!

After four years of teaching best business practices, a pilot project has begun with a vocational training program. Youth from the CBSM community will take part n a nine-month vocational and leadership program and upon graduation they will own their own personal bicycle taxis.

The program will teach these youths bicycle maintenance, repair and will include a one week apprenticeship at a local Kimilili repair shop.
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Our main aim in building up a CBSM Taxi Fleet is to provide male youths with a new prospective on how they can achieve self-sufficiency through collaborative effort. The vocational and leadership training program will provide them with the knowledge they need to run a successful bicycle taxi business.

Everyone is very excited and many ideas, suggestions and support has been generated! Please continue to check our blog to receive more information and updates about our exciting new project!
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The strike, which is estimated to have affected more that 12 million students has finally ended. The nation wide school strike affected government run schools across Kenya by the Kenyan National Union of Teachers (KNUT).

According to a local Nairobi newspaper report, teachers were handling a teacher to student ration of 1 to 80 and demanded that this be lowered by a large number of additional teachers hired for the country.

Luckily, CBSM's school, as well as other community and private schools continued to operate, but they have been encouraged by the KNUT to close. CBSM held a emergency meeting and decided to close for a few days to ensure the safety of all students.

Yesterday, September 12th, the strike was called off after four days by the KNUT. The KNUT's Secretary General David Okuta made a statement today saying “for the sake of our children, and for the sake of stability in the Nation, the strike has been called off.”

CBSM is happy that the school has been able to run and that other Kenyan students will be able to resume their learning once again.
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Zaida, Phylis, and Breezie (left to right)
(written by Mandie)

Dear Friends,

As some of you may know, we have a Peace Corps Volunteer, Breezie, who will be staying in Kimilili for two years. She has only been in Kimilili for three and a half weeks, but has really gotten down to work!

With a degree in nutrition, Beezie has been conducting nutrition talks to a local hospital's VCT clinic, to newly HIV diagnosed individuals. She will continue to educate others about proper food choices on a weekly basis at the hospital every Wednesday and Thursday morning. During her first talk she spoke about three types of food that can be helpful during an infection and/or illness like HIV/AIDS. Bodybuilding foods to repair the body during illness, protective foods to fight infections and energy foods are essential to maintain immune function. This information is very helpful to those who are newly diagnosed and who may not understand the importance diet can be.

Breezie has also been doing many other things, which has kept her quite busy. Recently, she attended a Community Health Workers meeting in Kamasielo and has been communicating with various group within the community, assessing their needs. Many have given great ideas that the community would like to see established or created.

Breezie has really enjoyed her time in Kenya thus far and looks forward to what lies ahead in the coming months.
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by Phylis (Mrs. Wasike)

Much has happened over the last weeks. So much so, that we have not had time to sit down and write you all about the various developments. Firstly, we would like to introduce you to  Zaida Emali Namukhosi.

Zaida has kindly committed herself to work at the CBSM offices in Kimilili to improve our financial infrastructures and do our accounting for our various women co-ops and youth groups, as well as the running of our school. Admittedly, our finical accounting has not been functioning the way it should be and therefore we are very excited about having Zaida on-board. It was a long journey to find someone with her qualifications and strong commitment for social change.

We started by doing a campaign in Nairobi in various churches looking for a volunteer accountant. About six applicants offered themselves but their conditions and terms of contract requested were unattainable as per current situation in CBSM does not able us to offer a fixed salary. Unknowingly, in my church, there was an accountant well-trained and certified by government of Kenya, but not currently employed. This person was Zaida Emali Namukhosi. 

Over a two-week period, we had several meetings with the couple, whose husband works in Nairobi. I am happy mention the people who helped us in these meetings:
  • Palm Security Services Director, who is a leader in our church too
  • CBSM board members
  • Samuel Namihinda- businessman in Kimilili
At the conclusion of these meetings, Zaida agreed to come to Kimilili with her children and work for us for one year. The CBSM community will provide her with room and board, a two-acre piece of land for her household garden, ability for her children to attend our school. Palm Security Services will provide building material and the CBSM community member the labour for building proper office facilities for Zaida to carryout her work.

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by Phylis (Mrs. Wasike)

This to confirm that all the toilets for both teachers and pupils (girls/boys) are now full in use! This means the problems that previousely existed with the school always being in collusion with the government agencies is now over.

Thank you all that got involved. Thank you once more for helping us to provide our children with a more healthy and hygenic place to learn in. A total of twelve permanent toilets were erecated and built:
  • 5 for the girls
  • 5 for the boys
  • 2 for the teachers (1-female and 1- male)
We have now complided with the government requirements.

Vicky, Alex, Agness and Lia,

Thank you in the roles you played in helping CBSM be where it is now.
God bless you all,

Phylis
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During the CBSM board of management December meeting, it was resolve that we must establish an office for CBSM in Kimilili town, as well as open up an account in Kimilili in the only KCB bank. As well, it was decided that if all goes well these two items are to be implemented between January and February 2011.


The lack of a functioning office has greatly inconvenienced the public, local government agencies in the past. The CBSM board members did not have a central meeting place to contact and make official transactions or for coordinating and facilitating the project activities. The board sited that it is also the lack of central office in Kimilili, which makes it difficult for normal running of its affairs.

We are striving to get the reporting of the CBSM Education Center and the various women co-ops flowing properly. Without a central place to meet, this has make it difficult for reports to be archived and for loan. Therefore, we have started with our preparations.

First, we have started gathering office equipments. Here is a list of the present status of this endeavour:
  • 
Palm Security has generously donated an office table and two chairs. We are making arrangements to transport them to Kimilili at the next opportunity.
  • The board decided that the two computers Agnes and Alex are currently using in Kimilili shall remain office computers for official use in the CBSM office.
  • 
Should we get an office then our current volunteer Matrine will use part of it for her and her child’s accommodations, as she continues to volunteer as a teacher for CBSM. 
  • Kibabii Engineering network has donated one telephone head for landline for CBSM office.
  • 
Rev. Wasike has handed over the modem for an internet connection in the office . This is the modem that was purchased and used by Vicky during her stay in Kimilili last fall, which she gave to Rev. Wasike upon her departure. This modem is currently being used by Agnes and Alex.

  • Phylis has been mandated to take inventory of available office tools/equipment and other requirements. The office must be connected to electricity.


The office set to start by early February 2011.


It will be the official contact point/place for the public, CBSM families and government agencies who have recently developed alot of interest in whatever we are doing. Hence there have been numerous visits at the school prompting interruptions of normal learning process.


No office staff shall be employed for the moment. We shall have to depend on volunteers. My wife, Phylis is relocating to Kimilili soon with our children and she will be a full time person in the office among others.


Rev Wasike

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Dear All,

The year 2010 is coming to a conclusion; the CBSM family in Kimilili is taking stock of its achievements and making comparisons to the same seasons in previous years. From all our hearts, we have a lot to thank you and God for the year 2010!

There is growth and stability of the projects than there was at the same time previous year. And there is hope. Together we have laid a foundation that shall benefit generations beyond our life span. Thank you for being part of this foundation.

CBSM board members, the women groups, teachers, and the confessions of children have moved from desperate talk to confidence. Thank you for being source of hope for the hopeless.

Thank you all for the school land. The generous donations we received from all over the world was inspiring for those CBSM members living in a rural area where they often feel isolated and left alone with their worries. There is now a solid home for the school, and the end to paying rents and a good step towards making the school more self-sustainable.

Thank you for women groups vocational training programs that has enabled them to do business with confidence against all the odds. They have learnt to overcome the challenges posed previously by lack of capital, information and face the cultural prohibitions that required women to be child bearing alone.

CBSM has functional structures in place for better service delivery to the community and this has been possible by sharing information, ideas, etc. Thank you very much.

Evaluation of overall our CBSM achievements include amongst other things the following:
  • Building a strong board of managers in Kimilili to take over the day-to-day running of the school and business supervision and community matters
  • Proposal writing by the UN online volunteer groups
  • Producing new learning manuals for our women co-ops and youth group vocational gardening training program
  • The start-up of three new small-scale businesses concentrating on bulk seed storage and distribution and running a bakery
  • Holding the first CBSM Kimilili Football Tournament
  • Holding four successful fund raising events in Kimilili, Nairobi, Ireland, and Germany
  • Raising sufficient funds for the purchase of school land and lease of a further plot of land for sports and school gardens
  • Receiving the volunteer assistance of Sebastian (Germany) and Vicki (Ireland) in our Kimilili community towards building stronger international ties and for cultural exchange
All of these events could only have happened through the rigorous engagement of the local team, as well as our international members. It would not have been possible without your participation.
 
Your monetary donations, information, ideas, willingness to be part of the team, sharing the life and work of the CBSM members with others has contributed greatly towards these achievements. We thank everybody for the role they played. It is the source of energy for our growth.

Thank you, Lia, for providing overall leadership to CBSM without which it would have been very difficult for the momentum to be sustained throughout the year. Thank you all for your teamwork, for sparing time for CBSM. Thank you and may God remember to bless you all.

Kindly, the CBSM family in Kenya wish every one a prosperous and successful New Year and continued teamwork together for the year 2011!
 
Amen

Rev.Wasike

on behalf of the CBSM women’s groups, children and board of management
please forward to as many as all that know CBSM
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