Meet the Women Behind the Stories

Behind Foothold’s work are women and girls we have come to know through years of friendship and working together in Kenya. They are mothers, students, artisans, entrepreneurs, and community leaders. Each has her own story, her own gifts, and her own hopes for the future.

Some of those relationships begin with a bar of soap or a set of washable menstrual pads. Others grow through a classroom, a scholarship, or a conversation that becomes a lasting friendship.

At Harambee, each table features one of these women or girls. We invite you to get to know the person whose name is on your table, and then keep reading to meet the others.

A Few Words from You Could Mean So Much

You’ll find blank cards at your table. If you would like, use one to write a personal letter of encouragement to the woman or girl featured there.

Introduce yourself, share something in her story that connected with you, or offer a few words of encouragement, a prayer, or a favorite Scripture. You don’t need to write anything elaborate. A simple, heartfelt message is enough.

Thank you for taking the time to know the people who make this work matter.

Faith

Faith’s connection with Foothold began through the Jasiri Project, where she received washable menstrual pads along with education about reproductive health and gender-based violence.

As a young Maasai mother, Faith understands the uncertainty of depending on the income her husband earns from his cows’ milk. She hopes to build another source of income for her family.

Her dream is to receive vocational training, perhaps in tailoring, so she can support her children’s education and contribute to a more stable future. For Faith, learning a trade would create more choices for herself and her children.

Jennifer

When we first met Jennifer, she was a 19-year-old single mother of twins and a survivor of gender-based violence. Even then, we sensed she would become an important part of Foothold’s work.

Over the years, Jennifer has grown into a trusted leader and spokeswoman for the Jasiri washable menstrual pad project. Her communication skills, fluent English, and understanding of her community have made her a valued voice in conversations about menstrual health, reproductive health, and gender-based violence.

Although her formal schooling ended after eighth grade, Jennifer’s leadership has brought opportunities to work with the Ministry of Education, Kenya Red Cross, and the Taita Community Health Department. Women older than she is look to her for guidance and mentorship.

Her work with Foothold has included managing pad production and distribution across five primary schools and two secondary schools, while helping students understand their health and where to seek support.

Jennifer brings knowledge, courage, and a personal understanding of why this work matters.

Agnes

Agnes has always approached school with determination. Despite vision difficulties associated with Marfan syndrome, she consistently performed near the top of her class.

In early 2022, her principal contacted Foothold because her eyesight was worsening as she prepared for the eighth-grade examinations that would determine her high school placement.

Specialists found that glasses would not be enough. We redirected her tuition scholarship toward the $500 cost of eye surgery, knowing that being able to see was essential to continuing her education.

Her first surgery was successful, and a second operation in late 2023 was also successful. Donors then helped support her continuing education.

Agnes’s story reminds us how closely health and education are connected. Sometimes helping a student stay in school begins with making sure she can see what is in front of her.

Sharon Mbenya

Sharon is Agnes’s mother, and her story is part of the family’s journey I share in my Harambee speech.

For about a year, Sharon was seriously ill and unable to care for her children. During that time, Agnes stayed with her grandmother while trying to continue her education. Foothold helped with a scholarship and, when Agnes’s vision threatened her ability to learn, supported the eye surgery she needed.

When I visited the family the following year, Sharon was well again, and mother and daughter were back together. Their home was very humble, but seeing them reunited has stayed with me.

Foothold played a part by helping meet specific needs along the way. Sharon, Agnes, and Agnes’s grandmother did the work of bringing their family back together.

When I think of Sharon, I remember that recovery reaches beyond one person. For this family, it meant a mother and daughter being able to share daily life again, and the opportunity to move forward together.

Pricilla

I first met Pricilla when she was in fifth grade at Urukungu Primary School.

Urukungu is a Maasai community facing serious water shortages. Attempts to access groundwater have been complicated by high salinity, leaving families and the school with limited options.

Foothold has supported the school through soap, washable menstrual pads, and a rainwater catchment system. The water system helps, although it cannot meet all the school’s needs for drinking, cooking, and hygiene.

When Pricilla continued to a girls’ boarding school in an area with a more dependable water supply, it opened new possibilities. Her family worked hard to send her, but school expenses remained difficult to manage.

During a visit to her high school, her teachers told us she was doing well. Pricilla was deeply grateful to be considered for a scholarship.

Her story shows how access to water, basic necessities, and school fees can all shape a girl’s opportunity to learn.

Wincella

Wincella is a leader in a young women’s group that formed in late 2022. As a young mother, she has helped us better understand the educational needs of women raising children in her community.

Her formal education ended after eighth grade, but she continued learning, including developing her English skills independently.

Wincella has also seen what education can do across generations. Her mother participated in Foothold’s adult education program, where learning basic calculations helped her manage her small business.

That experience has informed our conversations about restarting adult literacy opportunities. Wincella knows that practical learning can make a difference in a family’s daily life.

She has also participated in Foothold-supported workshops addressing gender-based violence and infant mental health, bringing her perspective as a mother and community leader.

Lucy

Lucy is a leader in the Namelok ladies group, known for her jewelry-making skills and her ability to drive a hard bargain.

But what I remember most is her greeting.

She almost always spots me first. Before anything else can happen, Lucy insists that I greet her. That means a warm, emphatic embrace, moving from shoulder to shoulder and cheek to cheek.

She calls my name, “She-dee,” and keeps calling until I respond. Then there is usually a line of women waiting behind her. But Lucy must be greeted first.

No matter how tired or distracted I am when I arrive, her welcome brings me back into the moment. I feel at home.

Lucy reminds me that these friendships are also a source of care for me. She and the other women have been praying for me since I last left.

Maseno

I met Maseno in 2011. She did not speak English, but I still remember how easily she connected with my friend Anne despite the language barrier.

Something about her stayed with me.

Only later did I learn that Maseno is Jennifer’s stepmother. A woman whose face I had remembered from our earliest visits was already connected to someone who would become central to Foothold’s work.

Maseno also helped press for us to return to her community with HIV testing. Her advocacy helped us understand what the community wanted from a medical outreach.

Her story is a reminder to listen. The women we meet have knowledge, priorities, and ideas that should shape the work we do together.

Irene

Irene was one of the first women I trained in handcrafted soap-making.

When I first met her, she was working in her maize field with her seven-year-old son, Lawrence, carried on her back. Lawrence had severe cerebral palsy, and as he grew, carrying him everywhere became increasingly difficult.

Foothold worked with a physical therapist to find a wheelchair suited to the rough terrain around their home. It gave Lawrence additional support and helped Irene care for him.

Lawrence later passed away at the age of 12 from complications related to his disability. We remember his smile when Irene spoke to him or held him, and the deep love between them.

Irene has also worked as a seamstress for the Jasiri Project, earning income by sewing washable menstrual pads.

Supporting that work connects two important opportunities: menstrual supplies for girls and women, and paid work for women like Irene.

Neema

We first met Neema as a spirited seven-year-old, usually close to her mother, Dorcas.

Dorcas was an important member of our soap-making group and the first seamstress for Foothold’s washable menstrual pad project.

A bus accident took Dorcas’s life and seriously injured Neema’s father. Neema survived with minor physical injuries, but she faced the enormous loss of her mother.

During the years that followed, Neema lived with different family members as they worked to care for her. School fees were a continuing challenge.

Foothold stayed in touch and helped cover her education costs. In the update shared for our table stories, Neema was living with her older brother and his wife and performing near the top of her eighth-grade class.

We remember Dorcas with love, and we are grateful to remain connected with Neema as she pursues her own future.

Melicent

Melicent has a quiet presence that draws your attention. In a meeting of the Namelok ladies group, she listens carefully before speaking, often bringing both insight and gentle humor to the conversation.

Together with her husband, Isaya, she has supported education and community health while honoring their Maasai heritage. Their involvement has included soap-making, washable menstrual pads, and adult education.

Melicent has a gift for sharing the women’s products. She is often ready with a bar of soap tucked into a small bag in her skirt, finding opportunities to introduce it to someone in the community.

Although she had not attended school as a child, she helped launch the Maasai Adult Education Center and began learning herself. She wanted to understand what her children were studying and encourage others by participating.

She once promised that by our next visit, she would be speaking English.

That determination is very much Melicent: thoughtful, purposeful, and ready to keep learning.

Nasarian

Nasarian first connected with Foothold as an eighth-grade student receiving washable menstrual pads. Tuition support later helped her finish school.

She went on to begin college studies in Nutrition and Dietetics, but financial challenges forced her to pause her education.

Returning home brought uncertainty, including the possibility of an arranged marriage that could interrupt her plans. Nasarian continued to hold on to her hope of completing college.

She became part of Foothold’s new soap-making group, Nashipa, a Maasai word meaning “happiness.” The group offered an opportunity to serve her community and earn income toward tuition.

Nasarian has already shown that she can take on higher education. Her hope is to have the opportunity to continue.

Nakungukunya

Nakungukunya was a founding member of Foothold’s first soap-making group, the Namelok Ladies Group, established in 2016.

The women produced and distributed handcrafted soap to five primary schools and two healthcare dispensaries before soap production transitioned to a new group.

Through Namelok, Nakungukunya earned income to help feed her family and pay her children’s school fees. The group also developed a small, low-interest loan program, giving members access to funds for other needs.

Their annual sharing of profits became a celebration of what they had built together. They reinvested some of their earnings in folding tables and chairs to rent to churches and community events.

The women also worked with organizations such as the Red Cross on additional projects.

Nakungukunya’s story reflects the lasting value of women building something together: income, shared resources, and more opportunities for their families and community.

Thank You for Getting to Know Them

These stories are part of the relationships that connect Foothold’s community in Kenya with our friends here in Ohio.

Thank you for reading, for caring, and for being part of Harambee. If you feel moved to write a letter, the cards at your table are an invitation to make that connection personal.

A few words in your own handwriting can carry a simple message across the miles: I read your story. I’m thinking of you. I’m cheering you on.