A Study of Opposites

Our hotel grounds are beautiful. It’s a true oasis. It’s deceptive. We wake up to singing birds and lush green landscape. But as we board the bus…I know well what’s coming. I brace myself. It’s day two. I’m already wearing armour.

Our bus driver’s name is Alex. He is a magician. Think of all the films you’ve seen of over-crowded roads in Third World countries where there are no traffic lights and every man and machine weaving and bobbing about and then multiply that by 100. The add mounds of trash, people, rats, potholes the size of a buick…now you have Dandora. Ales squeezes our forty-foot bus through 20 foot openings. Pure death defying magic. We pour heaps of love on him as often as we can.

How to describe Dandora? It needs 3D pop-up smell-o-vision. It’s a study of opposites. Wild-eyed children up against signs that advertise Tide for brighter clothes on a building built with mud and metal scraps, landscaped with 2 to 3 feet of trash. It’s storefront after storefront advertising cafes, hotels, churches, scavenged goods and clothes for a population mostly unemployed. It’s building after building no bigger than small shacks put together with cardboard that house extended families. It’s bus after bus after minivan and minivan of people crammed in going to goodness knows where while goats eat through roadside garbage.

We arrive at Holy Cross church--the parish is literally a breath of fresh air. Walled up from the filth of outside to provide pasture-filled serenity on the inside.

Today hundreds of locals have gathered to get food from Veronica’s Place in order to be able to stomach the anti-viral medication they need to take in order to live with HIV.

A few get up to speak to us and the assembled crowd: they speak of being discriminated against and shunned by their parents, spouses, children—only here at Holy Cross and Veronica’s Place have they found peace, comfort, community and assistance. I am moved to tears by their testimonies and determination to live. It seems here laughter, tears, joy, sadness and all are mixed together and spring up to the surface in an instant. They say they are blessed to have us. I know differently. We are blessed to be God’s little helpers…filling in the gaps.

Kathryn Haydn

Father Bob Dowd's Reflections on the Day

I arrived in Nairobi last night and it was great to join group today.

We began the day visiting with people who are HIV positive and supported by the Veronika’s Place feeding program. So many parishioners at Saint Monica’s participate in the LA Marathon to raise money that purchases food for people who are HIV positive and who need to take their medicine with proper food.

You would never know that the people before us are HIV positive. They laughed, danced and sang. They invited us to participate in their joy. It is as if they had been given a second chance at life and they were making the most of it. It is as if they had been freed and it seemed they were inviting us to do the same.

In the afternoon, we had the opportunity to tour the construction site of Visitation Maternal-Child Health Center at Holy Cross Parish in Dandora. Quite literally, that facility is going to save lives. Dandora is an area of Nairobi that is underserved. The health facilities are poor and there is no decent place for women to receive pre-natal care and to give birth to their children. As a result, there is evidence to suggest that the maternal and infant mortality rates in Dandora are almost two times higher than in Kenya as a whole. Thanks to Jill and Mark Tabit, and their family, the Visitation project is quite far along!

Almost two weeks ago I gave mission appeal for Visitation at Saint Monica and people were amazingly generous! Thanks to the parishioners of Saint Monica, the progress is going to continue and Visitation Maternal-Child Health Center will be making a huge difference in the lives of women and children in Dandora. Visitation will provide skilled and compassionate care for women and children in one of the most underserved areas of Nairobi. Life will be nurtured from the beginning! It is a big project and there is more work to be done. At times, I am a little overwhelmed thinking about it. However, with God’s help, we will get there.

Fr. Bob Dowd, C.S.C.

Karibu!

Karibu! Welcome!

All these months of anticipation and preparation and finally we are here! What we did not expect or anticipate was how emotional it would be upon arrival. The welcome we received by Father Andrew, Paul, Sister Agnes, Joy, Christina, Isaac, Adrian, Joseph, and about 15 more people from Holy Cross was to witness the Holy Spirit in action.

Waiting outside with bouquets of roses for each of us, they welcomed us like long absent family. And now we were home! There were hugs and tears of joy, and thanks that we were united at last after such a long journey.

The warmth and smiles, the delight at seeing one another for the first time, walking out the door to see 20 people waiting for us was a moment we will never forget. We lingered on the sidewalk and Father Andrew gave a beautiful blessing of thanks and welcomed us with God’s grace.

It was a moment that we didn’t want to end, and a first that we will never forget.

Our wonderful coordinator Paul Mbugua and driver Alex led us to our destination and pointed out the giraffes and zebra visible from the highway out of Nairobi Airport. Unfortunately, these are a rare sight these days.

We stopped to get supplies from the local supermarket and were once again surprised by the Spirit working. One of the gentlemen helping to load our purchases was from Holy Cross. He stepped on to our bus and welcomed us assuring us he would be at the mass on Sunday. He said, “Holy Cross Dandora means EVERYTHING!  Holy Cross is the world to us. And we welcome St. Monica’s.”

We were greeted at our hotel by Father David Guffey. Our group was complete. We had an opportunity to share and pray together and talk about the journey ahead. Being in a group like this is a powerful feeling. We are not here to “fix” things, but we are here together to be guided into what this mission means to each of us individually.

The Pilgrim's Journey

July 18, 2015
This group of Pilgrims of St. Monica Catholic Church started their journey to Kenya. A sixteen hour flight to Dubai, then another day of travel from Dubai to Kenya. Our group of strangers quickly became a small band of friends. Our leader Trevor Rodrigues patiently and kindly led the way.

Blessing over the St Monica Travelers

Watch the mass on Livestream

July 12 2015 - St Monica Sunday 530 Mass
http://livestream.com/stmonica90403/sunday530

Preparing

The 2015 team is making the final preparations to travel and will be sharing its experiences here soon.

-- CB