Monthly Newsletter and Missions Update: March-April 2022:

Visitors at Embrace

We had an exciting group of visitors in the month of March. Alex, the founding director of Embrace, along with Tim, Lesya and Elijah from the US came to spend a week and use their talents to serve Embrace. 

As part of the rehabilitation program, our goal is to expose the boys to hands-on learning, explore new subjects and aim to spark an interest in education. Our visitors brought special kits to conduct an Electricity workshop, giving the boys a chance to put their understanding into practice by (safely) connecting all the parts from a light switch to a light source. Needless to say, several boys have since become aspiring electricians. 

Alex, Tim, Lesya, and Elijah also made excellent guest judges for our monthly Talent show. Some boys worked weeks in advance to prepare a hilarious drama, write original rap, and practice their acrobatics to impress the judges and win the grand prize of yummy goodies. 1stplace was earned by the group of boys who learned a whole song in sign language, 2nd place went to two young rappers, and 3rd place went to the team of acrobats.

Staff Retreat

Our guests also organized a 2-day Staff Retreat for our team of Kenyan staff and missionaries. The days were filled with team-building activities, prayer and worship, as well as seminars on crucial conversations, financial management, and CPR/first aid. During break times, the staff enjoyed playing volleyball and soccer together. It was a restful and encouraging time for us to grow as a team and reflect on how God has been faithful in every part of our ministry.

Easter

This year we remembered the events of the Holy Week in a special way, bringing the events to life  through dramas put together by our team. The boys were captivated to watch the Biblical events they read about, helping them imagine and understand better what Jesus went through to offer us salvation through His sacrifice and resurrection. Our hope and prayer is for God’s Word to have a lasting impact in their lives. 

Easter is not a commonly celebrated holiday in Kenya so we took the opportunity to organize a special event and invite our pastors, ministry partners and neighbors from the community to remember the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. As per our established tradition, pastor Michael shared the Gospel message, the boys prepared songs, memory verses and shared personal testimonies of how God has worked in their lives. Everyone enjoyed a delicious lunch and a fun Easter themed game.

Boys’ Testimonies

Vincent was the first boy who was reintegrated into his family from Embrace, Nairobi in spring 2021.He has been thriving in his family, education, as well as Spiritual growth.

He visited us during his spring break and shared his testimony with the boys how he came from using drugs on the streets to being saved by Jesus, going home and now even being an above average student. Many boys were deeply impacted by his story. After the visit of their old friend, we observed a positive trend of many boys asking when they could be reintegrated and go back to school. 

Brian Mwangi has been at Embrace since January 2021, and has been through a lot of rejection from those who should be the closet people, his parents. Over a year later, our social workers were finally able to trace his aunt and uncle who have a stable home and were willing to take Brian in under their care. As discouraging as it was to seem halted in a case for so long, we could only trust God’s timing is best, as we witnessed Kamwangi become a more matured young man in the last year, asking many questions about how he can overcome sin and faithfully live for Jesus. 

Brandon Mungai was also one of the first boys at our Center and similarly, faced rejection, disappointment and hopelessness. As a result of his negative experiences at home and on the streets, he had a bitter attitude and struggled with anger issues. During his long stay at Embrace, we witnessed a slow but encouraging transformation as Brandon learned to overcome temptations, deal with anger and expressed a desire to grow closer to God. 

Francis Mwaura has been with us for about 1 year and demonstrated positive changes in his attitude and desire to continue his education. 

Unfortunately, we could not secure safe home placements for either Brandon or Francis, despite many attempts. Both boys were admitted to a boarding school in Western Kenya where they are pursuing their education as Embrace continues to support them. 

Samuel Baraka and Fredrick Mbithe have both been reintegrated back to their families after several months of rehabilitation at Embrace. They were supported with the necessary requirements to return back to school.