Visiting the Girls

Jeptoo's Home, originally uploaded by momentswithmichelle.

On Friday William and I invited our colleague Juli to go with us to visit Jeptoo and her kids. We left after breakfast and made the walk to her home. This time I brought the camera. Previously I was afraid I might fall in the river while crossing the log bridge so I didn’t bring it.

The girls are all doing a million times better. It is amazing what some food, vitamins and antibiotics can do! They still have a ways to go but I believe they are out of the woods. Now it is their spirits I am most concerned about. These kids have been through a lot and it shows on their faces. I still haven’t seen anything close to a smile from the three youngest.

Jeptoo came to our home at the beginning of the week and shared her story with us. She had gone with her husband to his home village. It was about a six hour drive from us here in Kipkaren. After several years he decided he no longer wanted her. He brought another woman home and beat her with a pipe. The children were present as this happened. She told us that as the girls were crying and running to her he just kept pushing them away. Then he told her that he was going to kill her. She ran away and hid in a cornfield for several days. Then she gathered up the children and made the trip back to her mom’s home (just across the river from us). She has been there since.

Her mother and brother are both alcoholics and Jeptoo had a difficult time trying to figure out how to support the children. So she started brewing alcohol to make a living. Obviously it hasn’t been going very well considering the children are starving. She told us that after we sent Chelagat to the hospital she realized just how grave the situation was. It occurred to her that her children were slowly dying and she couldn’t do a thing about it. At that time she decided it would be better to kill herself and not witness her children’s deaths. Then William and I showed up expressing interest in her and the kids. At that point she decided to give life another chance.

We are hoping in the next week or two to get them moved across the river. We will need to purchase bedding, clothing, food, lanterns etc. It’s going to be a big undertaking but I firmly believe it is completely worthwhile. I’m praying that with time those girls will learn how to smile.


One of the things that has hit me hard lately is the fact that here there are no safety nets. There are no social services. There are no backup plans. There are not resources I can refer patients like this to. If I send them out the door, that’s the end of it. It can be frightening and extremely overwhelming. But then I remember that that is why I’m here. This is why I chose to come to Africa. My ambition has always been to meet needs that no one else is there to meet. And wow, the needs are big! But it is a relief to know that I serve a big God.