Heading Home

The team is in the airport and ready to board our first flight home.

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The 2019 Kenya Missions team with our missionary partners, Jenna & O’Neal

The goodbyes (or “see you next times”) are always hard, but knowing our partners are in good Hands makes the parting a bit easier.

As I write this, 12 of us are in line to board our first flight, a 2.5-hour trip to Ethiopia. After a short layover, we’ll have a 17-hour flight to Chicago with a brief refueling stop in Dublin.

Please pray with us for smooth and uneventful travel!

The team about to board at Moi International Airport in Mombasa

Vipingo big day

Today’s blog comes to us from Abbey.

Jambo! This has been my first time to Kenya and I have been blown away by the work that Fox River has done here. Saturday was our first community outreach day at Vipingo and it couldn’t have gone better. We had so many people come and the weather was perfect! It was a very independent day and was full of stickers, bubbles, tattoos, and face paint. We were able to interact with the kids, and everyone ended up with their own group of kids following them. 

One thing that I experienced for the first time was riding a camel. All of the children would push us to the front so they could ride with us over and over! 

For the entire trip I have been so shocked by how much the students want to help and that especially showed today. All of the older kids took charge and made sure the young ones where taking turns, forming lines when needed, and always offered to carry stuff for me. I’m so thankful for all that they have done.

Smoothest. Travel. Ever.

The 2019 Kenya Missions Team has arrived! Almost a full 24 hours after we met in Waukesha, we landed in Mombasa. We left our second plane perhaps a little sleepy, perhaps a little stiff and creaky, but overall doing very well. The travel could not have gone more smoothly -- praise God!

Beautiful views on our short flight from Ethiopia to Mombasa, Kenya

More good news to report: all of our luggage made the journey, seemingly as smoothly as we did. The twelve of us who landed today made it through immigration and customs without incident and were greeted by Denise, who traveled ahead of us by a few days, and by our partners in Kenya, Jenna & O'Neal Nyanje.

We made it thru customs!

Getting on the bus

After loading up our bus with our luggage, we made the journey to our hotel and began to settle in. It's important to stay awake until evening upon arrival, lest the adjustment to the new time zone drag on longer than it should. Denise will be diligent in keeping us awake (if not alert) with activities to help us acclamate to our new environment and prepare for the next two weeks. We just finished our orientation meeting and will soon be sorting supplies, preparing activities for the school kids, and later going shopping for any essentials.

Orientation meeting at the hotel

Sorting supplies in Denise’s room

The next two days will be our first visit to each of our two schools, meeting the kids and staff, and building the relationships that will serve as the foundation of everything we do here these two weeks. Tomorrow will be spent at Crossroads Academy in Vipingo and Tueaday we'll be at New Life Academy in Bomani.

Be sure to watch the blog and the Facebook Page for updates on what we are - and more importantly what God is up to in Kenya!

One More Flight

We've arrived safely in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia! One flight down, one to go!

The last blog post said that we'd arrive in Kenya around midnight Milwaukee time -- this was a mistake. (Chalk it up to an early morning with little sleep!) We actually landed in Ethiopia around 7am local time / 11pm Mikwaukee time. We now have a short layover and then a 2.5-hour flight to Mombasa, Kenya.

The flight from Chicago to Ethiopia was fairly uneventful. Seemed like most of the team was able to get at least a little shut eye.

If all goes according to plan, we will land in Mombasa at 11:30am Kenya time / 3:30am Milwaukee time. At that point, we'll have 12 people going thru customs, which can be an adventure. We'll then have some activities to get settled in and keep us awake until evening as napping just makes the time adjustment worse.

Please pray with us that our second flight and entry into Kenya is as easy as the start of our journey has been!

And away we go!

The travel to Kenya has officially begun!

The team met at the Fox River Waukesha Campus at 4am (Wisconsin time) to get our bags all set and packed up into a trailer for transport to Chicago O’Hare airport.

After spending some time going over final logistics and most importantly spending time in prayer, we loaded up into two vehicles on got on the road!

The first leg of our trip is a 14-hour flight from Chicago to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We then have a short layover, followed by a 2.5 hour flight to Mombasa, Kenya. We should arrive just around midnight tonight Wisconsin time, which will be about 8am Sunday morning Kenya time.

We are currently through security and have a couple hours until we board. Wheels up at 9:30am! Please pray that we have smooth, easy travels.

Keep watching this blog and follow Fox River Missions on Facebook to see additional posts, photos, and maybe even a live broadcast!

Stay tuned and keep praying!

2019 Kenya Team is Commissioned

Last weekend, the 2019 Kenya Team was commissioned to travel to Kenya, Africa to continue to grow the partnership between Fox River and our mission works in Bomani and Vipingo.

Itinerary:

• Sat., July 13: Depart early morning

• Sun., July 14: Arrival, orientation, prep for the week

• Mon., July 15: Crossroads Academy, Vipingo

• Tues., July 16: New Life Academy, Bomani

• Wed., July 17: Valerye McMillan High School

• Thurs., July 18: Field trip - grade 8

• Fri., July 19: Build mud hut for needy family

• Sat., July 20: Community Outreach, Vipingo

• Sun., July 21: Community Outreach, Bomani

• Mon., July 22: Fun day with our kids at Crossroads Academy

• Tues., July 23: Fun day with our kids at New Life Academy

• Wed., July 24: Safari

• Thurs., July 25: Packing & closing meeting

• Fri., July 26: Departure

• Sat., July 27: Early am arrival in America

Would you please pray for the team as they travel and minister to our 850 sponsored students, 80+ staff members and thousands of people from each of these communities?

Mid Term

After 7 weeks of soaking up new knowledge and having fun with friends - it’s time to take a one week compulsory break!

Heading out to the village in Bomani 

The Ministry of Education sets rules and regulations (alongside the new curriculum) that makes it mandatory for children to get time out and then get back to books.

Switching classes the high school way. 

We ended the term very well in our two elementary schools and High School - we really thank God for that.

Pahe enjoying some story books  

Brains at work in the high school lab

For the High School, It’s been great and heart filling to see new students who have integrated so well. You can’t tell them apart now that they are all wearing the same uniform. We are one!

New kids on the block

Who knew this guy is new  

As you pray, remember our students as they come back for six more weeks of the remaining first term of school. Pray for the teachers to keep up with the great work and the energy and innovation that teaching requires. As for the students, pray for a teachable spirit and clarity of mind to grasp all that they will learn, and open hearts towards the Lords call to salvation.

The Team Has Arrived

The team has arrived!

Hear from Jessie:

After 26ish hrs of traveling we all made it- all of our bags maybe not so much but 18 out of 20 is not too bad of odds! 
After a much needed shower and laying down for a few moments- we went off to sort all of the supply bags and prepare for our activities today at Crossroads Vipingo.


Jenna and O’Neal came to do our orientation and help us know what to expect for the next week as we serve with our partners here in Kenya. This trip is not an experience but an opportunity to be part of something. O’Neal challenged us to journal and ask ourself three questions:

1. What has God placed on your heart today?
2. How did you see God work today?

3. What is one thing you can take to heaven with you? Other people! 

Denise shares:

We hit the ground running after the team came in today. We came back to the hotel to shower and get set for the day. The day started with an orientation meeting with our missionary’s, O’Neal and Jenna Nyanje; learning about Kenyan culture, their experiences here, what God is doing in Kenya and how Fox River is making an impact.

The afternoon was spent at Vipingo where we watched our kids sing, got to know the staff and learn about the center. It was a great time of team building and getting to know our Kenyan partners. Then we made our way over to Life Spring where we got to show God’s love to all the little blessings in the center.

The team hung in there until about 5pm when we left Vipingo. It was down hill for most of them after that. We made a stop at Tuskys (Kenyan Walmart) to pick up a few things. It was probably the fastest we have ever had a team in and out! They all headed to bed early tonight. Pray that they all get a good night's sleep and their body clocks change over quickly.

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Kenya Graduations 2017!

It's January and that means it's graduation time in Kenya! The school year ended in November, final exams have been scored, and now it's time to celebrate and release the young men and women from Crossroads Academy in Vipingo and New Life Academy in Bomani to the world. 

We have 62 students graduating Standard 8 (that is, 8th grade), four of which have been invited to the top high schools in the country! 56 students in all are going on to high school, with the rest pursing other opportunities.

Graduation ceremonies will take place next week. Please pray for them as they take the next step in their journey, and check back here on the blog to follow along with us!

KCPE Testing

Students prepare very hard for the KCPE Exam.

The next three days are a very big deal for our students in Class 8 (eighth grade) at Crossroads Academy in Vipingo and New Life Academy in Bomani. In fact, Class 8 students across Kenya have a big week ahead of them.

Nov 1-Nov 3, Class 8 students in Kenya will sit for the KCPE Exam. This national exam is a comprehensive test of six subjects: Math, Science, Social Studies, Swahili, English, and Religious Education. The exam is graded out of a total of 500 possible points. It is intended to be very difficult. 400 and above is considered a very good score.

The KCPE exam functions as an end of primary school exam, but also a bit like the SAT or ACT here in the United States. A student's score on the exam can determine if they will be able to continue their education in high school, and what high schools they may be accepted into.

Needless to say, there can be a lot of pressure on the students to perform well in this exam. The students can become very nervous. They have prepared hard. Now they need calm minds to perform to the best of their abilities.

Would you join us in praying for these students over the next few days as they take this big step in their education?