Robert our pastor in Kenya, has lived through a harrowing time since Covid 19 hit, with strict curfews in place and violence erupting borne out of fear.
All schools are closed, and The Nancy George Academy, run by Robert and his team, and supported by World In Need, has remained closed since mid March 2020. All 622 students had to return to their villages. Robert’s churches and Bible School are also closed, so his main route of ministry now is through prayer and phone calls. Ministering to the poor and deprived has become a priority.
When the government declared 2020 was a lost academic year, Robert distributed the school food supplies to out of work teachers and desperate neighbours, and planted enough vegetables to keep them going for two months longer. In July lockdown restrictions began to ease, and have continued to do so in stages, bringing some respite to the difficult conditions. The school has been authorised to open again and has passed the initial government audit.
Sadly we announce that the headmaster of the school has decided to step down after 11 years of service, please pray for God to provide the right person for the school.
In addition to the government's continued closure of schools and churches, Pastor Robert has himself been very ill after becoming infected with Covid, diagnosed after surge testing. Now slowly recovering, he says the only benefit was a long quiet time with the Lord and His Word. With tragedy amongst other families unfolding all around him, he prepared for the worst, and he found himself clinging to the verse in Psalm 27:13-14.
“I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord.”
Robert is so thankful for the prayers and encouragement that surrounded him as he battled the virus.
The Academy has endured so far through all the difficult times, and now needs to meet strict Ministry of Health conditions in order to provide education in some form to the children until lockdown restrictions ease and schools re-open.
In order to re-open, schools need supplies of thermometer guns, re-usable facemasks for 500 children plus teachers, 300 litres of disinfectant per term, 500 litres of sanitiser for the term, additional hand washing facilities, additional bins for classrooms and additional school desks so the children can space out more. If you would like to support this work and contribute to the re-opening of schools in Kenya please visit our School Project appeal page.