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Beth Wanjiku April Update
Age: 15 Form 4 (Grade 12) – January, 2020
School: Ndururumo High School – Boarder
PA-MOJA Scholarship started: 2017 – Form 1 (Grade 9)
Sponsoring School: Mary Hill Elementary, Port Coquitlam, BC, Canada.
Beth lives with her parents and ten year old brother on a farm in a small village called Intake. The name of the village comes from its location near the Gobit River where farmers “intake” the water to their farms through furrows. The family of four shares a tiny two room shack that does not have running water or electricity. They own one cow that produces about two litres of milk a day which is sold to support the family. They grow onions and cabbages in a small garden and sell their produce at the local markets. They produce enough food to support the family providing there isn’t a drought. One large cabbages sells for 20 cents on the market so the family can’t gather enough for school fees.
Beth comes from the Kikuyu tribe, one of 42 tribes in Kenya. She likes the unity of the Kikuyu community and their close interaction with other communities. She is proud to be a Kenyan because it is a peaceful country and also a beautiful country. However, she is concerned about corruption in government and wishes people would stop cutting down trees for to make charcoal.
Since fourth grade, Beth’s dream has been to become a Mechanical Engineer. She is inspired by her grandmother who is a Mechanical Engineer but broke her spine in a car accident. Despite her injuries, her grandmother was able to recover enough to continue working part time. Beth finds Physics and Math challenging and realizes she will have to work extra hard to achieve her dream. She spends many hours in the evenings doing extra work to keep her grades in these subjects at a high level. Her favourite subjects are Physics and History. She especially admires her English and Physics teachers because they are care about their students and encourage them to work hard to achieve their goals in life.
At the beginning of the year, Beth had problems with bullies in her school. Because she is a boarder, she couldn’t go home to escape the teasing of the older girls. However, by the end of the year, she made peace with those who bullied her. Beth has made a promise to herself that she will not tease the new younger girls next year.
Beth likes reading novels and participating in school games, especially long distance running races. Her favourite novel is The River and the Source, because the writer appreciates the importance of Kenyan girls and their roles in the community.
Because of her high grades, Beth is the only person in her extended family who has been accepted into a good school. She is proud of the high grades she earned in Primary School which gave her a chance to be in a good high school. Her goal is to continue to work hard to get into a good university so she can make her family and community proud.
Beth has a message for her PA-MOJA donors: “Thank you to all the PA-MOJA donors for helping me and other students in my community. If it wasn’t for this scholarship, I would be facing an early marriage and a life spent working on a farm. I am looking forward to helping other needy children in future in the same way you are helping me. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.” Asante Sana.”
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[one_third_last] April 2019 Update
Christmas Greetings, August 2018 Update,ABeth’s message, June 2018 [/one_third_last]
