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2021 Summer Update

Hello my friend,

Checks and online donations are rolling in right now (HALLELUJAH) to get students back in school in Kenya!  Thank you donors for covering your student once again with a chance in a lifetime, to attend school.  Kenyan schools have been paying catch-up since the covid pandemic sent the students home for so long.  The school year will be off it’s normal schedule for a couple more years so thanks for being patient with us as we adapt to students starting school mid-year instead of the end of the year.  July 2021 will mark a new school year! We are excited to watch a lot of our students graduate this year but also sad to see them move on to whatever is next.  These kids are so sweet and so much fun!

Some of our current needs are:

 -to get 4 students covered with school fees (about $500 each student)

-to add a well and water tank to the One Life property ($12,000)

Thanks for being amazing human beings!!!

blessings,

Shannan & John

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Want to help without donating money?

In order to accomplish most of what One Life does in Kenya, (Education, Clean Water Projects, and Soccer Tournaments), we need money.  But if you use Amazon for items you can’t find locally then just add One Life to Give as your charity to donate .5% of your purchase via Amazon Smile.  You can use  this link to get started:

Simply shop at smile.amazon.com/ch/81-4101340 or with AmazonSmile ON in the Amazon Shopping app and AmazonSmile donates to One Life To Give.

 

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Fall 2019

As kids in the US are just getting back into their school routines, kids in Kenya are about to wrap up their school year.  This November will mark a special occasion for the One Life family.  Two students in our program will graduate High School.  Yes, we have had others graduate but these two are very special to us because they are the reason we formed this non-profit.  Four years ago it all started with George and Michael, one had repeated eighth grade three times and the other believed he would never have the opportunity to attend high school so he was a motorcycle taxi and worked in the fields.  It has been an amazing four years watching these two boys work so hard in school and they have really helped build the character and community of One Life to Give.  So, congrats George and Michael and a huge thank you to the two families in the US that have covered their school fees for four years!!!

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August 2018 Update

We are now 8 months into the school year in Kenya so we just wanted to give you a quick report of how things are going.  First of all, we are so grateful for your contributions that have helped 44 Kenyan youth stay in school.  We could not do this without you!  The first group of kids that we started this program with is halfway through their third year of high school and the majority have just begun.  Thanks to a generous donation at the end of 2017 we were able to help 27 students begin their first year of high school.  On top of that, a 26 year-old who struggled with all her subjects in high school was able to attend a tailoring school this year so she can learn how to sew and make a living.  One student that graduated from our high school program was able to attend his first year at a technical college where he is learning how to be an electrician.  Another student who graduated from high school at an orphanage is now able to attend a polytechnic college where he is studying to be a plumber.

 

Last December we visited almost every house of the new students.  These houses were tiny one-room rentals, mud homes, or almost collapsing homes.  There were grandmas raising multiple children.  Many single parents raising large families. We wish you could meet these kids that you are helping, they are amazing kids who have been through some tough situations.  These children are resilient and inspire us each day.


Some new developments we are working on…

Water Project
Last January we began a survey of all the working and broken water pumps in the Rongo, Kenya area.  We found 25 were missing pieces or needed some replaced parts and we will construct 4 new pumps with one of those being for a special needs school. So we are partnering with another non-profit based out of Michigan called Vox United to bring accessible water to this community.

Product Design and Entrepreneurship
We are in the process of teaching our students two different skills when they are on their breaks. This will give our students the knowledge and skills of how to create goods plus it will help them to raise money for their education and give them the opportunity to give back.  So stay tuned to see their beadwork and leatherworking skills in the products that we will sell in the US.

Dream School
One Life is ready to start the discussion of forming our own school in rural Kenya that will offer youth the exposure to visual arts, performing arts, music, dance, and hands-on entrepreneurial skills as they run different business throughout the school year.  All these creative arts are unheard of in this area of Kenya.  One Life to Give has recently acquired our registration as a company in Kenya so the next steps are writing out a business plan, forming a board of like-minded individuals, and then fundraising to purchase land in Kenya.

Our priorities are putting our current students back in school this December/January, where we will need $17,000.  After that, we will need $18,000 for the water project.  The One Life School will come last so, for now, we need to raise about $35,000.

We thank you for how you have helped us in the past and ask you to consider donating to One Life to Give again.  Thanks so much for being a part of this adventure with us!  

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Thirty Lives Changed…

Imagine sitting in a home made of mud in rural Africa.  The air is filled with a light scent of smoke as the lady of the home is cooking tea over the fire, preparing for visitors to arrive.  Everytime our family travels throughout Kenya we are welcomed in with gigantic smiles, giggles, and warmth.  December of 2017 we had the opportunity to meet in the homes of almost 30 potential students that needed help paying for their school fees.  Many of these homes had several children being raised by a single parent or a grandparent.  Some of the heart-breaking stories involved a child being raised by a complete stranger,  a child abandoned by her father, and drunkard fathers who are completely useless to their family.  We were prepared to let the guardians know that we would cover the child’s school fees but the guardian would have to help with uniform fees and buying the dormitory supplies because we want them to feel involved in the child’s education.  But after sitting in the home and seeing how each family lives it seemed so impossible for them to come up with enough money for these items and for some they didn’t even have enough money to take a 30 cent motorcycle taxi ride to town.  We are grateful to have been there in this situation so we can learn and make changes as needed.  Thanks to our friends and family we are happy to say we were able to add 30 youth to our program this year and we will try to share a glimpse of who these children are because they are amazing!  Thank you for being apart of One Life!

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Memorial Giving

We’ve set up a separate system for families and friends to donate in the event that they have lost a loved one and are looking for a way to honor their loved one’s life.  Please contact us if you are interested in using this option to honor your loved one and we can set up a special link for others to give to One Life to Give in their name.

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It’s official…

We are an official 501(c)(3) Yay!!! How did that happen? Seems like a dream that we had while in Kenya but something were weren’t expecting to obtain.  It’s an amazing feeling when your dreams line up with where your heart is.  We are currently fundraising for school fees to be covered for more Kenyan youth. Our goal is to reach 25 more students, preferably girls.  The Morgan family will be traveling back to the same area in Western rural Kenya in April for 2-3 weeks. The objective is to continue supporting those that were covered for the 2016 & 2017 school year and to reach more youth that we don’t know at this time. We are attempting to reach new youth in need via a soccer tournament and by just getting out into the community.  We need to fundraise for  transportation fees while in Kenya, soccer nets, 30 soccer cleats (for top two teams), payment for referees and police security at the tournament, and most importantly for school fees. Each youth in high school can expect to pay between $400-$700 just to attend school for the year but the majority of families only bring in about $1-$1.50 per day. So parents have to decide which of their children should go to school, (typically it’s boys that attend not girls.) If you are interested in running a fundraiser to help us raise support or just want to donate we are so thankful for it all!

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