My name is Peter, and I am a post-secondary student at the Ngong Road Children’s Foundation (NRCF). I grew up in the Ngando region with my siblings, and our guardians, my uncle, and aunt, raised us until recently, when my aunt relocated to the upcountry, and we now live with my uncle. My guardians worked odd jobs to make ends meet, and they were frequently unable to satisfy our basic requirements, let alone pay our school tuition. My educational goals were realized when I joined the NRCF program.
I joined the NRCF when I was in fourth grade. I was enrolled in Nelson Mandela School, which is near my house, so I didn’t have to walk far to school. I worked really hard because I wanted to acquire good marks so that I could attend an excellent high school. Taekwondo was another extracurricular activity I participated in. In 2017, I took the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) and scored a decent grade. In 2018, I enrolled in Hospital Hill High School, an extra-county boys’ high school in Nairobi. I played rugby, handball, and football as part of my extracurricular activities. They kept me busy throughout high school.
After graduating from high school in 2021, I was offered the opportunity to train as a Youth Peer Provider (YPP) in the program in July 2022. This was a great chance for me because I would be teaching my classmates and younger students in the program about the fundamentals of sexual and reproductive health. I was also working as an operations associate at Karibu Loo to keep myself occupied while I waited to start college. My job was to make sure that the restrooms were clean during social events. I was also helping at the NRCF on Saturdays.
In September, I enrolled at Thika Technical Training Institute for a diploma study in Social and Community Development. My desire to become a social worker and aid the community, particularly children, motivated me to pursue this degree. My program lasts three years, and I aim to work for a non-governmental organization such as NRCF, Red Cross, or the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
I am grateful to the NRCF program for ensuring that I pursue my educational goals. In the future, I would like to sponsor a student from the program and create a similar organization to help transform the lives of other children.