KCPE stars get sponsorship after ‘Nation’ stepped up

Simon Mbogo and his guardian Cecilia Wangari in Nakuru County. Mbogo scored 429 marks in last year’s Kenya Certificate of Primary Education examination. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Jambo Jet will sponsor John Abraham Loro's four-year education at Lenana School in Nairobi.
  • One company, which preferred to remain anonymous, awarded four-year sponsorship to 11 students.

The smile on Simon Mbogo’s face as he posed for photos last week may have made many think that things have always been easy for the youngster.

His admission to Murang’a High School, in whose uniform he shone as he took the pictures that appeared in the Sunday Nation, was nothing short of a miracle, Catholic nun Cecilia Wangari, who doubles as Mbogo’s guardian, said.

Sr Wangari remembers Mbogo sobbing on Saturday as the prospect of losing out on secondary schooling was becoming a reality.

Mbogo scored 429 marks in last year’s Kenya Certificate of Primary Education examination.

That was no mean feat for a boy who was rescued from Mathare streets in 2014.

FEES

Mbogo had been in the streets for four years before being admitted to Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School in Naivasha.

The saving grace came when his story appeared in the Sunday Nation last week.

Mbogo’s plight moved many and he is now assured of fees up to university. The well-wisher who paid the fees and even took him to school does not wish to be named.

Sr Wangari could not hide her joy when she shared the news of Mbogo’s assistance. The boy dreams of becoming a doctor.

“Simon’s story touched many people. A family in Nairobi was the first to contact us,” Sr Wangari said Sunday.

JAMBO JET

She relayed the good news to Mbogo upon receiving it.

“When I was in the streets sniffing glue, I never thought I could become an important person some day. What has happened is unbelievable,” Mbogo told the Nation.

Meanwhile, Jambo Jet will sponsor John Abraham Loro's four-year education at Lenana School in Nairobi.

“We saw his photo and story and agreed that it would be a worthy cause. The story was even more encouraging because the boy wants to be a pilot,” Mr Parul Bid, the airline’s marketing manager, said.

“I will work hard. Fortunately, I love science and mathematics. I also hope to pursue an aeronautical engineering course,” Loro said.

It is the same case with Makel Akinyi, an orphan who has been living with her grandmother in Lodwar, Turkana County.

PANGANI GIRLS

Akinyi could be telling a different story had the Pangani Girls High School alumnae not come to her rescue.

Having scored 419 marks out of a possible 500 in the KCPE tests, Akinyi's dream of becoming a lawyer or journalist seemed within reach.

Unfortunately, her grandmother could not afford the fees. Akinyi's story in the Sunday Nation jolted Pangani Girls old students association to action.

Ms Sheila Munyiri, the coordinator for the association's programmes and events, said the group classified Akinyi's case as an emergency.

“She was not in our budget. We were sponsoring other girls and that’s why we only paid her first term fees. We’ll get more money,” Ms Munyiri said Sunday.

Akinyi, who arrived at the school on Tuesday, will also have access to a kitty that enables her get personal effects.

APPRECIATION

Mbogo, Loro and Akinyi are among the tens of students who have received help from individuals, foundations, old students groups, corporates and other well-wishers after their plight was covered by this newspaper and other Nation Media Group platforms.

One company, which preferred to remain anonymous, awarded four-year sponsorship to 11 students.

Among the beneficiaries is Newton Mutembei, who scored 377 marks and was called to Nkubu Boys High School, Meru.

Mutembei's hope of continuing with his studies was hanging by a thread as his sickly mother Fridah Makena could not raise the fee.

There were celebrations in Mutembei's village in Tharaka-Nithi County when he received news of the sponsorship on Friday.

“I thank the Nation Media Group for highlighting his problem. The boy is from a single-parent family and had lost hope,” Mutembei's teacher Peter Muthotia said.

SOCIAL MEDIA

His mother and other family members were equally elated.

“Words cannot express my joy. May God bless NMG and the company sponsoring my son,” Ms Makena said.

Security company, Securex, came to the rescue of five learners.

The power of social media also came into play when a student whose plight was widely shared reported at Rang’ala Girls School, Siaya.

Twenty-one 21 individuals, including several journalists, raised Alvince Akoth’s fee.

TALENT

Music producer J Blessing will sponsor 14-year-old Gabriel Miseda Owino who received a letter from Maranda High School.

Owino scored 440 marks in the examination.

“We have a foundation called Pacelink. It identifies and nurtures art and talents in young people. We read Owino’s story in the media and took the decision to help him,” Mr Blessing told the Nation.

Additional reporting by Alex Njeru, Agewa Wainaina and Hilary Kimuyu