Striking Difference

This morning the Christ’s Gift Academy (CGA) students are sitting happily at their desks intently listening to their teachers and diligently taking notes so that they can review them at home this weekend in preparation for their upcoming exams.  After a couple of lessons in Bible and Math, they will take a break while they drink porridge and tell stories about what happened at home this weekend.  As they joke around and play a little, they begin lining up to march back to class for the rest of the morning subjects of Kiswahili, Science, and English.  Their lunch consists of a steaming plate of rice and beans   that fills their little stomachs.  After the meal they only have Social Studies and then it is time to join their various clubs or play soccer at P.E.  Once school is over they walk 2-3 miles home with a group of their friends, not even realizing how quickly they are developing and how blessed they are to be at CGA.   In September, the final school term was supposed to begin, but public school teachers throughout Kenya went on strike, paralyzing education throughout the country in the most critical time of the year as students prepare for National Exams.  Thankfully, private schools like CGA have been able to continue their work.  Another reason these kids are blessed.  CGA is more than just a place where they get food each day, a school uniform, medical assistance and a quality Christian education; it is a place where they see the love of Christ practically on a daily basis through the support, encouragement and kindness of the teachers and staff.        

Halfway Home

The Suba Lakers hosted arch rivals Kisumu Leeds United in the last match of the 1st leg of the FKF Division I league. Both teams have struggled a little bit in the first leg and were battling to stay in the middle of the pack halfway through the season.

There was a big crowd at Mbita High School to watch the home team play, and they stayed noisy for the entire 90 minutes. The Lakers started well and created many chances early on, playing with good ball-control and taking charge of the match, but never finished. Early in the 2nd half Dorothy Adhiambo created a chance resulting in a handball from Leeds. Raisha Achieng converted the penalty kick to give the Lakers a 1-0 lead.

After Kisumu Leeds equalized, the Lakers slowly regained control and pulled out the victory with a low line drive shot by Alicent Awuor. The 2-1 victory was probably the best performance of the season from the Lakers up to this point as they demonstrated great ball possession and played like seasoned veterans.

With the win, the Lakers now have 7 points on the season with 2 wins, 1 draw and 3 losses. They are sitting in 5th place out of 7 teams at the halfway point, but are only 2 points out of third place.

After the game, many of them returned to their high schools as we received word that the public school teacher strike had finally been called off, after 4 weeks. When the 2nd leg of the season cranks up some of the high school girls will be able to continue playing while others will have to be replaced by some of our primary school players.

Upcoming Schedule

Sep 19-23 Louisiana
Sep 24-26 Dallas/Ft. Worth
Sep 27-30 Great Falls, MT
Oct 5-7     Columbus, MT
Oct 13-16  Glendive, MT
Oct 17-21  Billings, MT
Oct 22-26  Portland, OR
Oct 26-30  Seattle, WA
Nov 1-9     Hemet, CA
Nov 10-13  Lake Havasu, AZ
Nov 24       Kenya

Back to School (for some)

Term 3 at Christ’s Gift Academy began on September 1st despite the ongoing teacher’s strike in the country. All of the public school teachers at the primary level and the secondary level in the country have downed their tools in protest. Fortunately, up to this point, the private schools like CGA have been allowed to continue on with the school year. We are hoping that the striking teachers won’t put pressure on the private schools to join them.

The CGA teachers and students are quietly going about the business of teaching and learning. The 3rd term will end at the beginning of November. The strike has affected all of our secondary students because they go to various schools throughout the country. Many of them have been sent back home from school until further notice.

We are also praying that the strike will end soon so that all of the students in the country will be able to go back to school as soon as possible, though right now there seems to be no end in sight.

On a sad side note, I heard from a friend in Mbita yesterday that was talking to a prostitute who was complaining that with high school students on break and so many school girls available at cheap prices, her business was really down.

We have a long way to go to break those spirits of poverty and immorality

Win, Lose or Draw

The Division One season continued this past weekend with a home match against Nyuki Starlets from Western Province.  In the first half 6th grader Lencer Adoyo scored the first goal for the Lakers, who still found themselves trailing at half-time 2-1.  In the second half Caren Akeyo scored a great header to even up the score and the game ended in a 2-2 draw.

The secondary girls will be returning to their boarding schools this week and the primary school girls will also be starting their last term of the year.  After a week off, the season will resume on September 15th. So far the Lakers have won 1, lost 2 and drawn 1.  

2nd and 3rd Matches

The Suba Lakers went on the road for their 2nd and 3rd games in the FKF Nationwide Ladies Division 1 League.  After dropping a close one at home 1-0 to the league leaders, the Lakers headed out to Eldoret and Kakamega last weekend.

On Saturday in Eldoret they faced Kick to Life.  The field was less than ideal, but they made the best of the situation and jumped on the home team early with a goal from Irine Achieng.  A little later Dorothy Adhiambo was fouled inside the box and Irine slotted home her 2nd goal of the day.  Alicent Awuor rounded out the scoring with a screamer from outside the box.  Kick to Life was very big and fast, but the Lakers defense proved strong and Lillian Awuor did a good job between the posts.  The much younger Lakers held on for a 3-2 victory.

On Sunday, they were in Kakamega to play against Kakamega Muslim who had won their first match of the season in convincing fashion. The first half was played at a very high level.  The Lakers created many chances, but couldn't score a goal.  In the 2nd half, Kakamega scored a goal when it bounced over the goalkeeper.  That bad fortune deflated the hopes of the girls and the Lakers ended up losing 3-0.

Going on the road and getting one win out of two is a good result.  The Lakers are currently in 4th place out of 7 teams in the Western Zone of the league.  Next Saturday (Sep 1) they will be hosting Nyuki in Mbita.