Fri Feb 03 2012
by Dorothy Markulis
Reporter
Hudson -- Christie Fleming, a 2006 graduate of Hudson High School, has "fallen in love" with Kenya and plans to return to Africa for the third time in May.
"I had an incredible experience learning how the Africans live, and seeing the hope they have for their future among so much despair happening around them," she said.
Fleming, a student at Franciscan University, first went to Africa on a mission trip two years ago, visiting an orphanage in Dandora, Nairobi. Last summer she spend a month living at a Kenyan orphanage for girls who were orphaned by AIDS.
"I stayed at Hekima Place, an orphanage with 50 girls, ages 2 to 20, who were abandoned due to HIV / AIDS," Fleming said.
The Hudson High School graduate taught in the orphanage classroom each day. She said the girls love learning.
"They truly see education as their escape from poverty and their old lives," Fleming said.
According to Fleming, most Saturdays were days of joy at the orphanage. Those were the days the girls would celebrate birthdays with cake, ice cream, singing and dancing.
"The girls would all affirm the birthday girl, telling her how much they loved her. It was a true celebration of life that I was excited to be a part of," Fleming said.
Fleming said the love and care the girls received at the orphanage was a far cry from their previous homes. One of those places was Kibera, one of the largest slums in East Africa.
"The slum is one square mile and houses 1 million people," Fleming said. "There was very limited running water and electricity. This is where a few of the girls from Hekima Place came from. It was sad to see, but there is so much hope for them now."
According to Fleming, the girls are being equipped with the tools to change their lives and she wants to return to Hekima Place to help them.
Fleming is trying to raise funds to send herself and four college friends to Africa for five to six weeks to work at the orphanage. For more information, e-mail Fleming at cfleming001@student. franciscan.edu.
E-mail: dmarkulis@recordpub.com
Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3143
Comments
By Posting to this site, you agree to our Terms of Service Be polite.
Inappropriate posts may be removed.
Hudsonhubtimes.com doesn't necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post.
Login above or Register to comment.
0 Total Comments Home | Back
Copyright Record Publishing Co, LLC. 1995-2011. All Rights Reserved.
Content may not be republished without the expressed written consent of the publisher.
Content may not be republished without the expressed written consent of the publisher.
Dix Communications