Diplomatic Spouses Visit to Kibera WEEP Centre

DSA Ladies following procedings

 The Women Equality Empowerment Project (WEEP) ladies had awaited the arrival of members of The Diplomatic Spouses Association (DSA) for what now seemed to be an eternity. Many a preparation had been done in anticipation of the visit. Finally, the day, 18^th April 2012, arrived and everything was set; The center neat as it always is, WEEP ladies beaming with joy, The WEEP Curio shop merchandised to professional standards and products subjected to quality control.

Israeli's  Ambassador's wife, Dalit .

Led by The Israeli Ambassador’s wife, Dalit, they arrived and were greeted by song, dance and celebration. The embraces shared were clear indication of the love between the WEEP ladies and the DSA members. They exchanged pleasantries and what stood out was the genuineness of their interactions. The visitor’s were then taken on a tour of the centre before everyone assembled at the hall.

As the DSA members introduced themselves, they gave mention of their vocation and countries they represented. But first Vickie Winkler, HEART’s Executive Director gave insight on what WEEP was all about. She explained how the program which focuses on orphan prevention is key to ‘empowering the people of Africa survive the HIV/AIDs pandemic’ this is informed by the fact that, “If you save the mom, you save the whole family,” Vickie summarized.

As each lady (DSA or WEEP) introduced herself, she shared her experiences and dreams. The WEEP Ladies were encouraged by similarities in the aspirations and the interest and attention the DSA ladies showed. It was uplifting to the women and children watching Carine Ouvry-Bormans from Belgium take photos of the kids while sharing jokes (she later printed the pictures and made a beautiful photo album for the center!). We were all excited as Mrs. Judy Gration spoke to us in fluent Swahili.

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After the introductions, The DSA proceeded to the WEEP Curio Shop to see the products made by the WEEP ladies as part of project’s skill training component and also which doubles as an income generating activity. The DSA were awed by the craftsmanship in the products and this caused them to make many purchases.  Lunch was later served and the DSA ladies took turns at serving lunch. It was humbling to witness this. The glimmer in the WEEP women’s’ eyes told it all. 

As the DSA women left, one thing was clear, sometimes sparing some few minutes is all you need to make the change you wish to see. This mother’s day (May 13^th) HEART wishes to thank The DSA for taking a few minutes of their time on the 18th April,  to spend with Kibera WEEP Mothers.