People often ask me how I first got involved or what my connection is with Kenya.

I never imagined when planning my honeymoon to Kenya back in 1984 that it would lead to the setting up and running of a charity to help disadvantaged children in Kenya.

In September 1984 Gil and I set off for Kenya, the trip of a lifetime, and one that would change my life for ever. I will be forever grateful to the staff in the travel agents at the bottom of the hill near where I was working at the time for it was a lady there who said to me “have you thought about a safari” when I went in for some brochures for us to choose our honeymoon destination. The idea of a safari in Kenya seemed very romantic and it certainly lived up to and exceeded all our expectations.

I wasn;t prepared for the poverty, even though as a tourist you are somewhat protected from the reality of how life is for millions of people in Africa.  It’s true, once you have visited Africa, you are never the same, it changes you and leaves you with a longing, a longing to go back again and again and again. I spent my honeymoon in Kenya and fell in love with that country and my life changed forever.

Gil and I sponsored a girl called Veronica who lived with her mother in Mathare slum just outside Nairobi. We paid a certain amount of money a month that enabled her to go to school, get fed and have the basic necessities. In 1990 we returned to Kenya and arranged a visit to meet her and her mother. We took some gifts and spent a few hours together.

The organization wrote to us in 1993 to tell us the programme Veronica was in was self supporting so sponsorship was no longer needed and to our disappointment were told we couldn’t even keep in touch with her. They sent photographs of a child in Zambia as a replacement. This didn’t feel right and as it would happen at the same time I learnt through a Kenya organization that we were members of that a woman in Scotland had set up a charity after going to Kenya on holiday for sponsorship of poor children. We got in contact and soon was sponsoring a boy through her charity. She then asked if I would like to go to Kenya as a volunteer, an opportunity too good to miss. I was soon packing my bags again for Kenya but this time not really knowing what to expect. Little did I know this trip was about to be the start of something that I could never have imagined in my wildest dreams, the creation of what is now a UK registered charity and a Kenyan non-governmental organization (NGO).

I believe in fate, how could I not when I look back and see the path I have gone down and the people I have met who without meeting them none of this would be possible.

In 1993 I stayed with the Headmaster of Gatitu Secondary school and his wife while I was a volunteer at his school. This visit and the time I spent with John and Jacinta and their family will forever remain a special memory as well as being the beginning of something no one then could foresee.

Jacinta was a teacher at a primary school in the village where they lived. She took me there to meet the children and teachers. The school Kigaa Primary is very poor with around 600 children. The buildings were basic, made from wood with dirt floors, just a blackboard and no glass in the windows. When it is hot and windy the dust blows in through the open windows and the children suffer from bad coughs, when it is raining the floors get muddy. There was no running water or electricity. The conditions were very bad but the staff friendly and welcoming and the children happy though impoverished.

Jacinta told me about 3 children who had been rescued from an orphanage who lived with an old aunt who was struggling to support them. I decided to sponsor them so they could go to school and these three children were the start of the Out of Afrika sponsorship programme.

Upon coming back to UK I started to look for ways of supporting Kigaa with books and other resources. I also started to find sponsors for other children and soon the number started to grow. In the meantime Desmond, John and Jacinta’s eldest son had expressed his desire to come and study in the UK and Gil and I offered him a home while he studied at a local college.

In 1995 Gil sadly died after a short illness and eventually I found the strength to continue with the work of the charity.

I say I believe in fate, because if I hadn’t met John and Jacinta, Desmond would never have come to live with me and become the driving force behind Out of Afrika. We worked together to build the charity, from 1998 - 2002 choosing, buying and selling African art and crafts through Out of Afrika shop to the present day where we have bought land, designed and built a college, acquired two fire engines, an ambulance and set up a fire and first aid training facility along with academic and vocational courses

Out of Afrika has created employment for 30 people in Kenya, has a child sponsorship programme for 250 children as well as a volunteer programme, and been involved in community projects with our partners.

My life has been enriched by my involvement with the charity and the people I have met through it. I feel lucky that I have been able to make a contribution and have achieved something worthwhile. While I was working in a boring job in my early twenties I dreamt of joining something like VSO but lacked suitable qualifications. I would never have believed then that I would end up not just being a volunteer for a couple of years but actually starting and running my own charity.

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