Joshua's Story

I just had to share this incredible new video from Nuru International with you!

Joshua Makira Chacha is from Ihore Kenya. He’s been farming with Nuru for the last three years, and his story is both heartbreaking and inspiring. Heartbreaking because no one should have to go through the challenges he and his family had. They did not have enough food to eat. How heartbreaking would it be to look at your children knowing that you and they were hungry and not having any idea what you could do about it or when the hunger would end.

In Joshua’s words, “Not being able to provide for my kids and my wife made me feel like I was nothing.” When Nuru came,  Joshua learned new methods for planting and provided a loan of good seed and fertilizer. Joshua was able to go from growing five bags of maize to twenty two bags of maize on his farm.

Not only that, now Joshua is teaching other families, He and his family are not only able to address hunger, but they are practicing healthy behaviors like boiling water, sleeping under mosquito nets and using latrines—so he and his family can stay healthy. He also joined a savings club which helps him to save in case of an emergency the money will help him.

Very happy because he can now feed his family, has beddings, house, and cattle. Nuru didn’t give him a handout, but rather gave him the ability to provide for his family.  And now, the result is not only seen in the improved crop yields, but more importantly, in the restoration of Joshua’s dignity as a human, as a man, as a husband, and as a father. In his own words, “Now when I hang out with friends, I feels like I am somebody, a real father.”

And stories like Joshua’s are becoming reality for literally thousands of families in Kuria West, Kenya.  It is an honor to work together with you and Nuru to make this change possible.

Happy 4th Birthday Nuru International!

Four years ago, there was a small group of us who had a big idea. It was about ending extreme poverty. We had come from various careers and walks of life because we believed that global extreme poverty is the greatest humanitarian crisis of our generation, and that future generations would judge us based on what we did or did not do about this issue. We joined together, friends linked with a common vision, a vision that was birthed into reality by Jake Harriman and John Hancox. A vision that is now reality, a reality that has brought thousands of people around the world together to make lasting change in ending extreme poverty.

Four years ago we took this big idea to Kuria West, a district in the Nyanza province of Kenya, and one of the poorest communities in the country. We began by listening as farmers told us about chronic hunger in their families because they couldn’t produce enough food to eat. They told us of their own lack of ability to budget and save, and of the challenges of trying to pay school fees or just surviving as they and their family had sickness as a regular part of their lives as a result of malnutrition, unclean water, and malaria among other challenges.

Since that time Nuru has been able to help literally thousands of people in Kuria West to begin charting a new future. Children are able to go to school, families can produce more than enough food to eat, people are able to save, budget, and even purchase life saving tools like malaria nets, water purification technology, and soap. Lives are being saved, and a new pathway and future is being created for this community.

But that is just part of the story. There are incredible leaders who are emerging in the community in Kenya who are helping Nuru’s programs expand, and who will one day take these programs to new districts in Kenya. There are revenue generating activities that are taking place that will make this endeavor financially sustainable in the long term as well.

And all of this is because a number of people from around the world have chosen to be part of this vision. From Alaska to Switzerland and from Kenya to Australia. Individuals are choosing not to accept the way things are but are instead working to chart a different future. A future where people have clean water to drink, food to eat, improved health, savings, and improved education. People are choosing to be light and hope.

Here in the US, churches, students, individuals, corporations, and more are choosing to be light and hope. They are choosing action over apathy, and they are part of changing thousands of lives.

Just last month, my wife and I traveled to Kuria and heard people tell their stories. We saw the results of an amazing maize harvest, and we met children who will grow up not knowing the desperation of extreme poverty. They will not know hunger. They will have a life filled with even greater opportunities than their parents could have previously imagined. 

I’m in awe of what has been accomplished in the last four years, and I’m excited to celebrate a big idea becoming reality, together with you, one community at a time. I can’t wait to see what the future has for the people of Kuria West, Kenya and beyond. May we never grow weary of doing good, and helping our global neighbors take steps to improve their lives forever. And may we each be part of bringing lasting change to this world. 

Returning To Kuria

The last few days have been so filled with stories, I'm not sure where I should begin. It has been a while since I have carved out time for blogging, and as much as I have desired to write more since starting this journey, I have not done it until now.

Friday morning Jamie and I awoke early, and began final preparations for this journey. Our goal in traveling to Kenya is to gain direct updates on Nuru's programs and to directly see the level of impact Nuru is having in Kuria and to then be able to share what we have seen with others, and Brett inform people back home in the US about this work.

After we woke, we traveled to Pittsburgh early Friday morning with my dad and another long time friend who has Made the Pittsburgh airport trip with me many times. We then proceeded from Pittsburgh to Detroit to Amsterdam where we waited for our final flight to Nairobi. We arrived in Jomo Kenyatta International Airport at 8:30 local time Saturday night. At the airport, we had a reunion with A very dear friend I made on my last trip to Kuria, Julius Nyamahonga. Julius grabbed a cab, and eventually we went to a hostel to sleep for the night before an early morning bus ride to Kuria.

Along the bus route, we passed through many towns, and also saw this amazing view of the Great Rift Valley. This land and it's people are beautiful. We have been greeted warmly by all we have encountered, and on the bus trip I met some amazing people who have committed their lives to the service of others. For the most part, the bus was quiet aside from the din of a radio playing local music, but at one point, I heard a young man behind me begin to sing hymns.

Later in the trip, I descovered that he was as chemist (like me) and that he was traveling to a nearby community called Migori from Nairobi to serve others. His name was Herbert, and he was an incredibly passionate and energetic man. We had a long conversation about faith, God, our world, and life in general, and then after he got off the bus, he handed me two books through the window of the bus as the bus pulled away. I will look forward to reading these gifts when I return to the States.

Our bus had a few delays along the way, but everybody arrived safe and sound in Isibania late Sunday afternoon. During the final two hours of th bus trip, we were greeted by Nuru team members Scott and Claire Rumpsa who had travelled to Kisii to visit a doctor and get antibiotics for an infected wound in Claire's leg.

Together we journeyed on and when we arrived in Isibania, we were able to all take a taxi together to the Nuru staff house and we arrived at about 430pm local time. In three days we have been on three continents. I hope to share even more updates in the near future about all that we are experiencing. We have seen so much in these last few days, I am still trying to process it all.

One last thought. This is truly a beautiful world in which we live, but also a world with deep needs, suffering, and hurting. When we can help and serve others, we inject more beauty into this world. Wherever you may find yourself today, look for an opportunity to serve.

Fairmont Senior High School Students Join Nuru International’s Efforts To Fight Extreme Poverty in Kuria, Kenya

Back in February, I had the privilege to witness a first in the short history of Nuru International. I visited a high school in north central West Virginia that had organized an entire week of events dedicated to raising awareness about Nuru’s work as well as raising funds to further our efforts on the ground in Kuria, Kenya. To my knowledge this is the first time a school anywhere in the country has dedicated an entire week to ‘being Nuru’ and, as a West Virginian, it makes me extremely proud to know that this school is in my home state of West Virginia.

Over the course of the week, students organized a variety of activities to raise funds and to ‘be light’ on their campus. (Nuru is a kiswahili word that means light and has a connotation of hope.) The week started with me visiting the school for an all school assembly to talk to students about the issue of etreme poverty, what Nuru does, Nuru's West Virginia roots, and how young people just like them are getting in the fight to end extreme poverty together with Nuru.  That same day, students and faculty were encouraged to wear their “We Bears Do Care” Nuru Club T-shirts, and wrote statistics on clothes pins and pinned  these to one another to raise awareness around the school about global extreme poverty.  The week progressed with students being able to buy glow in the dark bracelets, raise funds to participate in a ‘bucket walk’ , and culminated last Saturday with a 5K race on the campus of Fairmont State University.

To me, one of the most amazing aspects of the week was the fact that it was largely coordinated through the efforts of one teacher and a handful of students. Mrs. Adrin Fisher, an English teacher (and also a past graduate of Fairmont Senior High School and West Virginia University), helped her students form a club, get permission for the events of the week, and mentored them along the way. As a result of their efforts, more and more students and teachers began getting involved with the events of the week, and together they had a massive impact.

Over the course of the week, over 200 people joined Nuru International’s fan page on Facebook, and these students together raised over $2700 to support Nuru’s work on the ground in Kuria Kenya. I am so proud of these young people. As Mrs. Fisher noted, too often, young people from small town America are discouraged from believing they can do something really significant to make a difference in this world.  The fact that Nuru was started by Jake Harriman, a person from rural Appalachia (Preston County, West Virginia), really resonated with the students and served as an example that they also could step up and make a significant impact on our world.

I hope other schools around this state, country, and world, will follow the example of these students, and organize their own unique events and fundraisers to inspire even more people to join us in this fight so that one day, we can say that together we were the generation who ended extreme poverty, and helped people everywhere have choices and the opportunity to determine their future.

Will You Help Make My Birthday Extra Special This Year?

This time last year, I was able to meet face-to-face for the first time with the Chairman of Nuru Kenya, Mr. Philip Mohochi. To learn more about his story, click here. 

This time last year, I was on the ground in Kuria, Kenya witnessing first-hand the impact Nuru has had on the ground since 2008. I said goodbye to my dad, and my then fiancée Jamie at the Pittsburgh airport, and then flew to Detroit, Amsterdam, and finally landed in Nairobi late Saturday night. It was there that I first met one of Nuru Kenya’s staff and now a great friend, Julius Nyamohanga. Julius and I sat in Jomo Kenyatta airport sharing stories and waiting for a few others to arrive before leaving for a quick night of sleep in a small simple apartment in Nairobi before awaking at 400AM to prepare for a long bus ride to Isibania.

It would take a lot to capture all that I experienced during that week, but I tried to capture some of it in my blog last year while I was there. Here’s a few links to posts that I wrote during my stay. Among other things, for the first time, I celebrated my birthday in another country. It was absolutely amazing. Let me tell you about what happened on my birthday last year.  I witnessed 165 people make commitments to join savings clubs with Nuru’s CED program (similar meetings were held in other communities, and over 465 people joined savings clubs in one day).

One of the things that struck me about the meeting—which was a 45 minute drive from the nearest town of any size, was that 165 people were gathered and ready for the meeting 10 minutes before it started. They had walked 45 minutes to an hour to gather for this meeting which told me that they believed it was worth the time commitment it took them to be there. It is absolutely mind-blowing when I step back to think about the step I watched people take that day.

And since that time, Nuru has continued to grow. There are now roughly 15,000 people who are benefitting from Nuru’s programs in Kuria, Kenya. And all of that has been made possible because of passionate people like you and me who are willing to support these programs.

That’s why this year on my birthday, I’m proud to be the among the first to use a brand new tool Nuru is introducing. The tool allows people to raise funds and awareness for Nuru’s work by creating their own fundraising campaign online. For my birthday this year, I want to ask you to check out the page, give me your feedback about what you like/dislike about the tool, and consider making a donation. On the occasion of my birthday, I’m trying to raise $1000 to support Nuru’s work, and thanks to the generosity of others, I’m already halfway there. Will you check out my page and make a donation?

Thanks for taking time to give your feedback, and if you like the tool, consider using it as create your own unique way to spread the word about all the good Nuru is doing. Thanks for reading, and thanks for being Nuru!

Nuru International and Hunger In East Africa

It’s kind of hard to get our minds around a drought and what it means for people living in extreme poverty when we live in the United States. I think it’s hard because many of us have lost the connection between the weather and our food. It’s hard for us to imagine arrival at a supermarket and finding the shelves empty because food isn’t being produced. Imagine, walking through the produce section and seeing people fighting over the last small bag of potatoes, because nobody is sure when or if there will be another shipment arriving soon.

For 70% of the world’s extreme poor, they live in remote rural areas. There are no supermarkets insuring that there won’t be a shortage of food to eat. Instead, they rely on the land and work to the best of their ability to insure that their families have food to eat. And right now, there are millions in the Horn of Africa who are starving because of a drought, and because before the drought they lacked access to life-changing tools and knowledge.

Even in Kuria, Kenya where Nuru works, farmers have been affected by the drought. My friend Jake recently shared about a walk he took with a Nuru Agricultural Field Manager, James about the impact of the drought in Kuria. Nuru farmers have seen a decrease in yield of 20-30% on average, but thankfully, they still have enough food to feed their families and pay back the loan of seed and fertilizer they received at the beginning of the season. 

Other farmers did not fair so well. On the same walk, Jake and James came across a Nuru farmer’s fields and they were filled with maize that stood ten feet high.  Next to this field was a field with maize that stood 2-3 feet high and many of the plants didn’t have maize on them at all. James commented to Jake, “The drought has come again to Kenya. There will be hunger here. There will be so many this season.” James eyes grew more and more sad as he and Jake talked next to these fields.

The World Food Programme has noted that about 13 million people will be affected by drought in Somalia alone. This famine is absolutely overwhelming. It’s utterly heartbreaking, and yet, it is so difficult to imagine that in today’s world there are people who are literally starving to death.

It doesn’t have to be this way. As I mentioned before, over 10,000 people who are participating in Nuru’s agricultural programs are beginning to turn the tide.  They were trained in best practices for growing maize, took out Nuru agricultural loans, and have enough to feed their families and pay back their loans.  Programs like Nuru’s are allowing our neighbors who are living in extreme poverty to bring about lasting change through simple, scalable and sustainable ideas that can literally save lives.

Visiting the Nuru International Regional Training Center

Regional Training Center from Nuru International on Vimeo.

Monday morning I was able to visit the site of the Nuru International regional training center with our team here, and I have to say that I have been utterly blown away by the vision and the scope of what the Kenyan Nuru staff are not only looking to do in the future, but what they are doing now. Two and a half years ago, Nuru was an idea, a REALLY good idea, but an idea nonetheless. Now, to see what it has become is utterly amazing.

As my friend Jake talked to us a little bit about the center, I just kept smiling from ear to ear. I was nearly to the point of tears from the joy I was experiencing. The center is the headquarters for all of the Kenyan Nuru Staff (and the number of Kenyan Nuru staff significantly dwarfs the western staff.)

So, where to start. I could start with the crazy amount of construction that has already happened. Thereof a bank being built, a education resource center that is being built, a center for educating children and preserving the Kurian cultural heritage. There is a large meeting hall for regional training conference for Nuru Kenya staff across the district and province as Nuru expands. And there is a kitchen under construction as well as classrooms and two floors of sleeping rooms for guests. There's also a healthcare commodities selling station under construction.

I am amazed at what this training center is already becoming. I met dozens of Nuru Kenyan staff who are working in our five program areas. These people are passionate about bringing excellence into every facet of the work they are doing to empower their entire community out of extreme poverty. I'm honored to see it, and privileged to be able to share many of their stories with others. Together, we are ending extreme poverty, one community at a time.

Philip's Question

Last fall, Nuru released a video that told the story of our CEO, Jake Harriman, a West Virginia native, and Special Operations Platoon Commander for Force Recon who had a life changing experience on the front lines of battle that got him engaged in a different fight, the fight to end extreme poverty.
Now Nuru is sharing a different story. This is the story of a man who is literally an ocean away from most of us. His name is Philip Mohochi. Philip is from a small tribe whose homeland is on the border of Kenya and Tanzania, the Kuria (It’s pronounced like the country Korea, but nowhere near it geographically.). Philip is the chairman of Nuru’s Community Development Committee (CDC) in southwestern Kenya. He found out about Nuru through his brother Sangai Mohochi, who was a professor of Kiswahili at Stanford University and one of Jake’s teachers there.
Philip’s question first came into his mind when he was a small boy. Filled with an inquisitive nature and unable to comprehend the intense poverty that he and the other people in his homeland experienced, he asked the question, “Why are we poor?”
It was a question that stirred him to his inmost being, and caused him to make a youthful commitment. It was a commitment that many probably make in varied forms during their lives, but it’s a commitment that few hold fast to as the years go coursing by. He committed himself to help his people lift themselves out of extreme poverty.
Late in his life, he left a very successful career in the city of Nairobi to return to his homeland because he wanted to be faithful to the commitment he had made in his youth. There are many people asking the same question as Philip. They are looking for answers, and they are looking for guidance in seeking solutions.
As you watch this video, and listen to Philip tell his story, may you be reminded that together, you and I have an incredible opportunity to make a life-changing difference in the lives of people we may never meet in this lifetime. Though we are oceans apart from Philip and the Kuria people, our world has become incredibly small, and stories like his can be heard now all over the world. The question that always lies before us is what will we do with what we have heard? Will you join with Nuru as we work to equip even more people with the tools they need to lift themselves out of extreme poverty? Make a donation today--$29/month can empower an entire family out of extreme poverty!

Reflecting on Nuru's BH2O 2010 & New Video Release

BH2O+ 2010 Highlights from Nuru International on Vimeo.

Earlier this spring, 1500 college students and young professionals on 23 college campuses, 3 city centers, and one international site, decided to take a walk. This wasn’t a protest march, but rather a solidarity experience that allowed men and women in the western world to grow in better empathy and understanding of part of the daily life of one in eight people on our planet.
The event was called “Be Hope To Her” or “BH2O+” and was organized by Nuru International in an effort to inspire people to confront the crisis of extreme poverty.
The participants in the event placed a yellow five gallon bucket on their head and carried the bucket through their town or campus to a water source. At the water source, they filled their buckets with water, and began a journey through the area with about forty pounds of water on their heads.
Each step these men and women took made statistics a reality. No longer were they hearing about the reality of women and girls spending several hours each day gathering water for their families. No longer were they considering the opportunities that these girls and women would not experience because of the consuming need to gather water for their families. No longer was the problem of extreme poverty a far-away issue that affects people “over there.” When these men and women walked in mid-April, they were awakened to the issue of extreme poverty in a way that a statistic or a story of another could never do.
The story of nearly a billion people living in extreme poverty became the story of these men and women who gave up time and other choices for one day so that the people of Kuria, Kenya and beyond might experience a life filled with choices and opportunity. Now there are 1500 new storytellers who can tell about their experience of one day, and the daily experience of millions.
And as you watch this video, these young men and women invite YOU to join us in the fight. Make a donation, or just tell a friend, but get involved. These men and women invite YOU to be part of the solution, to be part of the END of extreme poverty. Will you join them in the fight?

Birthday Wishes

That photo is of my good friend Meghan Baird. Not sure if you know her or not, so I'm going to give a brief introduction. Meghan received her undergraduate degree in Art from Shepherd University. She then proceeded to come to WVU and added a degree in International Studies with a specialization in Africa and International Development. While here, we became friends through the college ministry of Chestnut Ridge Church. It's called 17three and if you are ever in Morgantown, you should check it out.

Anyway, Meghan went on to spend a year teaching in Sudan after graduating. While she was in Sudan, some other friends were starting Nuru, and so I told her about the organization. She applied for a posiition working with Nuru when she came back from Sudan, and was hired as the first education program manager for Nuru's project in Kuria, Kenya. Now part of Nuru's model is that anyone serving on the ground in the developing world will do so for a period of six months, and then will return to the USA for a period of about 10 months and work in one of three areas. Meghan is working with me in Morgantown on our grassroots team.

So why all of that introduction? Meghan's Birthday is in a couple of days. And she, along with a couple of other friends, Tara Rickard and Stuart Godwin, have decided to use their birthdays (all are happening this month) as an excuse to fight extreme poverty (which, if you didn't know, is exactly what Nuru does!). So they joined Nuru's cause page on facebook. This cause page has a cool feature. It allows you to "make a birthday wish" and invite people to give to your favorite cause instead of giving you a bunch of presents.

So if you want to join in celebrating Meghan's, Tara's or Stu's birthday, here's an opportunity to give. Here are the links to follow. For Meghan's wish click that link. If you want to help Tara's birthday wish come true, then click this link. And if you want to pass on birthday wishes to Stu, well, you know what to do.

Or, maybe you have a birthday coming up pretty soon. Ever thought about using the day you were born to bring hope to the lives of others? Now is your opportunity. If you are on facebook, join Nuru's cause and invite others to contribute. If you aren't on facebook, you could still do something creative like this with your birthday or another holiday. Think about it.

Nuru Appears on SF Bay Area News!!!

This video is incredible. KMTPTV interviewed Jake Harriman, the CEO of Nuru International, and another good friend of mine, Sangai Mohochi about the work they have been doing for the people of Kuria, Kenya.

This video allows folks to see and hear what motivated these men to work to fight extreme poverty. I personally find it inspiring to hear them tell their stories, and I hope you do too.

And right now is a great opportunity for you to join in the fight and bring Nuru to your campus if you are a college student. Follow this link to find out more and begin filling out your application.

And, if you aren't a college student, consider what ways you might be able to contribute toward ending extreme poverty. Got a cool idea? Share it here. Gonna go do something really cool? Tell the world about it.

I'm blown away by the work Nuru has done and I'm humbled by the incredible work so many of my friends do every day!

Have a great weekend!

Growth!

Last week, before I left our strategic planning time to be with my dad, I was able to get a sneak preview of the latest video Nuru released. I'm thoroughly impressed with the quality of these videos. Especially when I consider that each one of them was produced in Kuria on a laptop by our communications director, Doug Scott. Doug used to lead a production team and at Willow Creek Community Church. For the last ten months, he has been a full time volunteer serving on the ground in Kuria, Kenya. Can you believe the quality of these videos? If I didn't know better, I would think he had a whole crew of videographers and editors working with him, but the truth is, he's got a digital video camera that fits in his hand, and an apple laptop computer. (Of course I needed to get my little "mac" plug into a blog).

As you can see from the video, the community is really progressing in amazing ways. In fact, Jake was telling me that the farmers who took a loan for seed and fertilizer have corn that is over six feet tall right now. That may not seem all that impressive--in fact it might seem quite normal--for us. But the farmers in Kuria who didn't participate in the farm loan program have corn that is barely knee high right now. Nuru is making a difference, and the farmers lives are going to be changed forever. Can you imagine what it would mean to a family to know that

they had produced enough corn that their family wouldn't go hungry.
they would have a surplus to sell

Which means . . .

they can pay off the nuru loan
they can invest in seed and fertilizer for the next growing season.

And that means that they will have made a HUGE step in lifting themselves out of poverty FOR GOOD.

Nuru doesn't offer handouts. It offers people an opportunity to reach the bottom rung of the ladder and begin to lift themselves out of extreme poverty. That's what everybody needs. Everyone needs an opportunity to be empowered to live up to their potential. Nuru's project in Kuria will eventually begin to spread across the region, and then across the nation of Kenya. Can you imagine the impact this could mean for the people of Kenya, as well as for other parts of the world as Nuru starts projects in New locations? (Be on the lookout for a new seed project in Malawi in 2010).

Will you take a moment to consider contibuting to this great work? For all of you facebook users, you can donate on facebook too and watch your donation of as little as $5 add up with other people's gifts to make a LASTING difference in the fight against extreme poverty.

Thanks for taking the time to read, and be the change you want to see in the world.

Be hope. Be light.

Be Nuru.

The Bucket

It's emerging all over campus at WVU, and making appearances as far west as Stanford and as far north as Boston College and Gonzaga. It's even popping up all over Ball State this week! (Check out this sweet articlefrom BSU's campus paper.

WHat's it all about? It's BH2O+, or "Be Hope To Her" and what it's about is this. THere are over one BILLION people in our world who don't have access to clean drinking water. They can't even get in their car and drive to wal-mart for bottled water. That's right, they've gotta walk and fill up a bucket just like the one you see above. Five gallon bucket, sitting on top of a little girl's head and guess what else. She has to miss school. So she doesn't get an education, and if she doesn't boil the water she acquires, then she and her family can get six. Five gallons of water weighs about 42lbs. Can you imagine carrying that?

But it doesn't have to be this way. There's another possibility. What if they didn't have to walk 30 minutes or more to get water, and what if the water they acquired was clean?

This week, hundreds of women across college campuses here in the states will be walking and raising funds and awareness so wells can be drilled in Kuria, Kenya.

So when you see the bucket on facebook or twitter (or on this blog), take a moment and think about the opportunities we take for granted. Don't let this one pass you by. Be part of sustainable solutions to clean drinking water and even more.

Visit the be hope to her website and join others in confronting this crisis!

Water Girls

Water Girls, originally uploaded by Nuru International.

Over the lenten season, I attempted cut down my purchases of beverages and keep an accurate budget of what I spent during the course of the lenten season on beverages. It was kind of shocking to see how the total came out. I tried to keep track of times that people offered me other drinks (whether it was me or them, somebody had to make the purchase).

As a result, I realized that on average, I probably would have spent about $3/day on beverages. A cup of coffee here, and a soda there, and some juice at this spot all kind of add up. Of course there were days when I probably wouldn't have bought anything, but I think I realized over the course of time that I take for granted that I have all of these choices.

In the end, the amount I donated was a combination of what I would have spent combined with the amount I actually did spend on occasion (there were a few times I downed a coke, a coffee, or a vitamin water), and a little bit on top just to round everything out.

It's been an eye opening time with regard to the access to a variety of beverages and even more so to the availability of clean drinking water at my disposal.

If you get a chance, check out this website, and perhaps take stock of the simple pleasures like water that we all take for granted.

And, if you are so inclined, I encourage you to give to Nuru as well. It's a great organization, and they are planning to drill four deep water wells during the month of May for the 5000 people of Kuria, Kenya.

Will you join me in helping to bring lasting change to the people of Kuria?

Nuru Launches Episode 3

My friends Jake, Janine, Doug, and Nicole have been hard at work in a small village in Southwestern Kenya for the last 10 weeks. Their task? To listen to the people in a community of 5000 to help them to lift themselves out of extreme poverty--for good.

I'm tempted to write a lot, but honestly, I would rather you just take a few minutes and watch this video. If you like what you see then tell your friends about this blog, and about this video and organization. Also, go to the Nuru website for more videos.

Because we want to raise awareness of the crisis of extreme poverty that affects one out of every six people on the planet, we are relying on you. I can only tell so many people. But you can tell people I may never meet, and they can continue to tell people you may not know.

Together, we can end extreme poverty, one community at a time.

The only thing that needs to happen for evil and injustice to triumph is for good people to do nothing.--Edmund Burke.

So . . . do something!

Nuru Celebrates Christmas For Kuria

The video above was edited and put together by a friend of mine named Doug Scott. He took the raw footage and put all of this together on the ground in Kuria, Kenya in a dirt floored staff house where he and three other friends have been living the last couple of months. Doug used to work for Willow Creek Community Church, but for the last 3 months he has been volunteering for Nuru and designing incredible videos, taking amazing photographs, and designing the content and layout for the Nuru website. This video is the first of a handful of videos he has produced while serving Nuru on the ground in Kenya--I thought you might enjoy this video, and perhaps you'll see a familiar face as you watch. ;) If you blog, or have facebook, or like to email your friends with cool videos, etc., then copy this url http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yprNOFFeIq8 and send it to some friends. Or you can just point folks to my blog--that would work too. I'm trying to get the word out about nuru to as many people as possible--will you help?

Oh, and there's a reason I'm posting this video and writing this blog today. I just looked on youtube and 89,000 people have watched this video. By taking three minutes to watch the video, you can help make the video even more popular on youtube, which will mean even MORE people will watch it and find out about this great organization.

Beyond that, today marks the commencement of Nuru's Christmas campaign called "Christmas for Kuria." There is a page on the website where YOU can leave YOUR greeting for the children of Kuria, Kenya. Click here, and send your Christmas greeting. Right now these children and their families are getting ready for the growing season, but the cost of seed and fertilizer is skyrocketing. Today, you can join Nuru in helping this community by making a donation to help purchase seed and fertilizer that can be loaned to the people of this community.

My buddy Willie's two children were the first to contribute to the campaign using paypal. They didn't give a lot by our standards. They gave a dollar each. That's more money than the average person in Kuria, Kenya makes in a day. And it was a lot for these kids too.

I'm really proud of them for their giving. I didn't ask them--they asked me. They asked their dad too. We were in awe of their willingness to give. "The Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

Will you join them in their generosity this holiday season?

Why Nuru?

On monday, four of my friends left for Southwestern Kenya to begin a project that has been years in development.  It all started my freshman year in Arnold Hall when a group of people from all over the region became really great friends.  And then we stayed friends.  And then we dreamed together.  We dreamed of what might be possible one day if we all worked together toward some goal.  We dreamed about the possibility of something that would require great faith, and would tap into ALL of the skills and talents that we developed during our college years, and in the professional world beyond.

Enter Nuru.  It's a Kiswahili word that means light.  In many parts of East Africa it has connotations of hope.  Lasting hope.  Light that is all encompassing.  Pretty amazing stuff.

A couple of my friends, John and Jake started Nuru with a vision of bringing lasting hope and sustainable solutions to poverty.  And then as they started putting the plan together, many more of us joined them in the fight.  It's been like watching a dream come true.  We are all  embarking on a journey that really started at WVU during our freshman year--yet we had no idea.

Because of our faith, we have been stirred in our spirit to DO something about the over one billion people in our world who live on less than one dollar a day.  God has called us to care for the poor--it's irrefutable.  Any doubts, check out Isaiah 58, or Matthew 25.  Nuru's dream is becoming reality in southwestern Kenya.  A community of 8,000 people are being given an opportunity to lift themselves out of extreme poverty in a period of five years.  Five years, and 8,000 peoples lives will be changed.

And YOU can be part of it too!  YOU can be Nuru for this little group of people.  YOU can join in the fight.

I know that we are bombarded with invitations to support various causes.  I also know that in a situation like this small gestures of support can make a significant impact.  A small gift of $10 can go a long way.  I also know about a God who takes our few loaves and fishes, and does amazing things with them.  That's why I want to challenge you to make at least a $10 contribution to Nuru International.  There's two ways you can do it.  1) Join facebook, and read more about the cause on there and find out what your simple gesture can do.  2) Send a check made out to Nuru International to 189 Highland Ave, Morgantown, WV 26505.

So why nuru? Nuru is already doing great things, and I want YOU to be part of it all!  Do YOU want to CHANGE the world?  It starts with small, yet significant gestures.  It starts with a decision to contribute to making the world a better place.  Be the change you want to see.  Be hope.  Be light.  Be Nuru!!!