After years of planning, prayer, and lots of hard work, the Kajiado Adventist School and Rescue Center in Kenya was dedicated on July 11 by Maranatha Volunteers International, a supporting ministry of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The event was attended by Maranatha leadership, local community members, Adventist Church officials, Kajiado staff and students, and many of the passionate volunteers who’ve worked on the project over the years. The celebration included a campus tour, prayers of dedication, choir performances, a student poem, and the handing of keys to the local Adventist conference.
Kajiado was founded in 2000 and is home to nearly 250 students. Most of these are Maasai girls who’ve escaped child marriage and female genital mutilation. While this cultural practice is illegal in Kenya, it persists in rural parts of the country, where the law is more difficult to enforce. Having run away from their biological families, these girls rely on Kajiado as a safe haven. At the school they receive a quality education and are introduced to Jesus.
When Maranatha first visited the campus in early 2018, it was in desperate need of renovation and expansion. All the girls were sleeping two per twin-size mattress, and bathroom facilities were too small to accommodate everyone. The school was also having to purchase water because they didn’t have a well of their own. Over the years, tiny rundown structures were replaced by 24 spacious buildings. Maranatha has held 21 volunteer projects at Kajiado, completing multiple new dormitories, classrooms, bathrooms and showers, staff housing, and an administration building. In 2019, Maranatha drilled a new water well for the school and subsequently designed a water system for the campus, including four water towers. Sidewalks, gazebos, and beautiful landscaping complete the stunning transformation.
Take a virtual tour of Kajiado’s new campus.
The Maranatha community rallied to Kajiado’s cause. More than 1,600 individuals have supported the school monetarily or through volunteer labor. “This rehabilitated campus wouldn’t have been possible without the efforts of so many volunteers and donors,” said Maranatha’s vice president for projects, Kyle Fiess. “I know that there will be many children and many people in heaven because of the impact that [they’ve] made right here at the Kajiado School in Kenya.”
Since 2016, Maranatha has responded to numerous requests from the Adventist Church in Kenya for improved infrastructure. Volunteer teams and our in-country crews have built One-Day Churches, schools, and drilled water wells. More than 1,500 structures have been completed so far.