Helping Hands of Kenya

Helping Hands at Work

The Helping Hands Organisation of Kenya is dedicated to meeting the training needs of the local community and, specifically, the needs of disabled and disadvantaged people who have limited financial and educational resources. The focus of the organisation is on the school where a variety of courses are offered for all members of the community.

Vocational Training Programs
Helping Hands offers a number of vocational courses for members of the community. These include courses in:

         ·   Carpentry
         ·   Computer Use
         ·   Crafts
         ·   English
         ·   Knitting
         ·   Secretarial Skills
         ·   Typing
         ·   Welding

These skills help the students earn a living and develop a sense of purpose and worth.

Youth Programs
To help the young people of the community Helping Hands offers holiday youth camps. There we provide moral guidance combined with vocational training and counseling on issues such as HIV/AIDS, drug use and career options.

Little Hands Nursery School Programs
In the Little Hands Nursery School disabled and regularly abled children are integrated in a high quality educational environment. In this way all children receive an education while issues of prejudice and intolerance are addressed directly.

Medical Awareness and Intervention Programs
Helping Hands offers medical educational resources to promote health and prevent illness. Regular clinics are run with the support of the local community, overseas volunteers and in cooperation with local ventures.

Theological Training
In Kenya Christian workers, lay leaders, pastors and leaders of non-denominational churches often have little access to formal theological training. To address this issue Helping Hands provides access to flexible theological training for all interested parties.

The Disabled in Kenya

In Kenya disabled children are often hidden away out of shame because of cultural and social pressures. Helping Hands knows that poor families have a greater chance of having a disabled child due to the increased risks they face in terms of dietary and environmental issues. When funds allow these families usually choose to further the education of able bodied siblings first which leaves the disabled child even more disadvantaged.

To deal with these issues Helping Hands has created a model school that integrates the educations of disabled children with that of able-bodied children from the local community. Through this process all the children gain an education while the disabled children learn what they are capable of achieving and the able-bodied children see that disabled people are not abnormal, just different. In this way, we hope to break down the stigma and prejudice against people with disabilities from an early age by encouraging able-bodied children to treat disabled children with respect.

Prior to the arrival of Helping Hands there were no schools for disabled children around Naivasha.

Working with the Community

The Helping Hands Organisation of Kenya always attempts to work with local groups and peoples.

For example; Helping Hands has made it part of their mandate to employ local people from the Naivasha community whenever possible. Local people are employed as careworkers, physiotherapists and occupational therapists in addition to working at all the other jobs that the school has created.

Helping Hands also has relationships with other local organizations such as the Association of the Physically Disabled of Kenya amongst others.

Helping Hands - Empowerment through Education!