Sponsor a Child and Change Their World
When you sponsor a child you are giving their entire family the opportunity to escape the bottomless pit called poverty. You will receive a card with your child's photo and will have the opportunity to write and receive letters as well as an open invitation to visit your child in Kenya. For only $40 per month your child will attend school and receive an excellent education, as well as a hot lunch and clean drinking water.
Get the facts about sponsorship Get the facts about Hope for Kenya

Shantel Shally
Shantel is 4 years old and pre-school. Her mother gave birth to Shantel when she was a student herself and had to drop out. An aunt took both the girls in and is struggling to send Shantel’s mother to school and Shantel as well.
Joy School

Hamiltone Onyango
Hamiltone is six years old and in kindergarten. His mother is a house wife and his father is a day laborer in Nairobi.
Dago School

Judith Atieno
Judith Atieno is a bilaterally Deaf girl who is in a family with four children. Her mother left her father and took her other siblings with her, but left Judith with her father. Judith’s father was unable to pay school fees for her at a special school and she was admitted to BL Tezza in January 2021.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Navasha Venda Mary
Navasha and her sister Darling both attend the BL Tezza School for the Deaf. Their mother believed they both were bewitched and they spent their young childhood at a church being prayed over to become hearing. They were brought to the school in 2019 and have remained there ever since.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Renhard Otieno
Renhard was brought to the BL Tezza School for the Deaf by another student. His grandmother who took care of him passed away and his very elderly great grandmother cannot afford school fees for him. Renhard is an extrovert who is very loving and happy.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Ancelote Odhiambo
Ancelote is a bilateral Deaf child who is one of three Deaf children in his family. His father chased away his mother saying it was a curse to have three Deaf children. The three Deaf children were found begging on the streets of Sori.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Angela Auko
Angela is raised by her father as her mother has disappeared. She has some of the highest marks possible in her fight to use education as a way out of poverty. 355 marks. Now her father can not maintain the school fees and it is typical, at this point, for a young girl to be sold into marriage for survival. Please step in and help Angela complete her journey out of poverty. She is a very determined young lady that deserves a brighter future.
Nyatambe

Angela Tiamo
Angela comes from a family of five and is hoping for sponsorship to continue her education.
Nyatambe

Brenda Otieno
Brenda’s mother has died and her second mother ran away. Her father is very ill and is getting weaker. It is up to her and her siblings to run the home and education is nearly impossible to afford. She runs the danger of never reaching her potential and will most likely be sold as child bride as a means of survival. Please considering rescuing her and letting her board at the Joy School so that she is not lost into the cycle of poverty for another generation.
Joy School

Clinton Ochieng
Clinton Ochieng is a loving and outgoing child who was being raised by a single father after his mother abandoned the family and refused to return. He followed other children from the BL Tezza School from the lake and refused to go back home because of his desire to learn. His grandmother was called for an assessment and he was admitted in January 2021.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Clinton Oweno
Clintons mother has died and his second mother ran away. His father is very ill and is getting weaker. It is up to him and his siblings to run the home and education is nearly impossible to afford. He runs the danger of never reaching his potential. Please considering rescuing him and letting him board at the Joy School so that he is not lost into the cycle of poverty for another generation.
Joy School

Darling Haga Mary
Darling and Navasha both attend the BL Tezza School for the Deaf. Their mother believed they both were bewitched and they spent their young childhood at a church being prayed over to become hearing. They were brought to the school in 2019 and have remained there ever since.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Mildred Okoth
Mildred Okoth’s mother is a widow. Her father died in 2007. Her mother is extremely poor and also being treated for a severe illness. The mother struggles to feed her family. Please consider rescuing Mildred so we can provide full boarding for her at the Joy School. With a complete education she will have the chance to save her whole family.
Joy School

Shiela Odiambo
Shiela is in a family of 6 and her mother is a widow. Her husband died suddenly in 2010. The mother has no employment but sells simple things at the roadside. The local church built the mud hut for them. They often go without food. Now is the time to sponsor such a young child to secure her future.
Joy School

Steven Odhiambo
Steven is a desperate situation. His mother is a widow who is both deaf and unable to speak. They live in desperate poverty. His older brother is developmentally disabled and his other brother in this video has been horribly injured in a vehicle accident. His mother does odd jobs for neighbors but does not have the means to send Steven to school. So Steven is trapped at home, serving the needs of the family.
Joy School

Thomas Onyango
Thomas is 14 years old. He has extremely high marks for his age and is hoping to be a doctor. He comes from a family of six children and both his parents are gone. He lives with his relatives and has a strong determination to survive and excel in his education as a way out of his poverty. Please help him complete his journey and run this race with him today!
Nyatambe School

Velma Akinyi
Velma is a bilaterally Deaf child who has never been to a medical facility to be assessed. Her parents come from an area which practices an indigenous religion which does not allow medical intervention. Velma spent most of her childhood in different churches being prayed over to hear and speak.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Clinton Odhiambo Ochieng
Clinton Ochieng gradually lost his hearing when he was learning at Sori primary school. He was found to have a profound hearing loss and his father who was a carpenter brought him to school every day. Unfortunately, during the COVID-19 outbreak, his father passed away in December of 2020 after a long illness. He has now been at the school for two years, but his mother has not come for him.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf
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Michael Junior Okumu
Michael is under the care of his grandfather who is a pastor with four other children. His father is no longer in his life and his mother works as a house help on the other side of the country in Nairobi as a maid to provide for the family. Sponsorship will help this ten year old boy attend the Joy School and provide relief for his mother and grandfather.
Joy School

Alex Otieno
Alex is in 3rd grade. His father disappeared four years ago and his mother has been very ill for the last year and a half. Since his mother fell ill, Alex and his siblings have been staying with his grandmother who cannot afford school fees. Alex would like to be a pilot when he is older.
Joy School

Brian Omondi
Brian Omondi is a bilaterally Deaf child who joined the BL Tezza School in 2018 and at the time had no communication skills, and could not read or write due to never being in school previously. Their father, who is also hard of hearing brought them Brian and his brother to the school to be evaluated because he could not afford to pay the fees of special schools.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Ilijah Otieno
Ilijah’s mother, Susan is a widow. She prays that she does not loose her faith in God under this pressure. All of her older children have dropped out of school at 8th grade because of extreme poverty. She makes string to sell at the marketplace and makes about a dollar a day. This is a chance to break the cycle of poverty and hopelessness in this family. Ilijah wants to be a doctor.
Joy School

Liston Raila
Liston Raila is a bilaterally Deaf child who is very happy and very determined. He is an orphan after his mother passed away in 2017 and father abandoned him. Without a sponsor Liston’s education is at risk.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Matilda Aleluyia
Matilda is a bilaterally Deaf partial orphan. Her father died in 2009 due to Malaria and the financial challenges were too much for her mother. She was enrolled in 2017 with no previous education.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Nicholas Otieno
Nicholas Otieno is in class three, partially Deaf, and has a speech problem. His mother had previously taken him for an assessment but could not afford fees to send him to a special school. His father did not support him going to school and withdrew him in 2018. Legal aid was sought and Nicholas was returned to school in January of 2021.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Rayton Kagwa
Rayton is in 3rd grade and is in a family with three children. His mother earns income by washing people’s clothing, but does not earn enough to support her family. Rayton’s father passed away years ago which has left the family in a very difficult position.
Joy School

Virgil Ouma Ongare
Virgil Ouma is a 10 year old boy in 3rd grade. He lives with his grandmother who does the cooking at Dago school.
Dago School

Felix Martin Osure
Felix Osure is a 12 year old boy in the 4th grade. His parents do peasant farming to support them but their harvests are never enough to pay for his fees.
Dago

Patience Edith
Meet Patience! She is a bilaterally Deaf girl born in 2006 who is the fifth born in a family with eight children. She is a partial orphan who lives with her mother and was enrolled at a primary school with no special education due to a lack of fees. Now, at BL Tezza she is thriving, but still lacks school fees to ensure her place at the school. Patience is a wonderful dancer who loves music.
BL Tezza School for the Deaf

Sheva Ishmael
Sheva Ishmael is in class 4. His father is a Pastor who does not get paid and while he does odd jobs on the side he is unable to pay school fees. Sheva is a sweet boy and he has seven siblings.
Joy School
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Robine Pretty Odede
Robine is in 7th grade and is the older sister to John Bruno. When their father died they went to live with their uncle.
Joy School

Elijah Oloo
Elijah is in 8th grade and will soon be heading into high school. He lives with his mother and likes reading. He wants to study agriculture.
Joy School
Naomi Harriet Samba
Naomi is a diligent 9th grade student with dreams of becoming a doctor. Both her parents are refugees from Uganda and live in the slums of Awendo. She lives with her grandmother because her parents cannot afford to care for her.
Odera
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Servencia Anyango
Servencia is in 9th grade. Her father is bedridden and the mother is trying her best to provide for the 9 children. In spite of an eye problem causing limited vision she is 1st in her class.
Odera High School
Veronica Namatovu Samba
Veronica is in 9th grade. She is a top student and her parents live in the slums of Awendo. She would like to become a journalist when she graduates.
Odera
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Irene Achieng Omondi
Irene is in 10th grade. Her father died 7 years ago while the mother is HIV positive. The mother is a tailor who is weak and cannot raise support for her 3 children. We rescued Irene from child marriage when some one agreed to support her poor family in exchange of Irene. She is very bright and she would like to become a lawyer!
Nyatambe High School
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Levina Aoko Okello
Levina is in 12th Grade. After her father died Levina dropped out of school and became pregnant. Her mother, a second wife was poor & too sick with HIV, to guide and help her pregnant daughter. Education will change Levina’s future and restore hope once again.
Nyatambe Highschool
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Lorine Auma Okello
Lorine is in 12th grade about to finish high school! Her dad died when she was an infant and her mother is undergoing medical treatment. Without help, education is an impossible dream.
Nyatambe High School
How do I begin?
You have two options.
Option 1
- Use Paypal (our preferred method of payment) by filling in the form below.
- Choose monthly or yearly donations from the drop down menu, entering the name of the child (by clicking "sponsor now" on the bottom tab of their picture) you would like to sponsor, and then clicking on "NEXT".
- You will then be taken to the Paypal website to complete your sponsorship. A PayPal account is required for recurring payments, but not for one time donations. Just click the link under the login button that says, "No PayPal account? Pay using your credit or debit card" and fill out the form.
- Paypal will show Hope for Kenya that this is a “child sponsor” donation and provide us with your address so we can send you pictures and letters from your child.
Option 2
- If you would like to sponsor a child using a check, please contact changinglives@hopeforkenya.org with the child’s name, class, and school. You can also pay by check through PayPal, which is preferred.
All donations are tax deductible and 100% of the funds we receive go to caring for your child. If you have any questions please email us using the “contact” page.
Start Sponsoring Today!
Get the facts about sponsorship
Will I be the only person sponsoring the child I’m helping?
Yes. The child you’re helping has just one sponsor: you. That’s why your prayers, letters, and support mean so much to your sponsored child. Even if you choose to sponsor a child as a family or a group (for example, a youth group or a Sunday school class), the child you help will still be relating to your family or group as his or her only sponsor. No other group or individual will also sponsor the child you help.
How long should my child sponsorship last?
Hope for Kenya’s child sponsorship offers you the opportunity to stay with a child for a number of years, usually through the school year in which the child reaches the age of 18 to 22. While we hope that you will be able to continue in your support of your sponsored child until he or she completes High School or College, we recognize that sponsors’ circumstances sometimes change. You may discontinue your sponsorship at any time. We ask that you notify us if you are unable to continue your sponsorship.
Please understand that a sponsored child’s circumstances may change, too. We will inform you as quickly as possible if any such circumstance affects the child you sponsor, and we’ll transfer your support to another child in need of your help.
Hope for Kenya focuses on the full development of the child. Because of that, our goal is to release children from poverty, not merely sustain them through it.
Will I always be sponsoring the same child?
We work in real communities, with real families in, oftentimes, difficult situations. We strive to provide a safe environment for children to learn, grow and play, but sometimes situations change and children have to leave our programs – for example, because the family has moved to a new home in another community. If your child leaves our sponsorship program, your sponsorship will be moved to a new child, so that you can continue helping children in need. Your new sponsorship signifies an important part of our ongoing work and is a sign that we’re reaching even more children, families and communities in need with our sustainable programs. You’ll also have the opportunity to send a goodbye letter to your previously sponsored child. Saying goodbye can be hard, but a letter can help bring a sense of closure to your relationship and let your
child know that your care doesn’t end with the program. We’ll make every effort to deliver your letter. We sincerely hope you’ll see this move as an opportunity to say hello and be a friend and champion to your new child. If you would prefer to sponsor a child other than the one we have chosen for you, you can email us at changinglives@hopeforkenya.org. The child we had assigned will become eligible for sponsorship by someone else as generous and kind-hearted as you
How can I send letters or gifts to my child?
Developing the relationship between a sponsor and a child is of utmost importance to Hope for Kenya. We greatly encourage you to write letters to your student and send photos of you and your family. You can email letters and pictures to changinglives@hopeforkenya.org. We will print those letters and photos for your student and bring them to Kenya on our next trip. If you'd like to send something handwritten to your student, please send it to Hope for Kenya, PO Box 300, Lake Luzerne, NY, 12846.
Many sponsors also like to bless their student with extra gifts. Due to travel and baggage restrictions, and to support the local economy in Kenya, we prefer to purchase items in Kenya that we can give to your child. If you'd like your student to receive special items, you can purchase a "gift package" from our donation portion of our website under that option. A gift package is $20.
It is important for sponsors to note that in Kenya, it is culturally acceptable to ask for gifts from other people. While that is understandable, it is contrary to our goals in Kenya to create a generation of people dependant on the charity of westerners to survive. Longterm success in Kenya can only be achieved when Kenyans have the tools needed to provide for themselves and their society. For these reasons, we have instructed the students not to ask for specific gifts from their sponsors. Be assured that all of your sponsored student's basic needs are being met, and at a standard that far exceeds expectations for that area. We will constantly work to provide MORE items and opportunities to the students as Hope for Kenya grows.
Get the facts about Hope for Kenya
In Kenya
Peter Midodo and his wife Rachel created the Joy Schools International in 2004, to which they give nearly all their time. Their mission is to provide the poorest children of Kenya all they need to get a good education, including clean water, food, clothes, protection, and shelter.
In the US
Derek Bevan and a team of volunteers created the Hope for Kenya in 2006, whose mission is to support Peter and Rachel’s work and surrounding schools they are involved with. Read more about Hope for Kenya, and how it all started...
Hope for Kenya focus on 3 essential ways to support the children and the work in Kenya:
Bi-annual visits on the ground
In February and October of every year, a group of sponsors, donors, and volunteers visits the schools in Kenya for 10 days. The goals are multiple:
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Help current projects in person: construction, renovation, training, etc.
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Connect with the children and the staff. Nothing is as powerful as meeting the children and teachers, talking to them, and, when possible, teaching some classes.
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See the reality, on the ground, with no filter. See what has been done, what still needs to be fixed or built. Measure the impact of the mission.
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Witness that the money is being spent effectively and appropriately. See that projects are happening the way they should. Understand what needs to be done next.
Project-based fundraising
Projects like building a classroom, a water well, or a dormitory is how Hope for Kenya has been raising most of its money since 2006. It remains an essential part of what the organization does.
The student sponsorship program
Since 2014, it is possible to sponsor a child directly. The team interviews children in need and posts short videos or stories on the website, describing briefly the situation of a child needing a sponsor. Sponsors can then choose a child to support in the long run, establishing a personal relationship, exchanging mail and photos. Sponsors are strongly encouraged to join a trip, and meet the student(s) they have chosen to support.
Where is the money going?
Your donation goes entirely to the project you have chosen, except for the unavoidable PayPal/bank payment and transfer fees. Hope for Kenya is run by volunteers who all donate their time. All advertising, like the Facebook ads that we run sometimes, are contributed directly by volunteers who have chosen to help. There are no “management and advertising fees.” In other words, the only people receiving money from you are the teachers and staff on the ground, and the contractors and providers of the services required to provide what you have chosen to support: education, food, construction and maintenance, equipment, etc.
Still have questions?
Contact us via email: changinglives@hopeforkenya.org.