Mully Childrens Family (MCF), Malindi, Kenya
This smaller MCF facility provides shelter, protection, education, and skills training for young single mothers.
I had visited it in 2000 when they were located at MCF’s Yata location. The move to Malindi allowed for improvements to the program and a more focused approach to serving these young women. There are about 100 women and their children living at this compound. They are in a three-year program designed to equip them to return to their communities with their children and succeed.
These women have similar, yet very different, stories. One young woman was pregnant by her grandfather, who tried to have her killed before she was rescued. Another woman lived on the streets and was addicted to drugs and alcohol.
The benefits of this program become very clear when you hear the stories, meet these women and their children, and see their smiles, showing how their lives have changed. The young women are taught hairdressing, manicures, and sewing, while staff onsite watches the children.
The manager gave us a tour of the property and facilities, during which we learned that they are experiencing a water shortage. Their well feeds a 5,000-liter storage tank, but it regularly runs dry. Ideally, a solar-powered submersible pump and an additional 5,000-liter storage tank would solve the problem and also help to reduce their monthly utility costs.
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