By Jones Obiria
What do you do when the government closes schools for a month with only a few days’ notice? When students who attend your school, depend on you, not just for education but also for the food, the vital nutrition to grow in mind and body? Hungry bodies are vulnerable – to COVID, malaria, and other temptations that pray on teens.
Two weeks ago, the Kenyan government announced that schools in affected areas would close for a month. Why? Malaria. East Africa has been tormented by malaria this year, set off by unseasonable rains, then drought, then rains. A perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes. Another unkindness of nature after two years of Covid.
Once again, the strategy is to shut things down, this time allowing the government to spray while the community cleans out all possible mosquito sources. Mosquitoes breed everywhere – in puddles, pipes, bushes, and trash. All villagers have been called upon to clean up their homes, street, and community common areas while the government, little by little, sprays each neighborhood to eliminate the mosquito population.
But at NTS, our students depend on us for food. After every school break, it is not unusual to see weight loss – sometimes dramatic – as families go hungry. It is not only heartbreaking but preventable.
So, enter the twice-weekly NTS Breakfast Club. Every Monday and Thursday morning, students come to school for a hearty breakfast and a school update. They hear about their programs, meet new teachers and staff, see friends, and share a healthy meal. As they leave, they are given a 2-kilo bag of rice and beans – enough to get their family through the few days until the next breakfast club.
Rice and beans form a “perfect” protein. While it’s hardly a feast, it keeps our sworn enemies, hunger and malnutrition at bay. Students get out of the house and have social time, positive contact with teachers and friends. And families know that when their students come home, there will be sustenance for all.
A full belly and a happy heart keep us all on track.
