In the swim

 Splash happy kids have fun in the pool on an outing from school.
Some of the children from the Happy House nursery school, accompanied by staff and parents who went to assist theme, visited the pool shared the the houses where Mama and Papa have their home

They enjoyed a swimming lesson before drying off and returning to school.

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Post brings joy

Mama Sue and Papa Dave are overwhelmed by the generosity of everyone who is sending gifts for our 58 children this Christmas.

More parcels arrived at their Blackpool address yesterday full of lovely clothes and gifts.

Thank you.

Christmas i-deers!

Thank you to everyone who has put a Happy House child on their shopping list in the few weeks since we launched our Christmas appeal.

Mama has been receiving lovely gifts and clothing which are guaranteed to put smiles on to little faces when Santa calls. You are so generous. Some of the items we have received have come without any indication of who they are from, so we have been unable to say a personal thank you. But you know who you are and we are so grateful.

We have noticed that when it comes to clothing we are getting more for our girls - beautiful dress, skirts and tops.  If you are still shopping for our kids if you do see any bargains of shorts and t-shirts that you could snap up for our boys it would make them very happy indeed.

Having new clothes is a rare and genuine pleasure for all our children and both our girls and our boys take great pride in their appearance.

As you know our children are aged up to 15 - lots of our boys are aged five to nine - but anything you send WILL fit someone!

Gifts of pc games, dvds and books (softbacks) would be so welcome too. There are some ideas on Mama's Amazon wish list for anyone who might like to buy direct from there http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/registry/registry.html?ie=UTF8&type=wishlist&id=4JQKTPSM05F

If a child receives a pc, dvd or book as a gift, it will be shared with their brothers and sisters and everyone gets to enjoy it. Sharing comes naturally to our youngsters and is something Mama and Papa are keen to encourage.

Thank you all so much for being such amazing and kind friend.

*Evans is pictured proudly sporting antlers and a new outfit celebrating Christmas for the very first time at the Happy House.

Welcome visitors

We were happy to welcome Morten Mathieson and his family from Modena, Italy, when they took time out of their holiday to visit the Happy House.

Morten had emailed Mama Sue in advance to ask what he could take to help our kids, and she told him how food staples like rice, flour or beans, are always useful as these foods are bought weekly, in large quantities, and donations really help keep our grocery bills down.

Morten took our family to his heart and when he and his family called in they were loaded with a whole host of items, grocery and cleaning goods, which will make a big saving on our shopping bill.

All will be used well to help us to feed our family and to keep them healthy.

A huge thank you to Morten and his lovely family. Uncle Billy tells us it was  a pleasure to meet you  and we hope you enjoyed the time spent at the Happy House. 

Telling opur story

Sisters Hebe and Imogen Lockyer, who, with their mum Fiona, will be visiting our Happy House family during the summer holidays gave a presentation to members of Sutton Coldfield's 31st Brownies, led by a family friend Emma Paxton.

Along with songs, helped there by their friend Jaipal, and games themed to Kenya, the captured the interest of the brownies as they told the story of the Happy House.

Thank you Hebe and Imogen for helping to spread thed word, we know from your mum how excited you are about your visit and about meeting your sponsor child, Baraka, and his twin brother Amani.

Thank you, too, for all the things you have collected, and to your friends who have donated items, which you will be taking with you.

 

Spreading the word

Sisters Hebe and Imogen Lockyer, who, with their mum Fiona, will be visiting our Happy House family during the summer holidays gave a presentation to members of Sutton Coldfield's 31st Brownies, led by a family friend Emma Paxton.

Along with songs, helped there by their friend Jaipal, and games themed to Kenya, the captured the interest of the brownies as they told the story of the Happy House.

Thank you Hebe and Imogen for helping to spread thed word, we know from your mum how excited you are about your visit and about meeting your sponsor child, Baraka, and his twin brother Amani.

Thank you, too, for all the things you have collected, and to your friends who have donated items, which you will be taking with you.

 

Eye,eye Papa

Papa Dave is recovering well after his operation to have a cataract removed.

He's taking it easy just as the doctor ordered. Now that this surgery is out of the way he is back on the NHS waiting list after being advised that his other eye would benefit from surgery to correct his vision.

It will be worth the wait, frustrating though it is, as this will mean Papa will be able to see clearly without contact lens for the first time in a very long while. 
 

  

Snap happy

With their Mama in the UK the kids so look forward to telling her their news in their weekly Skype sessions.

Evans talks to Mama

Last week, Evans, who is chairman of our kidz council, told her all about how well things were growing in the children's own plots in the garden and Mama asked him to take some photos and to email them so she could see for hersef how their endeavours are paying off.

But with lots of other things to keep him busy, including that important football match in Malindi, Evans forgot.

On Wednesday, he was chatting away to Mama when she said: "And where are my photos of the gardens?", horrified he had forgotten, Evans promised to get them done straight away.

Yesterday these pictures,  along with this lovely note, arrived in her inbox!

Rukia and Shakila

"Hi MAMA SUE
I hope you are fine.
This is Evans sending you the pictures
That you said I take pictures
I know you will be happy about this.
I will send more pictures
Thank you
We love you
Evans"

Oscar with his garden

Samson waters his plot

Snap happy

With their Mama in the UK the kids so look forward to telling her their news in their weekly Skype sessions.

Last week, Evans, who is chairman of our kidz council, told her all about how well things were growing in the children's own plots in the garden and Mama asked him to take some photos and to email them so she could see for hersef how their endeavours are paying off.

But with lots of other things to keep him busy, including that important football match in Malindi, Evans forgot.

On Wednesday, he was chatting away to Mama when she said: "And where are my photos of the gardens?", horrified he had forgotten, Evans promised to get them done straight away.

Yesterday these pictures,  along with this lovely note, arrived in her inbox!

"Hi MAMA SUE
I hope you are fine.
This is Evans sending you the pictures
That you said I take pictures
I know you will be happy about this.
I will send more pictures
Thank you
We love you
Evans"


 

Rains bring bumper crop

Unlike their Mama and Papa, exiled in Blackpool and still waiting for summer to start, our Happy House family welcome the rain.

Auntie Velma sent these pictures of the bumper harvest of fruit and vegetables coming into the kitchen from the gardens.

She says: "Due to the good weather which we are experiencing
here in Kenya, raining season still on, we have been able to harvest lots of
vegetables and with lots of fruits like sweet melons which are now ready and are
hoping to get still more from the pawpaw plants."

With such nutritious, fresh produce to eat no wonder we are growing such healthy kids.


 

  

Good ship Burnley sails in!

It's a long time since it left Lancashire but a container full of equipment has now arrived safely at the Happy House.

Thanks to Burnley charity, Furniture for Education Worldwide, we now have much of the furniture we will need for the classrooms in the primary school ... tables, chairs, filing cabinets (from Senator), white boards, computers, cupboards etc.

It is all being put in storage until the school is completed and it can be put into use.

There were many other things on the container too, including sports gear donated by Burnley FC, matresses from SilentNight and gifts of clothing and other items which had been sent by friends of our family.

Once off the docks in Mombasa and at the Happy House, the container, which arrived in the middle of the night, had to be unloaded straight away so that it could be returned within the alloted time.

Staff worked so hard to get it done, and are now in the process of sorting and storing the contents. 

Sending a shipment is far from plain sailing - there is always considerable red tape to cut through and extra expense - so the safe arrival, at last, of such important cargo is a great relief to Mama Sue and Papa Dave here in the UK and to Rose and Billy at the Happy House.

And another huge thank you to Terry Burns (pictured with Mama and Papa) and Furniture for Education and to those who contributed in any way.

All's well ..

Whenever it is possible, and safe to do so,  Mama Sue and Uncle BIlly work hard to ensure that our children stay in touch with the few relatives they may have.

One little girl gets a visit from her grandmum almost very week and although very poor herself she always brings some little treat, broken biscuits or berries, for the kids to eat. She is so so grateful that she can sleep at night knowing her grandchild is growing up safe and loved.

For other children visits, if they get any, are far from regular and can come out of the blue.

So for this little family who have been with us since February 2011,  a visit from their grandpa was, to begin with, disconcerting for the youngsters.

Mariam, Suileman, Saumu, Freddie and Rose have been transformed at the Happy House, growing and flourishing, and very happy.  They had come to us, a rescue family, from abject poverty and neglect which was no fault of their grandfather. Who knows what may have been going through their mind when they saw him, fear, maybe, that he would take them back to the only other world they have known. They clung to Uncle Billy for reassurance.

But grandpa, who had dressed in his very best for the occasion, had come on a mission to see his little grandchildren for himself and to assist Uncle Billy by bringing some documents referring to the kids, but not, sadly, the elusive birth certificates which are still being sought.

By the time he left everyone was happy. Grandpa to see his little ones so well and happy and the kids to see him and to know that he, too, regards the Happy house as their home.

 

Showing true team spirit

In a clash on the scale of the two Italian giants, our  Sampdoria Happy House football team took on the might if Genova Mid United from Malindi and held them to a 1-1 draw, after the Happy House won a penalty in the second half.

Our boys are small in size and number so Uncle Billy said we had to enlist some supplementary support while some of our lads played on the Genova side.

Billy adds: " This was a humble beginner which trainer Fred says is a sign of peace which will propel us to greater levels of support from Italy and beyond.

"Well done Sampdoria and Genova."

Upside down cake?

Let them eat cake ... we just hope the good folk of Melbourne, Australia, have a sweet tooth because there's a feast in store for them on Saturday,August 4.

Katherine Crouch, our very first child sponsor from Australia, is organising a fundraising cake stall for the Happy House at her local outdoor shopping centre.

Katherine, an actor, has joined the sponsor family of our beautiful little Melis after finding our charity on the internet.

We are thrilled to welcome her to our very special family.

Katherine says:"I am very pleased to learn how personal your charity is and to know exactly who I am helping.

"Melis is absolutely beautiful, she looks very happy at the Happy House and looks like she fits

right in. 

"She is very lucky to have the Happy House to get her out of the awful situation she was living in and every child should have a comfortable place to call home. 

"I will be saving hard to make a visit there next year and would love to do some acting classes with the children, I'm sure we could have a lot of fun."

Thank you Katherine we hope your cake sale is a huge success.

Local volunteers visit

The Happy House was a beehive of activity when a large party of volunteers and visitors arrived from the Red Cross in Tawheed Secondary School, Malindi.

After a welcome from our family, complete with songs from our kids, the volunteers organised themelves into groups to help with a variety of tasks around the Happy House helping in the kitchen, laundry, baby room etc .. from scrubbing cots to polishing shoes.

And they also enjoyed team building activities including croquet, hoopla and football.

This was followed by lunch which they prepared of beef pilau with salad.

Uncle Billy says: "After lunch there was much dancing, fun and games. It was surely a lovely day with donations of clothes and food being left for our children.Thank you to everyone for their support and efforts."

 

 

When our work is done

For a family in crisis, the Happy House is a bridge over troubled waters.

It provides a safe haven, filled with love and laughter, to ease a child through times of sadness and loss and give family members a chance to find their feet again. If, and when, time comes that they are in  a position to be able to give their child a home with security, family and education, it is right that they should do so.

For our very first Happy House child, Benedict, and for a newborn baby, Joe, the Happy House has provided a security blanket in time of need.

Ben , 2012.

Joseph came to us when his mum died shortly after giving birth to him. She had fallen into a coma during in labour and  passed away without gaining consciousness or having a single a glimpse of her beautiful, newborn son.

Her husband, Julius, who had taken her to hospital with all the joy and anticipation of becoming a father for again, was totally bereft.

With older children support, a job to hold down, and no family nearby, Julius turned to the Happy House for help and Joseph joined our family.

Julius kept in constant touch, although he lived many miles away, phoning for news and making visits when he could and by March last year, a sister in law Esther had offered to give a home to Joe and to take care of the baby boy, allowing his father (above left with Joe and family) to continue to work as a caretaker in Malindi where his eldest child is at secondary school but to see him far more often. Such is the situation in many Kenyan families.

Joe is now 17 months old and thriving, Uncle Billy, volunteer Jessika and some of our children - who looked upon Joe  as a little brother - have been to visit.

Uncle Billy says:"Joe lives with his Aunt Esther, her husband and her children. they live in a humble, rural home where peasant farming is the main lifeline. They have a few goats and chickens."

Volunteer Jessika, Uncle Billy and some of our kids visit Joe and his dad

Joe on the day he left our Happy house family in 2011

Joe sees his dad regularly and is thriving with his own blood relatives, just as it should be. 

"We were so happy to see this handsome little person doing so well," adds Billy

 For all those who were in Joe's sponsor family while he was at the Happy House, and who now sponsor our baby David,  and for those who sponsor Ben we know this blog will have special meaning.

Ben has also returned to his family. Our very first Happy House child he came to us in February 2010. His mother had died a few months earlier and he was a lost and unhappy little soul. His grandmother, in grief herself, was unable to cope with the demands of a troubled four year old.

His family,too,  have always remained in touch and made visits and now they are able to provide Ben with a good and stable upbringing and to educate him, he has returned to them.

It has been a slow transition. He has been going on regular visits, staying over, and was ready and eager to return for good.

Ben with Mama Sue in February 2010

We have seen him grow and flourish. He's confident and happy. As our first child Ben will always have a special place in our history and our hearts, and the Happy House in his.

But Mama Sue has always said the Happy House, which works closely with the local Children's Services Department, is there to help children in need, it is not about splitting families. If circumstances should change, and it is in a child's interests, then a child may return to a home with blood relatives.
This also makes room for another child in far greater need.

The stories of baby Joe  and Ben are  illustrations of this policy in action and while we were sad to see them  go, we know both litte boys are much loved and well looked after.

Lauren puts our message across

Teacher Daniel Smith, the footballing boys and Mama Sue

Happy House ambassador Lauren Miles pulled out all the stops to get her fellow year six pupils at Marton Primary School, Blackpool, to vote the Happy House into pole position to benefit from proceeds of their Enterprise Week.

And she was so successful that Mama Sue and Elizabeth were asked into school to receive a box full of cash - adding up to a total of £390.

The money was handed over by the boys whose football game had raised £63.13 - the winning enterprise.

Lauren Miles with Mama Sue and Marton 's Happy House thank you.

Mama Sue and Elizabeth told the children a little about our very special family. We hope they will remember us and, like Lauren, become our ambassadors when they move on to their new schools next term.

Thank you to everyone at Marton Primary for your efforts, to teacher Daniel Smith for inviting us into school, and to Lauren for ensuring that we were the children's chosen charity. Your Happy House "sister" Maria will be so proud, Lauren!