Decisions! Decisions!

At Made in the Streets we are always looking for young teens to come and live with us at Kamulu.  We search for boys and girls 13 to 14 years old, or young moms up to 15, who can spend their teenage years with us.  Since many of them have never been to school at all, we can take them through our literacy program, getting them from learning their A-B-Cs all the way to algebra and good English skills, along with computer training and Bible courses, in two or three years.  Then at 16 we can start them in a skills training class that will prepare them for work by the time they are 18.

Our Eastleigh Team is on the streets every day getting to know the children and youth who are there, serving them in all ways imaginable and encouraging them to know God and live by faith.  And they are identifying the ones who can come to Kamulu.  Recently they called in a group of 10 boys to the Eastleigh Center, to stay there for three weeks, then transition to Kamulu.

At the same time, Joel Njue had come across, by recommendation of a police officer, a girl named Beatrice Adhiambo - 13 years old and out on her own, with none to care about her.  He told the Team about her, and they decided she was right for life with our girls at Kamulu.  When they took her for tests, however, the dentist said she was 11 -- younger than the kids we take in.  We have this policy for various reasons -- our own plan for youth, the policies of the Children's Department…

So the Team had a dilemma.  They had already voted to take her in, but it was against policy to do so.  And they were divided about what to do.  The administrator wrote to me as an Advisor for my assessment.  He said that, since they were divided, they would take my decision.

I took it to my grandchildren.  I explained the situation to them and asked what they thought MITS should do.  They were divided too.  One of them is more rule-oriented -- that one said we should not change our policy for one child.  The others had various reasons why we should take her in -- You said you would!  It's the kind thing to do!  Take her in for now, but look for a better fit for her!

I wrote back to the Team:  It is not imperative that we always follow our general policy.  If you have a space for her with a dorm supervisor who will watch over her carefully to see that she is treated right, and if you have some older girls in that residence who would be mentors and protectors for her, then we could do it with assurance that we could give her what she needs.  And…if she has not been to school and cannot do our literacy program right now, you could put her in the Child Care program as a helper to Hellen, who could catch her up to speed so she can join next year's intake -- and other such stuff.  So I put it back on the Team to decide, which I always try to do.

And…they decided to take Beatrice in and bring her up in the Lord.  Good decision, and we believe it will be a good outcome.  How can it not be, when Jesus is with us in this?