Christ Academy

It didn’t look like much from the outside. A cream walled front with etched letters proclaiming it as “Christ Academy.”

A scrap wood and tin bridge laid across the open sewer flowing in front of the small school.

A tiny head poked out the brown door and smiled shyly. He grabbed my friend’s hand and led us inside to a world of children only found in a school setting.

Christ Academy is a small school that a Congolese refugee set up for kids in his community. He noticed that most refugees could not afford to send their kids to school in Kenya. He began teaching a few in his home, then almost instantly, it grew to 100 kids.

They found a small building and christened it “Christ Academy.” Teachers work here on a volunteer basis – this means they don’t get paid. There are no school fees, uniforms or even book fees.

The school gives the children a cup of porridge for morning tea time (most of the kids do not get breakfast at home). They also serve a modest lunch of rice and sauce or ugali and sauce. (The teachers say they used to break for lunch, but none of the kids went home because there was nothing to eat at home.)

Christ Academy survives on faith.

The founder of the school wants to instill a Christian foundation for these refugee students, while giving them a quality education.

Students are squeezed into five rooms. For the preschool and kindergarten aged kids, it was a tight fit. Five kids sat on a bench meant for two people. Six benches filled a room that only had space for three.

The kids didn’t seem to notice the cramped quarters. They were just super excited to be at school – as most kids around the world their age are. When the teacher asked a question, everyone raised their hands – whether they knew the answer or not.

Pray for Christ Academy. Pray the Christian witness they have in the community continues to shine and get brighter with each day. Caring about someone’s child is one of the fastest ways to a parent’s heart.