The History Behind the
MILLBROOK KYEEKO MISSION
The Journey to AMERICA
I was born in Kyeeko Village of Makueni County in Kenya and my late mother gave me the name Kennedy, neglecting tradition that demanded I have a tribal name. I grew with the stigma of being an outsider in the community with a foreign name and so at the end of my primary level I adopted my middle name Muli. This was in order to fit in and be able to tell people a name that is acceptable to the people and the tradition. My mother never got to know I gave myself this name and most members of the community to this day do not know my middle name. I am a father of four children and I have given them two names with all of them identified as the Kennedys. At a young age I started to study about America and so…. the beginning of the destiny.
When I graduated from the university I started a career as a High School teacher, youth leader in church and community work. At the appointed time of God, we relocated to the USA.
In March 2015 we arrived in Baltimore in Maryland. The city was huge and everything, including the culture was just shocking. We stayed there for three months and I got a connection to Michigan to help out with the Youth in the African Community Church. Michigan felt more like Kenya and so Grand Rapids became our new home.In March 2015 we arrived in Baltimore in Maryland, The city was huge and everything including the culture was just shocking. We stayed there for three months and I got a connection to Michigan to help out with the Youth in the African Community Church. Michigan felt more like Kenya and so Grand Rapids became our new home.
CALVIN THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY AND THE CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH.
When is started working with the African community church I realized how much I need to study and be equipped for ministry as Paul instructs Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:15. The African Community Church was under the Christian Reformed Church and so I chose to join Calvin Theological Seminary for my Masters in Divinity. In Calvin Theological Seminary I was able to learn and grow in my Spiritual life, ministry and just adapting to the American life. In my second year of attachment I joined Hope Network as an Intern Pastor to work with people with disabilities and also started work with Millbrook Christian Reformed Church. I also was doing some work with the Race Relations office and did training with the Timothy leadership program. This opened me to a new world view and with mentorship and leadership from Pastors and Professors I am grateful for this grace. I was able to travel to Israel and also in the Southern states to follow the Martin Luther legacy. In did a one year program with Hope Network as an intern pastor serving people with disabilities and some training with Pine Rest for chaplain work. I learned a lot about American culture and tradition. In my internship I joined Millbrook Christian Reformed Church for pastoral work. This opened up me to the world of investing in others life and legacy. I was reminded of the community back home and their need s and this created the path for the Non-Profit.
The Millbrook Kyeeko Mission.
In September of 2019 our lead Reverend Coleman Wayne received a call to New Jersey Madison Avenue Christian Reformed Church. The church had been contemplating closure and so after a month the church voted to close. I was left to take care of a church in transition to closing and this was a very difficult task and mission that was only possible by God’s Grace. The Church council decided to sell the church and parsonage and the members were to move to other churches. This transition with the support of the Denomination and Brookside Christian Reformed Church took about four months. In January of 2019 the Millbrook Christian Reformed Church was closed and so this marked the over sixty years of ministry. This was a sorrowful moment and very disturbing but the congregation had been preparing for this eventuality for months. The church council allocated USD 50, 000 for a project of my choice in Kenya and this was when Millbrook Kyeeko Mission started. I was allocated the money and so I had to travel home work with the community to form a legal entity that could receive and administer the donation. Millbrook Kyeeko Community Based Organization in Kenya was formed in 2020 and with the leadership drawn from the community. The committee has been able to buy land and do initial construction including the gate, latrines, classes and the donation used well utilized. This marked the phase one of the project and so we are looking forward to phase two.
MILLBROOK KYEEKO COMMUNITY BASED ORGANIZATION (CBO)
This organization was formed in consultation with the community and so the leadership was selected after a vote. The committee is the one in charge of the project on behalf of the community. The C.B.O is dully registered with the Kenyan government and tax compliant after registration with Kenya Revenue Authority. The committee has
Officials (Photo)
|
1. |
John Mbandi |
-chairman |
|
2. |
James Kimala |
-vice chair |
|
3. |
Steve Kimeu |
– treasurer |
|
4. |
Julius Mulalya |
– secretary |
|
5. |
Winfred Kimala |
-vice secretary |
|
6. |
Simon Kailiti |
-member |
|
7. |
George Nzembei |
– member |
|
8. |
Caleb Mutiso |
-member |
|
9. |
Pst. Kennedy M. Kailiti |
-trustee/Patron |
Bank signatories
1. John Mbandi
2. Steve Kimeu
3. Julius Mulalya
Construction team.
Project manager: Stephen Kimeu
Construction Manager: George Nzembei
Secretary: Duncan Kivungi.
Prayer Team
Winfred Kimala
John Mbandi
Caleb Mutiso.
KYEEKO VILLAGE IN MAKUENI COUNTY KENYA.
Google map: https://goo.gl/maps/VUqpP4Ksa7eNfA1D6
Kyeeko village is in Makueni County in Kenya. Makueni County is one of the forty seven counties in Kenya. It is situated in South Eastern part of the Country. It boarders Machakos County to the North, Kitui County to the East, Kajiado County to the West and Taita Taveta County to the South. The 2019 population census shows that the population is 987,653 with spread over an area of 8,170 square kilometers. The County lies in the arid and semi-arid zones of the Eastern region of the Country. The County experiences two rainy seasons, the long rains occurring in March /April while the short rains occur in November/December. The county experiences extreme rainfall variability resulting to prolonged drought which leads to loss of livelihoods. During these droughts the citizen suffers animal loss, crop failures, and water catchment drying and forest and bush fires. Education is a key in improving the social-economic development and so the county government has invested in education supported by churches and the private sector. The challenge has been inadequate human resources, indiscipline, Ignorance, Idleness and drug abuse; high poverty levels; poor schools infrastructure; and current curriculum not attractive to youth. The health sector just like the education is challenged with inadequate medical staff and equipment alongside inadequate health infrastructure. The protestant population is almost fifty percent, Roman Catholic about a quarter of the population and the rest are evangelicals other religions and traditionalists. The greatest need is the poor education and leadership and most religious institutions not founded on sound doctrine and theology.