Visit to St. Stephen School in Tsavo, Kenya

On June 7th we traveled to St. Stephen school in Tsavo Kenya. There is no running water, no electricity and no roads in this location. This school was recently opened along the border of Tsavo National park in Kenya. The school is attended by children of the Maasai tribe. Their families exist living with animals such as goats and cows they heard. They live in peace with the wild animals only killing when they are in danger. The children that attend St. Stephen are young in the age range of 4 to 5 years old. There is a Children's Rosary at the school. Although the remote location we very much wanted to visit the children. We were only able to reach this location because the weather conditions were ideal. Thank you God. It had rained recently which kept the dust to a minimum. We were told when it is very dry the dust can make travel impossible. If it had been raining reaching this location would also not have been possible. Many children met us at the school accompanied by their parents. There was an increase activity of elephants so travel for the children alone was not advised. One person had been killed in the prior week from an elephant attack.

The Maasai people welcomed us warmly. We shared rosaries, miraculous medals, pencils and green scapulars that had been donated to the Children's Rosary. They surprised us with necklaces and bracelets they had made. 

We were invited to visit their homes. 

This was a wonderful experience. Homes were made of cow dung and mud. The entrance is a hairpin turn to prevent wild animals from entering.

Water is scarce in this region with a long dry season. Often they must walk miles to find water and when the river is dry they must dig along the bottom of the dry river bed to find water for the animals. Water is carried by hand back to their homes. Water is critical to their life so finding it often takes up a great amount of their day.

After visiting with some of the families, we found Kostin surrounded by kids. He has a real gift for working with young children. We made wonderful friends among the Maasai tribe. We are so happy they are part of the Children's Rosary.

Africa Journey Update

We are home in the USA. Thank you to those who prayed for us. We arrived on June 30th at JFK airport in New York City. I got sick for the last third of the trip but was spared any major injuries. Praise God!!  Asher was very sick for several days in Uganda with a fever but he made a recovery and Alina did very well save for having a car door closed on her finger. This was very painful but she pushed through like a trooper. We wished we could have done posts along the way but the days were so long and most of the time internet was not available or spotty. We hope to share some of the experiences from the journey in the coming days.

We will pick up here with Day 3 which was the one day of the trip where we visited a National Park. We figured we could not go to Africa without seeing the some of the beauty of the animals that inhabit this vast land. We set out very early on June 6th for Amboseli Park: a reserve known for large elephants. The road to the park was rough and washed out from earlier rains. Our goal was to arrive by 6AM when the park opened. In the dark as we headed down the dirt road we had our first glimpse of the wildlife. Asher spotted a giraffe along the road. With our van lights, the glimpse  was brief but exciting to all of us.  We arrived at the gate just before sunrise. The park employees had not even come yet.

As the light started to peek along the horizon the sky began to change moment by moment. It was breathtaking. The sounds of the birds and all those around created a majestic atmosphere that we tried to drink in. One of the highlights of the day was following a pair of cheetahs. We were able to see many animals some up close and some a bit farther away.

We got up close to many monkeys and baboons. One had a newborn baby. Next to the baboons was a lake full of flamingos.

The kids had a great time. The roof of the vehicle lifted up so when the van was stationary we could stand and have a great view while still being protected from the heat of the sun.

Day Two in Africa

Day two began with a meeting with Cardinal Njue at the Basilica of the Holy Family in Nairobi. We then went to Mass at the Basilica. At the conclusion of Mass we had arranged a meeting with Jeremiah Mumo (shown above). He works with some of the poorest children in Nairobi in Kibera slum. We were able to give him 120 handmade rosaries and some Children's Rosary books.

The weather in Nairobi surprised us as it was relatively cool and in the morning it rained. In the afternoon we began our journey to Sultan Hamud. This is a rural area several hours outside of Nairobi. There we met Fr. Wachira who is the Pastor of St. Martin of Tours Parish in the Ngong Diocese. He shared with us over dinner many stories from his prior parish in Rombo Kenya where he had initiated the Children's Rosary in the main parish of St. Charles Lwanga and 21 of its outposts. He spoke of how the first group began small with only 20 children but over time it grew in the main parish and then began spreading like a brush fire in the outposts. More and more people wanted to be involved with the Children's Rosary. Peace came over the outstations where there had been conflict. Children shared with him how they had prayed for their parents. Some parents suffered drinking problems and did not attend Church. But after some time he had children who came back and shared that things in their family had improved and their parents were coming to Church. When Fr. Wachira was transferred to the Parish in Sultan Hamud he wanted to again initiate the Children's Rosary. He has already begun to begin groups and hopes to initiate more.

We thank all of you who are praying for us on this trip. We can feel those prayers. These first days we had very little sleep. In some cases less than 3 hours since we had not adjusted to the time change. We have also had limited access to internet so we will try whenever possible to provide updates.

Thank you again.

-Blythe

(note: second photo was taken in Sultan Hamud on the walk to St. Martin of Tours Parish)

Meeting with Cardinal Njue

On our second day in Africa we were able to meet with Cardinal Njue of the Archdiocese of Nairobi to discuss the Children's Rosary. Despite the fact that offices were closed that day, he made a special trip to the Basilica of the Holy Family to meet with us. We are so grateful to him for his hospitality. He also introduced us to Fr. Moses Kago and Sr. Rose Mwangi. We presented him with a Children's Rosary banner for the Archdiocese of Nairobi. At the conclusion of our meeting he gave us a blessing for which we are most thankful. This was a wonderful beginning to our visit to Kenya. 

We Have Arrived in Africa!!

We have good news to share we have successfully arrived in Nairobi. It has already been an adventure. Some tiny highlights included arriving to check bags and finding out that carry on luggage also is weighed and we were over limit. A very kind attendant from Kenya Airways helped us in pulling out packs of Children's Rosary books until we fell under the limit. Quickly the kids went into packing mode as they rushed to get the extra books into checked bags that had some space. 
One other hiccup was an unfortunate injury with my neck on the way to the airport. Although I had hopes that I would be in tip top shape with my joints to start the flight I realized this was not to be. The flight time on our tickets was 14.5 hours. But as soon as we boarded the plane they started announcing that we would arrive early. I like to think the winds were blowing with us. 

The flight was hard. Sitting in quiet prayer a thought came - when God calls someone to do something it may be difficult, there may be suffering. This isn't a punishment and it does not mean we have made an error in our course. It just requires more trust. In the midst of the flight I thought of Our Lady. How she must have had uncertainty for her own well being and that of her unborn Baby. Things didn't look good when she went into labor with no room available in the Inn. It probably didn't make sense to her.  But our ways are not God's ways. So it is not my role to question why I hurt my neck. It happened and we go on entrusting all things to Our Blessed Mother and Our Lord.

The kids have done well so far. Asher fell asleep for less then an hour on the plane but Seth did manage to capture a picture of him. There were lots of questions leaving the airport during the final check of our bags as to why we had so many rosaries. But after many questions and looking in our bags we were told we could go. This was a wonderful blessing. We had some concerns about finding the people who would pick us up but as we walked out of the airport we easily found Carol and our driver David who will help us for the week and a half. With ten checked bags and many carry on bags there was concern about fitting everything into the van. But everything fit! Praise God. The top picture is the crew in the van headed to the hotel. As one can see we are tired but spirits are good. We are so grateful for the prayers. They have helped us tremendously. 

On Sunday at the conclusion of our 8AM Sunday Mass our Pastor blessed our whole family: Seth, Konstantin, Alina, Asher and myself. The whole Congregation present at Mass extended their hands and prayed for us. Monday one of the parishioners from St. Thomas the Apostle Parish had a Mass offered for the trip. We are also so grateful for all those unifying in prayers with us through the 30 Day Novena. Thank you all and please know we are carrying you with us on this journey. 

Come with Us in Prayer as We Journey to Africa

Dear Friends,
We share news of a very special trip that is planned. Monday, June 3rd, the Feast of the Ugandan Martyrs, we will leave for Africa. We will visit Children's Rosary groups in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda for almost a month, leaving Uganda on June 29th, the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, arriving in the US on June 30th. We humbly write to ask for your prayers. As many of you know, I have a genetic disability affecting my joints. These last days and weeks in preparation for this trip I feel Our Lady has obtained graces in a special way that I might fully appreciate how fragile I am. There has been been illness and many new injuries. This has made it crystal clear that of my own strength I could not go on this trip. It will only be through the grace of God. 

Fr. Jude, whom we will be visiting in Uganda, said it beautifully, "We need to say a novena....remember we have to plan with Our Lord."  Thus we share this novena with hopes many will join us. 

30 day novena June 1st - June 30th. This is the intention:

May this trip being made by Blythe Kaufman and her family to Africa bear fruit that will remain. 

May they each remain in God’s love and may they travel carrying love to those they meet. 

May a mantle of protection cover them. 

May they be strengthened through grace to do the will of God and seek in all things to glorify God.

May the Holy Spirit be with them and guide them.

May this trip help to spread the Children’s Rosary throughout Africa and the world. Amen. 

Please say this intention along with the following prayers 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory Be

While we have included three prayers to be said daily with the intention, we invite individuals and groups to pray as much as you can with this novena. We will need it. Know that we are carrying you spiritually with us. Visit the Children's Rosary blog to follow along with the trip: www.childrensrosary.blogspot.com. In some of the regions we will visit in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda there may be no internet so expect a more complete report when we return. 

Please note, if you start the novena late do not worry, each prayer has incredible value. 

Thank you!!!

Your Friend in Christ,

Blythe

Global Rosary Relay for Priests 2019

The Children's Rosary has been invited again to participate in this years Global Rosary Relay for Priests.  This will be held on June 28th which is the World Day of Prayer for Priests and the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Beginning in South Korea every 15 or 30 minutes a Rosary is led at a different Shrine or Church for the sanctification of priests. Visit www.worldpreist.com to see a schedule of meeting times and locations and unify prayers with those praying in different parts of the world for the sanctification of priests. If we want holy priests we need to pray for them and so we invite you to join in prayer. Thank you all.