Founded in 2007, St. Anne’s Girls' High School is in Kapkemich, Nandi South District, Rift Valley Province, in western Kenya. Fr. Anthony Kiplagat grew up in Kapkemich, a small village in which there is no electricity or running water. Far more important to these people is the education of their children. In an effort to address the needs of young girls in his community, Fr. Anthony assisted in establishing this school. Once the school was established, his dream has been to build a library and other ancillary facilities necessary to augment the education of young people in the area. As we became acquainted with Fr. Anthony and he shared his dream, we formally established Friends of St. Anne's, and have joined him in his efforts to provide an adequate education for the children of this community. He is currently living in the Kansas City area after attending the University of St. Mary in Leavenworth, Kansas.
Thoughts from Fr. Anthony: "Education of a girl-child has not been given much attention in my community. Girls are believed to be given away for marriage, and so educating them is a waste of resources they say. Poverty in the area is also another reason to why girl-child is not given a better opportunity. The boys remain with the parents while the girls are given away and if they were educated, the parents would not benefit much apart from the dowry.
Hence to educate a woman is to educate a nation. This summarizes the essence of education to the girl-child and indeed to every educable human being.Children are the future leaders of tomorrow and mothers are guardians of the future. Every society should be able to raise healthy and productive individuals who are physically, psychologically, socially, and culturally developed. And I believe that these can be equally achieved through the education of the girl-child who is the mother of Tomorrow. Equal and better education for all, is my dream come true in Kapkemich."
The Board of Directors includes:
Ling Chang, Vice President: Restaurateur and active volunteer in various organizations. Assists with event planning: facilities, food, beverage, and general needs
Dan Dakotas, Vice President: Artist and active volunteer in various organizations. Assists with event planning: Art auction and general needs.
Ruth Dakotas, President: Extensive business experience and active volunteer in various organizations. Conducts meetings, coordinates the board, and assists with the general needs of event planning.
John Maguire, Vice President and Assistant Treasurer: Extensive business experience and active volunteer in various organizations. Assists with financial tracking/reporting and the general needs of event planning.
Sheryl Maguire, Vice President and Treasurer: Teacher and active volunteer in various organizations. Coordinates financial tracking/ reporting and assists with the general needs of event planning.
Joan Njeru, Vice President: Extensive business experience and active volunteer in various organizations. Assists with general needs of event planning and provides cultural insights as needed.
John Schukman, Vice President: Extensive business experience and active volunteer in various organizations. Assists with the general needs of event planning.
Linda Schukman, Vice President: Teacher and active volunteer in various organizations. Assists with the general needs of event planning.
Amy Wunsch, Vice President and Assistant Secretary: Artist, teacher, entrepreneur and active volunteer in various organizations. Assists with maintaining corporate records and board minutes. Assists with the general needs of event planning.
Charles Wunsch, Vice President and Secretary: Extensive business experience, lawyer and active volunteer in various organizations. Maintains corporate records and board minutes. Assists with the general needs of event planning.
Why have we chosen to do this?
After listening to Fr. Anthony and looking around at all I have and the extensive educational opportunities in this country for men and women, I said to myself, "Why can't we build them a library?" My husband and I gathered some friends together in November 2009. We all agreed that we can build a library. Our first fund raiser was held 5 months later and 3 months after that the library was being constructed.
– Ruth Dakotas
Education has always been my passion. I was passionate about it as a student, and consider myself a life-long learner. As a professional educator, I believe that second only to basic human needs, there is nothing more important than a person's education. It not only provides for a better lifestyle for most of us, it inspires and enriches us daily - hourly! With compulsory education in our country, and even in these hard economic times a tax structure that supports public education, it is sometimes difficult for us to remember that others in the world must make monumental sacrifices in order to provide the most basic education for themselves or for their children. I choose to be a part of Friends of St. Anne's because I want to help provide the education that so many of us in this country take for granted.
– Linda Schukman
I echo Father Anthony’s statement that educating the girl child in a lot of developing countries is very often discounted or unavailable because of lack of funds. It is a commonly held belief that schooling girls is a waste of resources since the girls will eventually be married off and leave the family.
Sadly, many developing countries have a larger percentage of women who are primarily running the household while the men are away earning income. Without a strong educational foundation for these women, the family and soon the community stagnate.
Having grown up in a family of all girls, my sisters and I were very fortunate and are extremely grateful that my parents valued a good education and provided opportunities for us to study both in Kenya and overseas. I deeply want to see the same opportunity extended to other girls in my homeland and have always wanted to play a role to that end.
Dan and Ruth found me, invited me to attend a meeting, and instantly the project and everybody’s enthusiasm struck a strong chord. Because of my past experiences and the sheer luck of becoming acquainted with Dan and Ruth I am compelled to be a part of this.
Old adage: You educate a woman, you educate a village.
- Joan Njeru
I like the intimate but global outreach in giving to the educational community of St. Anne’s School and Library. I see immediate progress in our goals of financing, building and facilitating improvements that will help not only children but adults as well. “The best place to find a helping hand is at the end of your own arm”-Swedish proverb.
- John Schukman
We became acquainted with Father Anthony through our friends, Dan and Ruth, and were fascinated and moved by his stories of growing up in rural Kenya. His passion and determination to bring hope to the young people of his village compelled us to evaluate all that we have been given and to pass on our blessings in some small way. What started out as a “what if we could…” idea sparked at a gathering of friends around a dinner table less than a year ago has resulted in a library waiting to be filled with books for the girls in Kapkemich! It continues to amaze us that it takes so little to make a real difference!
- John and Sheryl Maguire