Shining Hope for Communities (SHOFCO) transforms urban poverty to urban promise. SHOFCO provides free medical care, community empowerment programs, quality education, and clean water in the slums of Nairobi. The School Fund works with SHOFCO to provide scholarships that allow children to attend quality public secondary schools outside of the slum.
Clinton is an orphan, whose parents passed away when he was a small child. Since then, he has been raised by his aunt. She has been his primary guardian and she has made sure to pay his school fees. Clinton aspires to become an engineer. His dream project, however, is to start an organization that serves street children and orphans.
School Year 2019
My name is Damallyne Merrine Apoda and I attend Othaya Girls High School. I previously scored 375 marks on the KCPE from Anajali Primary School. The environment in high school was completely different and I was really challenged during the first week. It was too cold to manage, as time went by I started managing it so well. I also got new friends and the teachers there are very friendly. I also had problems with time keeping. Attending school the school was difficult, as there were no school fees and my parents were stranded. I really thank God for the scholarship program. I joined a very good school and my dreams of getting good grades are still alive. My prayers are for things to get back to normal and place my efforts on studies.
School Year 2022
Brigance is the second born in his family. His father works as a security guard and is the primary breadwinner. When he was two years old, Brigance lost eyesight in his left eye after an injury. As a result, he is passionate about assisting disabled individuals for the betterment of society. In the future, he aspires to become an environmentalist. He cares deeply about protecting the environment and aims to do so through clean-up projects, waste management initiatives, and tree planting campaigns -- all in an effort to "help Kenya achieve 10% vegetation by 2030."
School Year 2019
I attended Desert Streams School and now am a student at Wamagan Girls School. The school is close to Mount Kenya, and it is very cold which was an adjustment coming from Nairobi. I work hard to achieve my goals because coming from the slums, this scholarship is my only chance to attend high school. I will study very hard to ensure that I can pass. I am very thankful for this opportunity.
School Year 2022
Mary's mother cooks chapati every day at 6 AM to sell. Sometimes she does not make enough money from selling the chapati and has to also wash clothes. Her mother was able to scrape together enough money for her to finish primary school, but she has always been unable to afford textbooks. Mary's father is jobless. Despite these struggles, Mary dreams of being an accountant one day. It is only through outside financial help that she will be able to finish secondary school and achieve her ambitions.
School Year 2019
"My aunt has been helping by buying my books since my mother died...In the future I would like to be a doctor so that I can help my family out of this poverty and also help our community against all the crimes. I want to help us to have good health services. Through becoming successful in education I will be able to help my society and support them. In the years to come I am hoping to be working as a doctor. I will be saving lives and use it to help my family and community at large."
School Year 2019