That was the first word that came to mind when I first met this little delightful child. Meet Esther. A really small bundle of joy. Living in Naivasha Kenya, she never stops smiling. At four years old, her story provides hope, compassion, joy, positivity, and the belief that life is eternally precious.
At a year old, Kenya was in the middle of a political clash of 2007. This clash resulted in homes being burned, neighbors killing one another, and family being separated in an effort to escape the surprise attack of the loosing political side. Sadly Esther's family was attacked as well. Driven from their home, Esther and her family re-located to a patch of land with other's that were also driven from their homes, in Mai Mahiu, an area outside Naivasha. Her family was given 25,000 shillings to life off by the government. Esther has 4 other siblings and a mother and father. Together with other families, they pooled their money together to purchase the land and separate it to each get 100x100 plot of land. Here habitat for Humanity came into the picture and built homes for each of the families that owned the land. Their small brick home provides shelter and enables Esther to grow up in an actual house. Her father is extremely literate in English and multiple other dialects and can find work to support his family.
Meeting Esther, I am in awe that she has more spirit and energy than any child in the US and has gone through so much to be where she is now. Esther is always smiling. Her cute baby teeth smile got myself, and the rest of the team
