Ivonne Omulubi
My name is Ivonne Omulubi and I am a student at St. Aloysius Gonzaga Secondary School in Nairobi. I am 17 years old and the firstborn in a family of three girls and a boy. I stay with my mum who is a single-mother since my dad passed on in 2016. My mum does casual jobs such as cleaning people’s houses, fetching water and other household chore to earn our daily bread and pay the rent to our single room in heart of Kibera. Unfortunately, even these odd jobs have become very hard to come by due to the corona virus pandemic. The majority of the households where my mum could work no longer require her services either due to the fear of getting infected with the deadly virus, or chores are now being done by the household members who are staying home.
I must confess that seeing my mum struggle to make the ends meet for us hurts and motivates me at the same time. It hurts because she doesn’t deserve all these challenges in her earnest desire to take care of us. Equally, I feel motivated because I believe that somehow I have to help overcome this situation. As a result, after long reflection I decided to compliment her efforts by undertaking some casual jobs to support daily family needs. Thrice a week and depending on availability, I take up small jobs such as selling clothes, helping in small cafes, and selling water within Kibera where I can earn around $2 per day. I give the entire amount to my mum who use this along with her little earnings to pay our house rent of $30. Apart from these engagements depriving me of the precious time to concentrate on my studies, they also leave me fatigued at the end of each day. However, they are worth every effort because I can’t sit back and watch the struggles of my mum.
Our efforts have been hugely boosted by the food packages from St. Al’s that can last my family for about 1-2 weeks. Sincerely, this food package greatly supports my family and gives us hope that tomorrow will always be brighter than today. Without it, life would be totally different. To say that as a family we are grateful is an understatement. Even though being away from school for almost an entire year saddens me, I feel great because I know that my school not only cares about my education but also my family’s wellbeing during this pandemic. All said and done, my dream of becoming a community nurse is still alive. My special thanks to everyone who makes great sacrifice during this pandemic to help alleviate our burdens. Forever know that you keep changing lives!