Potomac School Alumni serve in Kibera

It was truly a case of "where we go one, we go all" for Potomac alumni James McElwain '09 and Maria McElwain '05. After graduation for both of them - James from Potomac and Maria from the University of Chicago - James decided to join his former Potomac history teacher Ken Okoth for a trip back to his childhood home in Nairobi and a chance to engage in some real world learning by serving on some of the education-related projects run by the Children of Kibera Foundation. Sister Maria overheard her brother's plans, and would not be left behind, so she asked to join the trip and come volunteer in Kenya with the Children of Kibera Foundation too and get a chance to visit different parts of the country.
After a long flight from DC to Dubai then Nairobi, the two Potomac alums arrived in Nairobi seriously jet-lagged but enthusiastic in spirit, ready for an adventure, and very eager to help out. For four weeks, they volunteered at the Kibra Academy School teaching computer lessons to high school students in the new computer lab donated by the Children of Kibera Foundation. They also volunteered at the Red Rose School, teaching language arts, social studies, and mathematics for two weeks to children in the second and third grades.

Whether they were chaperoning the Red Rose children on a trip to the Nairobi Elephant Orphanage and Giraffe Center, or explaining the intricacies of Microsoft Excel to teenagers who until this lab was opened had never touched a computer, the McElwain siblings proved themselves to be agile, adaptable, smart, and generous world citizens. They connected very well with all the students and the teachers, and the end of their one month stay in Kenya came too fast. "This has been a great opportunity for us to host James and Maria and we are most grateful for all the work they have done here. We will miss them a lot," said Jeff Ochieng', the programs coordinator for the Children of Kibera Foundation

In the picture above, the McElwains guide their students during a computer lesson at the Kibra Academy computer lab, made possible through the Children of Kibera Foundation and all its generous friends. To support this and other education projects for children in the slums of Nairobi, please visit the CoKF website.