Diana Sheilla Akinyi’s quest to make a difference began when she had just graduated from Vera Beauty College in Nairobi. She had grown up in Kisumu and for the longest time dreamed of becoming a model, a vision that led her to this institution. But as time went by, Diana’s passion to strut runways faded away. She instead found herself drawn towards a career that would positively impact people’s lives.
In 2017, after she completed her diploma studies, Diana visited her aunt in Mathari. She had been a regular visitor, popping in from time to time and this time she hoped to extend her stay. Her aunt was a single mother living with HIV/ AIDS who worked as a casual worker yet whenever Diana visited, there was always room in her aunt’s house and a place at her table. During these visits Diana found herself empathetic about her aunt’s financial situation; she sought to find a way to help out. Understanding that there were more people in the same predicament as her aunt, Diana channeled her focus towards helping as many of these people as she could.
The next year, Diana moved back to Kisumu and established the Restoring Hope HIV/ AIDS Foundation. The foundation’s mission was to cater specifically to single parents with HIV/AIDS, focusing on those living in Manyatta, one of Kisumu’s informal settlements. Diana began by holding guidance and counselling sessions for this community, and also included art classes to help nurture untapped talents. She took a step further and introduced a loan program to cater to those in need of capital for their small biasharas. Over time, there was a steady increase in the number of people reached through Diana’s foundation. She grew her scope to cover other parts of Kisumu County, as well as Migori, Siaya, Busia, and Nairobi.
Restoring Hope HIV/ AIDS Foundation was doing well but Diana struggled with communication: how to get her message across to more people. Late in 2019, she came across a mentorship program by Akili Dada, a non-governmental organization that sought to train young leaders on how to be more impactful through their work. Diana sent in her application and was accepted into the program.
The training covered more than communication skills and gave Diana a comprehensive outlook on her work. During the two weeks she spent learning under Akili Dada, Diana also interacted with other women who were working to make a difference within their communities. Through the exchange of ideas and experiences, Diana emerged from the program mentally motivated and with a strong support system.
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Water is a scarce commodity in Manyatta, and sanitation is, more often than not, regarded as an afterthought. Last month, in response to the spread of Coronavirus, Restoring Hope Foundation donated several hand washing stations to Manyatta and began sensitizing the locals on the importance of physical hygiene in keeping the virus at bay.
While this was essential, Diana recognized that a greater need during this season is food. This was an difficult project to undertake by herself, and so she turned to two of her contacts from Akili Dada, Winnie Wenger Walcott and Olivia Otieno. These ladies also run their own community based organisations, Winnie having established Face of Nyalenda, and Olivia with Power Dada. Rallying their efforts, the three began raising funds to supply food to families living in Manyatta and Nyalenda. Their efforts have been nothing short of fruitful; they have enough supplies to feed 100 families until they recover their livelihoods.
For Diana, nothing brings her more contentment than giving help to those in need. Her desire to help a loved one has now changed the lives of so many people. We applaud her for sending out so many #RipplesOfPositivity through her work. And through this story, we see the power of coming together to achieve a common objective.
