Rosemary Achieng is a pillar of support for her family. For the last fifteen years, she has managed to put food on the table, first for her eight children, and now for the four grandchildren who share her space in her small Kibera home. A typical day in her life involves getting her grandchildren ready for school before making her way to Otiende, a neighbourhood in Langata, where she offers laundry services to the residents. As dusk begins to set in, Rosemary returns to Kibera to open up her kiosk, which she runs well into the night. This routine, however, has been disrupted by the pandemic ravaging the world.
Less than a week after the first case of coronavirus was reported in the country, Rosemary had already started feeling the impact financially. People began reeling in their spending, and Rosemary’s laundering work was soon added to the growing list of non-essential services. After several unsuccessful trips to Otiende in search of a daily wage, Rosemary decided to turn to Shofco for assistance.
Shofco (Shining Hope for Communities) is an organization that was established to engage Kibera residents to work together and navigate some of the problems they face. It was founded in 2009 by Kennedy Odede, who was born and raised in this urban slum. When Shofco was just a few months old, it held a meeting with those living in Kibera to inform them of its mandate. Rosemary was one of the residents who attended this first meeting. She saw this as a chance to not only support Kennedy, who she had known for years, but also to contribute towards the improvement of life in the slum. Rosemary has since been an active member of the organization. In 2012, she joined Shining Mothers, one of Shofco’s empowerment programs established to help women save money together and make the journey towards financial freedom.
Rosemary’s new normal now revolves around helping Shofco keep the virus out of Kibera. Every morning, she heads over to Shofco’s offices to work on the preparation of hand sanitizer. Once the sanitizer is ready, she steps in to pack the liquid into containers which will be distributed to the various hand washing stations erected all over Kibera and other urban slums.
At times like these, its often difficult to keep your head up, but Rosemary Achieng is an inspiration to us. We appreciate her unwavering resilience, but more importantly her tireless efforts which are sending out #RipplesOfPositivity in the face of this crisis.
