Dr. Williamson serves on the Ubuntu Life Foundation Board and has been bringing teams of medical volunteers to Kenya for over 10 years. He also happens to be the Physician Vice President of Quality and Safety at the University of Kansas Health System and is in the middle of preparation and response to this global pandemic. In his regular ‘Tim Talks,’ he will share updates about what he has learned about the virus, what to worry about and not worry about, new ways to protect yourself and your loved ones, insight into the health community and the heroes who are leading the charge, and general wisdom and thoughts about the current state of affairs.

Unfortunately due to the current global crisis, we are putting the CWC construction on pause. For the safety of our workers, our children, and our community, the crew put down their tools last Friday until it is deemed appropriate to resume. The good news is that we were able to begin purchasing some materials for future construction before prices are gauged locally. Prices have already started spiking (5-10%) as local suppliers report shortage of supplies from China. We hope that this will prevent the cost of finishing this critical infrastructure for our community from increasing further in the future…

Mama Peter has been with us since day one of our impact story. Witnessing the highs and lows with us as we empower each child within our program! She initially joined as a volunteer and was ecstatic at the thought of being able to bond with other women who also had children with special needs . According to Mama P, this was the first time that she had even heard of a place where she would not be judged or blamed for her child’s disability which many in the community saw as a curse

Last week we launched a food program for our special needs students and their families that are most in need during this time of uncertainty. Initially we were able to bundle up the remaining food at the school that is used for daily school lunches and morning porridge which we labelled with each student’s name and left at the front office for ‘curbside pickup’ at the school.

Never before has the true meaning of Ubuntu been so apparent for our family, staff, and the people who we empower and who we serve than during this unprecedented global crisis. It has brought us together in ways never imagined while keeping us apart in ways that threaten to degrade the work that we have been building on for 20 years. This threat is only that though, because we are blessed with a global Tribe who will help us through this crisis.