By Tammy Kaufman, White Salmon-Bingen Rotary Club

 

I heard a story last night about making a difference. It goes something like this…

 

A boy was at the seaside walking along the sand and rocks early one morning when he noticed an old man tossing something small into the ocean. The old man stooped over, picked up something, and again tossed it into the water. The boy watched as the man continued to do this over and over again. His curiosity piqued, the boy drew closer to the old man to ask what he was doing.

 

“Sending the baby sea stars back home so they can continue to grow,” the old man said. There had been a storm the previous night, and thousands of little starfish had been stranded high above the waterline and were fated to die in the heat of the coming day. 

 

“But you can’t possibly make a difference, there are a million of them!” the boy said with exasperation.

 

The man was quiet for a minute, as old men can be when they ponder life. He stooped over to pick up another baby sea star and held it up in his fingers for the boy to see. “I may not be able to help them all,” the old man said, “but I can help this one.” And he threw it into the water, giving it another chance to live.

 

This fable has many variations around the globe, but the end message is the same - we may not be able to solve all of the world’s problems at one time, but if we focus, we can dramatically alter a life for the better.

 

The tale struck a chord for me as it illustrated the work I do supporting the Najijali Project in Kenya. The idea came about during the COVID-19 lockdown. Joy Wasilwa was starting a nonprofit in the Chwele, Bungoma County area called Grace Resources for Community Action (GRECA) with the help and guidance of Grace Kuto, the co-founder and president of the Harambee Centre in the United States. Joy saw the terrible effects that the government-mandated lockdown was having on the rural villages. Villagers were not allowed to leave their immediate area and had to be inside their huts by curfew for fear of imprisonment or a brutal beating by police. Children did not go to school for one year, and had no access to any virtual education, as most didn’t even have electricity in their homes.

 

There were grave impacts. One result was a 40 percent increase in the already terribly high rate of teen pregnancies. Once an unmarried girl becomes pregnant in Kenya, her life as she knows it is over, and 98 percent of pregnant girls never return to any sort of education. Most are destined for poverty. And even though the Kenyan Constitution was changed in 2011 to improve conditions for underprivileged people, including women and girls, the culture is slow to put these ‘new’ laws into practice. 

 

Sadly, many of these girls did not become pregnant from a consensual relationship. The pandemic locked these children up with predators, some even from their own families and extended relations. Regardless of how they became pregnant, these children raising children need help to break this cycle. To do that, the Najijali Project focuses on one class of 25 girls at a time.

 

The story of the old man and the sea stars was told recently during the Harambee Centre annual fundraising dinner by a guest from Kenya, Madam Lynette Kisaka, a volunteer with Grace Resources for Community Action (GRECA). During the past five years, GRECA has been instrumental in designing a vocational training program to help teen mothers become financially independent. By teaching them a skill and offering wrap-around services to support the beneficiaries, the organization is helping them chart a new life. 

 

In addition to learning to be either a tailor or a hairdresser, the graduates receive a kit to help them launch their small businesses. The young women’s training also includes small business instruction, financial management for work and home, domestic science courses to learn how to run a household and raise children, and reproductive health, so they can be in charge of making decisions about their bodies and their family size. Most importantly, these very young women receive ongoing mental health counseling to help cope with their individual traumas and develop a toolkit of skills to handle what lies ahead. Together, they are creating a support system to move forward with a new lease on life and spread the message of hope.

 

In the five years since the initial concept, GRECA, Harambee Centre, and many other partners, like my own White Salmon-Bingen Rotary Club in Washington State, have worked together to make a positive impact on one life at a time. We are now hosting the third cohort of Najijali Project students and have been monitoring each class to get their feedback and make improvements for the next group. The new class is in a longer, two-year program at a boarding school, and beneficiaries have even been connected with pen pals from across the world to mentor and encourage them to work hard toward graduation.

 

For me, giving back is a labor of love. I am privileged to help and continuously adapt a program that suits the specific needs of the people and communities in and around Chwele, Bungoma County, Kenya. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to give back through Rotary and play a supportive role in bringing our partners’ vision to life. Together, we are helping to create a sustainable program that empowers these teen mothers to succeed, becoming part of a solution in their own community. 

 

Learn more about the history of the Najijali Project at https://harambeecentre.org/najijali-project. Help donate to a scholarship for 2026 at https://harambeecentre.org/donate-now, and if you are interested in learning how to get involved, email TamaraKaufman@gmail.com.

 

Hart Center’s Founder, Suzanne Hart, and I have shared stories about why we are so passionate about making the world a better place. Next time I will share a little about why Giving Back is so important to me personally…

Sincerely,

~Tammy Kaufman

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Tamara Kaufman

White Salmon - Bingen Rotary Club (2009-2026)

Chair: Public Image / International Service Committee 

District 5100 Global Grant Coach

tamarakaufman@gmail.com