Yesterday a guy named Steve Peifer was honored by CNN for his work to help school kids in Kenya. CNN did this cool awards show for heroes, (and mentioned that we didn't need another award show where people who are pulling in $20,000,000 receive fake gold statues.
Steve and his family moved to Kenya at about the same time that our family left Kenya. He is a college entrance counselor at Rift Valley Academy, (where Byron attended many moons ago.)
On the side, if you like, Steve has figured out how to feed about 11,000 Kenyan school kids one meal every day so that they have the energy to go to school and learn. He also sets up computer labs for them.
I cried as I told Byron about the award but I was mystified by my own tears...
...I think they came from the same place in my heart that is weary of seeing beautiful, famous, outrageously rich people honored for what they do (out of their excess funding) for Africa. (OK, I KNOW it's good they use their celeb power to raise awareness, but I would not classify them as heroes.)
Steve and his wife are normal folks. He gave up a good job in the States and they have planted themselves in the African soil where they make far less and give far more.
I am so happy for them to have received this award.
PS All the recipients of the awards were normal every-day hero-type folk. I also really liked hearing about the Catholic sister who works to rehabilitate girls who were kidnapped by the Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda, and the doctor who gives his time and talent to kids in Ethiopia.
4 comments:
Steve and his wife are amazing people. They were great mentors to Callie when she started at RVA back in Tichie. I remember being amazed at the effort they took to be involved in the community outside of RVA when the conditions for that are not all that condusive. I think that they inspired a lot of RVA kids to get out of the confines of the school and themselves. They are great people!!
Amazing hearts of gold! Serving His children...very cool. May God lead us all to serve wildly where ever we are...here and now. Move us Jesus, to tears and action, to hearts that listen wildly and serve humbly!
You don't think I'm beautiful?
Thanks for the kind words!
Steve
Silly me! Of course you are beautiful :-)
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