It started with an email to the Scientology Volunteer Ministers web site from a Christian minister in Kibera, Kenya. Kibera is by far the largest slums of Nairobi that is home to more than half a million people who live in abject poverty in a district smaller than New York's Central Park.
 | The Zelyn Academy in Kibera, Kenya provides basic education and two meals a day to 106 kids. |
Elisha Ooga, a Christian minister who runs a children's ministry in the slums of Kibera, wrote in to inquire about the free online course the Volunteer Ministers offer. But on learning of the selfless work of the the ministry, the Scientology Volunteer Ministers contacted the director of the Church of Scientology Mission of Nairobi to get help in providing training not just to the teachers but to the children of the school as well.
The ministry runs a children's feeding program at the Zelyn Academy, right in the heart of the Kibera slum, in an area known as Silanga, the most notorious neighborhood and the one hardest hit by this year's post-election violence.
Esther Macharia, the Director of the Church of Scientology Mission of Nairobi, and some of her staff went to the school to deliver a seminar and described it in these terms:
"There are no roads in this part of the slum. To get to the school we had to leave our car and walk for about a kilometer through areas of incredible poverty. The conditions in which these people live is a very gross violation of basic human rights.
"The school goes up to grade three and there are 106 kids. The day we went there were 96 children there. One of the reasons the kids come to school at all is that they are fed—at least breakfast and lunch each day—and its very commendable for Elisha and her team that they arrange this.
 | The Church of Scientology Mission of Nairobi teamed up with the Scientology Volunteer Ministers program to provide a seminar for the school. |
"The first thing I did with the children was a Locational Processing Assist:
"L. Ron Hubbard developed numerous applications of his discoveries for the mental and spiritual aspects of a person's physical difficulties. And as more and more techniques evolved, a new body of technology came into use, called 'Assists.'"
"One of the easiest assists to render is Locational Processing. A Locational is done by directing a person's attention off the painful area of his body or his difficulties and out onto the environment."
After the Locational, the kids were really interested in their environment and extroverted. The head teacher decided she wanted to learn how to use this technique and use it with the kids in the future as she noticed how much happier the children were.
"Then, using a mixture of English, Swahili and the local language so everyone could understand, I told them about study tech—technology developed by L. Ron Hubbard based on research into what prevents a person from being able to learn any subject. The teachers were very enthusiastic about what they learned."
Afterwards Rev. Ooga and Zacheus Ogutu of the Zelyn Academy wrote in to thank the Scientology Volunteer Ministers saying:
"Thanks for your acknowledgement for the work we are doing within the slums of Kibera.
"I believe you understand what it takes to have pretty, healthy children in a school. The feeding program in the school is just another blessing for them though very, very expensive especially at this time when the food prices have gone so high.
"Thanks for the Scientology team for the recent children's seminar. The teachers and committee members were happy too. Looking forward to working together with you for the good of tomorrow's civilization—the children."
 | The children and teachers were very enthusiastic with what they learned at the seminar. |
For more information on how to support the Zelyn Academy, contact the Volunteer Ministers Consultant at vm@volunteerministers.org.
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