For those of you who do not know me, my name is Brian Odina. I was born and raised in Kibera with a single mother. We were three in my family – mom, one sister, and myself. The harsh reality of poverty was the unrelenting backdrop of my childhood. I spent much of my childhood worried about the people closest to me, and whether we could meet our basic needs.
As a teenager, I got involved in a Youth Empowerment Program at Facing the Future School (FAFU). The school was funded and built by Crossing Thresholds. At FAFU more than 8 years ago, I was blessed to meet the people who were involved with this organization. I can only say ‘they have been so instrumental in helping me realize more of my potential’. First, they provided a scholarship for me to attend college. A few years later, they gave me a chance to be trained as a certified fitness coach. It has been a great relationship.
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At the heart of Soul Sister Travels (SST) is the belief in the power of the human connection to unite us all, one relationship at a time. What started as a heartfelt intention, guiding people to experience a deeper meaning behind travel, has blossomed into so much more. SST is incredibly blessed to be partnering with Crossing Thresholds in leading volunteer trips to Kibera.
Together we learn and grow by bringing and receiving the most beautiful gift ~ love. A few years ago, the leadership at Crossing Thresholds decided to make a commitment to bring younger voices to the table. For an organization dedicated to optimizing the potential of the world’s youth, we found that young adults were underrepresented and underutilized in our conversations and decision- making. The Emerging Leaders Initiative (ELI) was established to help Crossing Thresholds grow into a more well-rounded NGO. Our goal is to lead by example and show that young people are critical in leadership positions. This past January, for the first time, ELI was represented as trip leaders in Kenya.
It had been almost four years since my last trip to Kenya, and I was struck by all that had changed and all that had stayed the same. The students I had grown to love are all grown up and off to high school, but the laughter and joy of each new face was familiar and comforting. I didn't know it when I walked off the plane, but I needed our students to remind me of the richness of our shared human experience.
Human beings have a way of making everything about themselves. For decades, the social critics have described this phenomenon (in America) as rugged individualism. It means that we tend to experience, interpret and draw conclusions from an individual perspective. It also means our capacity to empathize and act on behalf of others is often truncated. Our behavior is sadly driven by the question -- how does this benefit or threaten me?
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