The following is the eighth in a series of journals written by members of the SRU Athletes for Forgotten Angels service group chronicling their trip to the Hekima Place orphanage in Kenya. All entries in the journal can be viewed at the Forgotten Angels page.

Day 8 (Written by Shannon Mahoney, Dana O'Neill and Kalli Wakefield)  |  Photo Gallery

Instead of wild adventures today we stayed at Hekima Place and helped out. Some of us helped in the shamba (vegetable garden), others with the animals and some helped with tidying up the compound.

Most of us were in the shamba. Hekima tries to be self-sufficient and grow its own food. This means that there is a lot of work to do in the shamba to make sure there is enough food for all the girls. Today's job was planting the next crop of potatoes. We had to lay down the potatoes, cover them with seed and then cover them with soil so they can grow. Other SRU athletes had to pull weeds to make sure the plants grow healthy and big, while others had these things called "slashers." Basically they were similar to swords but only had sharp ends. These athletes swung (like in golf) at weeds cutting them down. Following that some girls helped to turn the soil in a patch to grow more cabbage.

All of this work was very tiring and by lunchtime we were all exhausted. We are not used to all this hard work in the hot sun. As we worked we got to talk to some of the "uncles" (men who work at the compound) and get to know them a little better. These men do this work day in and day out. This is amazing to us! We were tired after four hours. I couldn't manage doing that work all day everyday. I give all the props to them!

After lunch we had some time to rest and tidy up our house. Some athletes helped out in the shamba and with the animals a little before the girls came home. When the girls came home we got to play with them before dinner, although some girls had to work on their homework and wash their clothes.

Tonight we celebrated one of the girls' birthdays! The girls are so amazing when they speak for the birthday girl. Tonight they sang their version of "You Are My Sunshine." It is the cutest thing in the WORLD.

As I write this we are sitting down to watch a movie with special appearance by Mum Kate (the founder of Hekima). Our time here is flying by and we all wish we could stay here a little longer!

Shoutout to Henry Norton, who is recovering from knee surgery! Get well soon! :)


- Shannon, Dana and Kalli