JANUARY 17, 2020 BY BARRY DUKE
WHEN Harrison Mumia, above, President of the Atheists in Kenya Society, learned that a high-scoring student might have to stop attending school because his mother could not afford the fees for his secondary school education, his organisation came to the rescue.
The response of Idriss Saidi Lutta mother was “God is real” when she learned that the money she needed for his school fees – around $525 – had been donated.
To be fair, Lillian Ayabei wasn’t aware at first that the money had come from an atheist organisation. When she learned who had made the donation, she said:
As long as they are not devil worshippers, we are grateful they have offered to help us and we accept. The intent is all that matters.
The society donated an additional $178 for Lutta’s shopping needs.
The boy was one of the top students in last year’s in Baringo County and was set to join Maranda High School after getting 401 out of 500 marks in the 2019 Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCSE) exams.
He was a student at Emining Primary School and emerged the best in Mogotio Sub-County, Baringo.
Mumia said his group had fully paid Lutta’s first term high school fees.
The Atheist in Kenya Society commits to financially support Lutta throughout his high school education at Maranda High School.
On learning of the mother-of-four’s financial difficulies, Lutta’s class teacher, Madam Rono, launched a fundraiser on social media – and the atheist group came up with the cash within two days of the appeal.
Rono described Lutta as an intelligent boy and she wishes the boy the very best in his secondary education.
He is a humble boy and very smart.
Mumia wrote in an Atheists in Kenya blog:
The reason we paid for the high school education of Idriss is because we understand that the effects of poverty on children are wide-reaching and can lead to lifelong struggles, especially when young people don’t receive proper education.
According to Child Fund International, poverty and education are inextricably linked, because people living in poverty may stop going to school so they can work, which leaves them without literacy and numeracy skills they need to further their careers. Their children, in turn, are in a similar situation years later, with little income and few options but to leave school and work.
Hat tip: Robert Stovold