Meet Daylight Manager Terry Ocholi

Some people have been asking “Who’s taking care of Daylight while Michael is in the United States?” Meet Terry the Daylight Manager. Terry is comparable to the school Principal. She is in charge of day to day affairs like making sure the classrooms are stocked with chalk and books, keeping track of attendance, and handling teacher payroll.  

Terry has a passion for children who have dealt with the loss of a parent, especially students who stay in the Daylight dormitory. Her passion comes from personal experience with loss from her own days as a student. When she was a girl her father, who was a doctor, passed away so her mother and Terry’s five siblings entered a time of serious financial hardship.

But Terry’s extended family pulled together to put her in a school in the neighboring town.  Terry spent most of her childhood living in a school dormitory.  But her mother couldn’t afford many of the basic necessities that families were expected to supply. Things like toiletries, snacks, and clothes. But Terry recalls the relief when one of the teachers, Mrs. Maureen, took Terry under her wing.

“Mrs. Maureen would bring me the supplies that I needed for life in the dorm. I thought she was old at the time but now I realized she was only 35.” Terry laughs realizing she is now almost the same age. She recalled when the other student’s parents dropped off toiletries and snacks for their children, Mrs. Maureen would pull Terry aside and discreetly give her the things that Terry’s family couldn’t afford.

Now Terry has grown up to be a teacher and principal at Daylight. She has become the “Mrs. Maureen” for so many of our children in the dormitory at Daylight. Making sure they get the things they need to be successful students.

Terry has been a long-time faithful member of the Daylight family. She is a faithful, honest, and diligent co-worker and we are so grateful for her service.

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A Missions Trip Comes Full Circle

In March a team of Doctors, Builders, and Pastors went to Kenya to build a dorm, construct desks, hand out glasses, and see patients in the clinic.  It was an amazing trip that is best told in pictures.

This week the trip came full circle as Michael Kimpur had the opportunity to visit to Rochester and Lake City, MN and meet with the members of the team and share the good work they did at Daylight with friends, family, and their fellow congregants.

In March over 200 patients were seen in the clinic by Larry and Pastor Dave with the help of Daylight teachers translating.

Meanwhile the rest of the team was busy at work assembling the roof of the new girls’ dormitory.

After a week of long work days the whole school assembled for a dedication ceremony. A blessing was said for the new student and teacher desks, the roof of the dorm, and the team who was preparing to head home.

And after the dedication it was time for a traditional nomadic Kenyan celebration of singing, jumping, and dancing!

And of course lots of hugs and smiles.

Flash forward to this week. Michael preached at New Hope church in Lake City and shared all the amazing work that was done by the team. 

Then he finished the day at Autumn Ridge Church in Rochester surrounded by friends and held up in prayer.

We are so grateful for the opportunity to share our lives as we share the amazing stories of Daylight with our friends and Daylight partners.

And we hope you take an opportunity to come hear Michael at one of his speaking engagements this month.

 

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Poor Millionaires By Nathan Roberts and Michael Kimpur Book Release

We are proud to announce that Daylight Co-founders Nathan Roberts and Michael Kimpur have published their new book titled “Poor Millionaires: The Village Boy Who Walked to the Western World and the American Boy Who Followed Him Home” detailing the story of founding Daylight Center.

Poor Millionaires is the true story of two boys brought together by famine, missionaries, war, a search for God, and the unexpected consequences of introducing Christianity to a war-torn African village. Poor Millionaires follows authors Nathan Roberts and Michael Kimpur through their heartbreaking and hilarious misadventures across two continents on their way to founding Daylight Center and School for orphans of war in Kenya (daylightcenter.org). Michael Kimpur was raised in a nomadic tribe in the Kenyan desert, spending his days herding cows and sleeping in a thatch hut, unaware of the modern world waiting for him just over the farthest mountain. Nathan Roberts was raised in a wealthy suburb in Minnesota and spent his summers at Bible camp, sheltered from a world scarred by colonialism and poverty.

The book is available now on Amazon for purchase as a physical book or an e-book.
Read and See Excerpts from Poor Millionaires at poormillionaires.org

If you have already read it we would appreciate if you left a kind review in the Amazon review section and shared the video with your friends.

Join Michael and Nathan at the Book Release Party at The Nicollet 
Thursday April 23, 7:30 – 10 pm 
1931 Nicollet Ave. S
Minneapolis, MN 55403 

RSVP on the Facebook Event. 

 

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Daylight Thoughts & Prayers Go Out to Moi University Students

Over the last 24 hours many Daylight Partners have reached out to express their condolences and prayers for the students of Moi University in Garissa who lost their lives in a School Shooting Thursday.

We also heard several people ask if Daylight was affected by this tragedy. Much the way the Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting shook the hearts of the entire United States so this tragedy at Moi University is breaking the hearts of all Kenyans.

The Daylight staff and students join their country in praying and mourning the tragedy. This tragedy hits close to home for many of our teachers who are recent college graduates.

However, this tragedy did not personally affect the safety of our students. Garissa University is on the other side of Kenya in a town near the Somalian border.  Western Kenya has not experienced any violence associated with Somali and continues to be a very safe place for our children to grow and learn.

Please hold Kenya in your hearts as we mourn this tragedy.

Nathan Roberts
Daylight US Director

 

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