FogHorn June 1, 2017  - Paula Hammack - STERLING HAMMACK FOUNDATION 

Where they are, she said, the government "provides nothing" for the people, taking 14 percent of income as tax and not supporting welfare, pensions or education (they do pay for teachers, she said, but kids have to pay to go to school.) She described their apprehensive reactions to white people when she visited, saying children ran away from her, and still do.
There are 2 million Masai, she said, of which most do not work but live off their livestock. At least until recently, she said, a food staple was the blood and milk of their animals, though now corn maize porridge -- about a bowl a day -- is the major staple. A big issue facing the people is grass to feed their stock, to which they refer as a "mooving bank."  The Masai live off their animals, with little hope of bettering their lives, she said: selling a cow for about $250 is making a living and providing for their children's education. But the recent drought, since it has kept grass from growing, is having a very bad effect on their economy and their lives. 
She funds sending children to school, and buying materials such as books or pencils. She emphasized that she had not visited the Rotary club to ask for money but rather to talk about the people with whom she is involved. "I want people to know," she said. 
She went through the brochure, page by page. One page focused on the school, what it teaches and its priorities. The kids are well-behaved and love to learn, she said, pointing out a photo of the kids in their classroom. Playground equipment was unknown there, she said, until she bought some. It was received with enthusiasm and made for a happy school, to paraphrase Paula. 
As she led Rotarians in leafing through the brochure, we saw photos of water tanks. These were used in times of emergency, which prompted her to donate six wells. She helped provide equipment to catch rainwater to enlarge the water supply. To describe housing there, she pointed out, we have houses whereas they have huts made of cow dung and mud. It might cost about $16,000 to build a water reservoir, of which she pointed to photos in her brochure. And she talked about building troughs adapted for use by sheep and goats. The stoic people do not complain about the scarcity of water, she said, so she implemented installing cans to catch rainwater. 
She repeatedly asked the people what they needed, since "I'm one of you now," and they finally indicated that they needed bicycles that kids could ride to school. She also gave needed help with the actual school facility: modernizing and building new classrooms, a computer room, teacher housing, more latrines, mattresses that boarders could sleep on and cows so students would have milk to drink. Paula also buys exercise books, paper and pens.
She explained that when she discussed ideas she presented to the Masai, she would preface her comments with "In my culture ..." which helped her communicate  the ideas. "Culture is very important to them," she said.
Showing photos, she told of putting in sprinkler systems to provide water, along with the water-catching systems, to help grow hay for the cattle. Farmers soak the hay in water first to make it more palatable for the cows, since cattle are so important: Families have to sell one cow to put one child through school.
She described the long, thin "life straws" that people use to poke through dirt and drink water buried under the earth, and which filter bacteria out of dirty water. The straws can filter up to 4,000 liters, she said. Otherwise, the water has to be boiled. She described reactions she had seen from people drinking fresh water -- "what happens to people's faces when they first taste sweet water." 
Then she described the daily lives of children who have nothing to do, and how she provided computers that run off solar power. She is trying to obtain schoolbooks and additional computers. The goal, she said, is to make people self-sufficient.
To help build schools, especially for the growing population of Kenya, the people make bricks. She also described more about the daily lives of the Masai, including how young children care for elder family members. 
To help bring about changes in health care for the Masai, she met with elders and bought equipment for a new medical clinic, which will open June 19. Current needs include more medical equipment, simple flush toilets -- and a doctor as per government requirements. That, she said, will require building a doctor house.
She shared personal stories involving the people there, including one about a little deaf and mute girl who she got into a special school. She was given a name by the people there -- "Naishorua," which means "God's gift." She talked about her "grandson," Tirian Koya, now 33, who told her she was as important as anyone in his family.
She has built three reservoirs and plans to build more, "as many as I can." She also talked about her desire to promote education there, and the apartment buildings she started which generate funds she hopes to use to send kids to school instead of tending the family cows. This year, due to the drought, there is little grass to eat, and the cows are so thin that no one will buy them. So she is taking up the slack, helping pay for the kids to go to school. 
She ended by leaving no doubt as to her contentment with the work she has chosen to do in Kenya. "I am happy to do it," she said. "I wouldn't enjoy life without helping these people."