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Sunday, May 12 - Tuesday, May 14, 2002
Kenya, East Africa

"Weeks and Miles and Memories Ago"

After five weeks of traveling through the western, eastern, and southern regions of Africa, the Balm team finally landed in Kenya, the last stop on our journey. It's incredible to think that we've been through all these places in such a short time! What's even more incredible is that we've been taking the message of The Balm In Gilead and sharing it with so many people on the ground. They've been open, welcoming, and receptive in every country. Even though our team was considerably smaller - since Dr. Randall Bailey, Dr. Joyce Moon-Howard, and Fred Eno headed home when we left Harare, Zimbabwe - we were prepared to meet the challenges that lay ahead in Nairobi.

In every country we visited, the scale and scope of the AIDS pandemic has weighed heavily on our minds and in our hearts. There is so much work to be done and that realization alone can be overwhelming. But we've learned, from experiences with the African American faith communities in the United States and from our new experiences with partners on the continent, that together we can do this.

According to UNAIDS, Kenya is one of nine countries in Africa hit hardest by the AIDS pandemic. Approximately 10% of the adult population is infected with HIV/AIDS - that's about 2.5 million Kenyans. In 2001, it was reported that on average 600 Kenyans die every day from AIDS. AIDS has reduced the average age for life expectancy from 63 years to 48 years. About 6,570 teachers die annually from AIDS. Seven out of every ten

HIV-positive Kenyans are between the ages of 18 and 25 years old, and 1.3 million young people have lost one or both parents to AIDS. Those are grim statistics, but there is hope.

1 | 2 | Kenyan Map