As a young girl in 1981, I was shocked when I first witnessed baby Irene experiencing such sudden uncontrolled movements of convulsion. Mary, my childhood friend was being accused of bringing a curse to her husband’s family in Mombasa, Kenya. A marriage that had started with a great honeymoon was in shambles because of an innocent sick child.
Every time I visited Mary, I would hold Irene and together with Mary, we would cry holding each other not knowing what to do. Mary’s husband and in-laws forced her to take Irene to several witchdoctors but the baby’s condition worsened. She finally took her little daughter to the hospital. By then, it was too late and Irene’s head scan revealed extensive brain damage. Mary who was working as a newly qualified secretary, lost her job because she often missed going to work when Irene was not well. Thereafter, Mary was divorced and she with Irene spent most of their time in hospital. As if the first two disasters were not enough, Mary’s own family turned their back on her. Irene had acquired multi disability and she was never able to walk or talk. There are thousands of women in the world today especially in Africa who are suffering like my friend Mary and her daughter Irene.
I then got married and moved to Nairobi. I was able to help Mary get some specialized treatment for Irene. The birth of our first born son in 1984 was through vacuum extraction after a difficult prolonged labour. I passed out and when I woke up, I found my mother next to me holding my hand. My son was no where in my room. The nurses avoided to tell me about my baby until I threatened to pull out the urinary catheter and all other tubing that had been inserted in my body. By this time, I thought something serious had happened to my baby.
The nurses were fearful of my reaction. My son had suffered minor cephalohematoma and the head was sore and swollen. He looked like he had two heads. Cephalohematoma is one of the rare complications which babies born by vacuum extraction may suffer. The doctors explained that I should not worry because the baby’s head would take one to two weeks to resolve on its own. I was very scared and kept praying that our son would not have disability. I kept crying as I remembered baby Irene. I promised God that I would do anything for him if he protected our son from any disability. Weeks and months passed and my son’s growth was normal.
My promise to God kept stirring me up and in 1992, I left a very prestigious job with Kenya YWCA to work and help Women and children affected by disability. That shocked my employer. They offered a salary increase but I turned it down. In the year 2000 our family relocated to Melbourne, Australia where I worked in immigration & settlement sector but this did not give me inner satisfaction until my husband Joe Mwangi & I looked for some friends whom I explained my vision of helping children affected by disability and together we started DPA in Melbourne, Australia in 2002.
Thanks to: Ps Phillip Hills, the then Senior Ps of Richmond AOG who made this beginning possible. Thomas Ong'olo - Programme Manager - South & East Africa & the Great Lakes region and Dr Mary Kimani who started DPA Kenya in 2004. Senior Ps Doery - Bridge church, Richmond, for continuous support to DPA. All individual sponsors of the children, DPA volunteers both in Australia and Kenya and staff in Kenya.
ANASTASIA MWANGI
FOUNDER: Disability Partnership Abroad
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