UPDATE:

Buy Raffle Tickets to support our mission for chance to win 4 tickets to the Cubs vs Cardinals game at Wrigley Field!

Kelly is organizing the Raffle. See her message about the fundraiser:

Hello friends and familly!
I am starting a raffle to raise money for a medical mission trip this summer in support of two nonprofit organizations, ASCOVIME in Cameroon, and Foothold International in Kenya.

The winner of this raffle will receive 4 tickets to the Cubs vs Cardinals game at Wrigley Field on

June 16th at 1:20 pm (Father’s Day!).

The seats are in an excellent location: Section 104, Row 1, Seats 1-4.

Raffle tickets will cost:
$20 each a ticket
OR
6 for $100

The raffle is open from now until May 15th. I will draw the winner on May 16th (one month before the game).

More about the seats:  These seats are right behind 3rd base and a great spot for catching foul balls.

(caught this ball last time I was a game)

Picture of the seats! First row of the section, so no one is in front of you.

Picture in front of the seats. view of the field from the seats.

About Foothold International...

We are a faith-based nonprofit serving in Kenya, East Africa utilizing sustainable, local resources and employing local people to make lasting changes in the lives of local, rural communities. Our focus is clean water, sanitation, and hygiene innovations that empower young women and families to prevent disease while providing a way out of poverty.

You can learn more about Foothold at footholdinternational.org

Why work in a small rural village in Kenya?

This is a question we are often asked, especially from our Kenyan friends who live outside of the small rural town of Taveta, Kenya. The first most important reason was that we were invited. Prior to founding Foothold, we had built relationships in this area with local schools, churches, and leaders.

The second reason we chose this area to start Foothold was the fact that we found few if any organizations working in the area. We could have chosen a larger city or an area much easier logistically to travel, but we wanted to work in an area where the needs were greatest, and we felt we could make the most impact. Over the last 15 years we have found this to continue to be true. Most organizations we encounter from the US have already made their home in Nairobi or other larger urban spaces. Taveta, Kenya has been long cut off from much of the progress made in the rest of the country.

Although we find the needs are often overwhelming , we are continually encouraged by the resilence of the people here. Much of our time in Kenya is spent following up on projects: wells, filters, community groups, and it is inspiring too see how skillfully our partners use our support to leverage maximum impact for their community's benefit.

The Rekeke Dispensary

In 2020 Brad visited the dispensary, a local clinic providing maternal care as well as community health services. They charge no fees to the patients. The dispensary plays a vital role in this community with traditional skepticism for western medicine. Foothold partnered with the local health department, supporting field work to build relationships with village elders to encourage husbands to allow their wives to go to the clinic for maternal care, opening the door for commuity health education, disease prevention, and improved overall community health. Foothold also provides soap and washable menstrual pads to the clinic.

In 2022, we visited again to find the clinic in a desperate water crisis. They had an incredible staff and impressive solar resources, but the tap connected to the county water source was cut off. In a dry, dusty, pastoralist community, water is critical for all the obvious reasons, but ample water was essential to providing the minimum sanitary conditions for a medical facility. Because of the fine dust, often mixed with animal feces, the floors, counters and medical equipment required frequent wet cleaning. Dry sweeping floors and surfaces just stirred organic matter into the air, making matters much worse.

Patrick, the Dispensary Administrator reported that women in labor, if lucky, would arrive on motorbike to be turned away, sending them to the next hospital, miles away. He described this as a most horrible task of his, but they could not risk the danger to both the mother or the staff. As a result much of the progress made to build the community's trust was unraveling before him.

In the meantime, the dispensary utilized a water catchment system to gather rainwater during the rainy season, but the dry season is long, and a water catchment system only lasts for a short time. As the dry season lingers, the demand for water becomes more urgent

In the fall of 2022, Foothold applied for a local Rotary Grant to provide fresh water delivery of 10,000 liters each month for a cost of $70/month. This water has the dispensary operating again. Pregnant mothers have returned to the clinic as well as families bringing their children for health screenings, vaccinations and various medical services. Beatrice, the Subcounty director explained that the Kenyan federal government provides no funding to these rural clinics that they are supported only by the county budgets in their ability to allocate from their operating funds. She assured us our $70/month donation has saved many lives.

Foothold is in the planning stages of working with the health department to develope a more sustainable and comprehensive water solution that may involve water catchment, restoring public water lines and/or bolstering the current water catchment system in place.

We are excited to host Zach and Kelly at the dispensary as they assist and encourage the local health care staff who are making such an impact on a vulnerable community.

Hosting is Part of our Mission

A component of our mission is to help facilitate responsible, sustainable travel and service to Africa. Responsible service and tourism supports local economies and fosters meaningful relationships between cultures.

We are excited to announce that we have a team of medical students coming to spend the month of July in Cameroon, Kenya and Tanzania. A trip of any kind Africa is exciting, inspiring and challenging, but this trip is an incredibly intense one.

The team will spend the entire month of July in Africa. Their first stop is Cameroon where they will spend 2 weeks in a local mission hospital. Next they will take another flight traveling from the far West Coast of Africa to the East Coast, joining us in Kenya to work with the local Masai people. Once their work is done with us, we will send them across the border into Tanzania to climb the highest peak in Africa before returning home!

We hope you will support and encourage them as they take an incredible leap of faith!

We wish them "Safari Njema" (Safe Journeys)

Cherie & Brad Catron

July Mission to Africa 2024

Help us go to Africa!

Team Members