CES Canada President Michael Frederiksen stepping down
In 2003 I met a man who since then has become a dear friend. Malik Khaemba retired as a diplomat with Kenya Foreign Affairs; while I, from a 35 year career in education. He was looking for an opportunity to ‘give back’ to his rural community in western Kenya; and, I was seeking a new adventure somewhere in Kenya focusing on secondary school education. The complete story is found in our published book ‘Under the Acacia Tree’.
Our friendship grew, and so too did Community Education Services (Canada/Kenya). We all got caught up in a humanitarian outreach that has impacted on 45 school communities throughout Kenya. During my first trip to Kenya I was focused on research on the impact of HIV/Aids on the Kenyan school system. Travelling across the country while also promoting the need for a Healthy Living curriculum to fight the Aids pandemic, my heart quickly warmed to the Kenyan way of life and to its people.
How could I begin to imagine that twenty years later, there would be 3500 education scholarships, a secondary school built, sources of clean water at 12 schools, new dormitories and classrooms, and many other projects in community health and agriculture created to strengthen vulnerable communities.
CES Canada President Michael Frederiksen, centre, is flanked by CES Kenya Patron Malik Khaemeba (left) and CES Kenya board member Ben Udoto (right)
How could I understand that CES would involve a series of miracles, waiting to be discovered. Like meeting eight year old Mercy Nyakundi in Kitale Kenya, who because of her physical disability had severe mobility issues. Now as a Grade 12 student living in Dundas ON, her entire family has been reunited and now are Canadian citizens. Mercy is also a sharpshooter on the Ontario Wheelchair Basketball team.
Our vision came into sharp focus through donations from persons, corporations and foundations that believed in what we were doing. Since 2005, seventy volunteers have travelled to Kenya to take part in our work and to enjoy African culture. Over one thousand students with no hope to ever graduate from high school, have found themselves studying at college and university. Internship programs have given high achievers an opportunity to act as teacher assistants prior to entering university. A mobile IT lab project provided students in 30 schools with basic computer skills. Leadership studies for secondary graduates helped to place our students on a more level playing field with others from the urban centres where teaching resources were vastly superior. And there is a lot more - do you have your copy of ‘Under the Acacia Tree’?
Kenya has taught me to appreciate and be content with what I have in life, and never to give up hope that good things will happen if we do not surrender to despair.
“Bora maisha; mengine ni majaliwa” is a Swahili expression meaning “Life is the best gift, the rest is extra.”
That extra “blessing” in large measure has for me been the Kenyan people. Since my first visit to Kenya, I have spent over one year of my life breathing Kenyan air. It’s life force has permeated my heart and soul. For this I thank God and all who have walked this journey with me.
The support I have had from my wife Linda has been extraordinary. I often speak of the CES Family of Friends in Canada, Kenya, and in other countries. Together we would fill a large banquet hall with extra chairs brought in for the overflow. This unique multi-racial family has sustained and encouraged me to continue our work.
The past two decades for me have been exhilarating and rewarding. As I reflect on all that has been accomplished, I realize there is much more we can do as a charity. I also know that renewal must include fresh leadership with new perspectives. It is time for me take a step back and continue cheering from the sidelines.
For all the right reasons, while assessing the effects of contracting polio at a young age and now dealing with post polio syndrome, the timing is good. I can best offer my support by way of sharing our collective history and acting in a consulting emeritus role. I will be stepping down as President of CES Canada as of June 30, 2023.
The CES Canada Board has energetic and committed leadership, and I am confident our vision to reduce poverty and provide access to eduction for Kenyan youth will burn brightly. Our partnership and friendship with CES Kenya remains intact. In a meeting last fall with CEO and Patron Malik Khaemba, he indicated that the CES Kenya Board’s commitment to keep moving forward would remain strong.
In life, we are privileged to find new ways to serve and to make a difference. Usually the seeds are sown long before we step onto the scene. The groundwork has already been laid by others. It’s all part of a bigger picture of restoration and healing. Mother Teresa said it best, “Not all of us can do great things, but we can all do small things with great love.” What we have accomplished together is because of love - the kind that motivates, strengthens, heals and gives us hope for a better future.