Jambo News

Jambo Harambee Friends and Supporters,

Thank you for reading and sharing our newsletter with others in your circle! As we usher in the budding spring season of 2021, we sense hope and anticipated gratitude everywhere for more vaccinations, fewer COVID-19 cases, more in-person family time, more outdoor activities, more travel, and yes, even more cooking adventures!

Pictured left to right: Jackie Goldrick (Harambee Centre Co-Founder and past President), Wangari Maathai, and Grace Kuto (Harambee Centre Co-Founder and President)

The 2-part virtual cooking class will be hosted by our very own Grace Kuto, cookbook author, and co-founder and president of Harambee Centre. Many of you have tasted and love her renowned cooking, which she has offered to our donors for over 20 years to support our life-changing work in rural East Africa. We are excited to offer you an opportunity to learn how to cook a few of her delicious dishes at home, as one way to connect with the people and culture of Africa! All proceeds will support the Tree Planting Project for Food Security.

In addition to learning how to make a few African dishes, Grace will discuss African food culture, including why trees are important to food security in Africa and how Wangari Maathai’s work has improved lives in Africa and around the world, essential elements of cooking (water, heat, food), and how all of this impacts quality of life for African women.

Interested, but the dates don’t work?

Want to support, but cooking’s not your cup of tea?

Internet Installation in Chwele, Kenya

Thanks to Mountainside High School Kenya Club fundraising and your generous support in 2020, internet installation at Chwele Girl’s High School is in progress. Internet will also be installed at Chwele Health Clinic and Chwele Community Centre, which are next door to the high school. Among the many benefits of internet access, we are especially excited about the new lines of connection open to the sister schools, more community educational opportunities, and expanded access to better quality healthcare in the region.

Message from Mountainside High School Kenya Club President

Thank you so much to Harambee Centre and all their supporters for all of your help these past few years. Especially during this difficult year. We have spent a lot of time this year learning about the culture and way of life in Kenya. We have had a few opportunities to learn from Grace and ask her questions, which has been such a great opportunity. She has been so helpful to us in understanding her culture. Her stories especially hit home with us and inspire our club to want to learn more and connect with our sister school. We also have been working to learn a few Swahili phrases and we hope to continue learning some more. Cooking has also been a favorite activity this year. We were able to make Wali Wa Tangausi rice and it was a lot of fun. As WIFI gets installed at our sister school and students start returning to classes, a big thing that we are looking forward to is getting the opportunity to connect with the students at our sister school. In the future we are also hoping to take a few student to visit Chwele Girl’s High School and host some more students from there as well.

Thank you!
- Emily Payne

Click Here for Information about COVID-19

Harambee Centre is a small grass roots non-profit organization based in Portland Oregon with the mission to connect the people of the Pacific Northwest with the people and diverse cultures of Africa. With your past and continued support, we are achieving giant results with our quiet but effective approach to sustainable development in rural Africa. To continue your support, please consider a tax-deductible donation: