Kanni Village, Machakos, Kenya
Following Amma’s October 2003 trip to Nairobi, a group of devotees there have formed an Amrita Kutumbam [Amrita family] {news} and have started engaging in various selfless-service projects in Amma’s name.
For the past year the group has been sponsoring the monthly feeding of 60 orphans at a Salvation Army orphanage in Nairobi, as well as providing them clothing and shoes.
Then, on 29th January, the Kutumbam members pooled together enough money to provide three-weeks worth of food to 290 tribal families in Kanni, a village in Machakos about 80 kilometres outside of Nairobi.
“For almost two years there has been no rain there at all. So the people are suffering from famine,” says Sunil Kallungal, 40, who participates in the Amrita Kutumbam’s bi-weekly Sunday gatherings and charitable work.
“The initial plan was to feed 100 families for three weeks,” says Sunil. “We planned to give every family 24 kilos of maize meal, four kg of beans, four kg of cooking oil, four kg of sugar and two kg of salt. But when we arrived, 290 families were there. So we had to adjust so that all the families could be fed.”
The bulk food was transported to the village in a lorry, and a programme of sorts was put on upon issuing it to the families. As part of the programme, a 22-member troupe from the Kamba Tribe performed some traditional dances.
Sunil says it is the hope of the Amrita Kutumbam members to start supplying food to the village on a regular basis.
At Amma’s instructions, Brahmachari Shubamrita Chaitanya recently in January conducted satsangs in Nairobi, as well as in South Africa and Botswana. He also held an IAM Meditation camp in Nairobi, the second such camp held there since Amma’s 2003 visit.
-KaliCharan