Dash for Dosh Marathon
Donation protected
https://docs.google.com/document/d/17FF8jPJseN2MoGdccJ5Di6yfeKuz4I9V/edit
Greetings friends from Kamau Ngugi! I want to tell you why I’m running a marathon this spring, but it is quite a story. Please allow me to introduce my new friend Joseph, he goes by Dosh.
Seven months ago, Dosh was searching for food, he climbed a baobab tree to harvest the wild fruits. His peers were underneath collecting them as they fell. Unfortunately, he stepped on a branch which swerved and hit a power line and there was a huge explosion, boom! It was heard even from afar and people came running. The villagers could not rescue him because the baobab tree (which stores a lot of water) was still conducting electricity. Eventually Kenya Power Co. switched off the power. At that time, Dosh was still stuck to the tree. Villagers held bed sheets under the tree to catch him and after a while he did fall into the waiting sheets. An ambulance was already there waiting to take him to Coast General Hospital in Mombasa, 5 hours away. Providentially, Francis his elder brother had just arrived from his place of work and was in the neighbourhood. He was called to the ambulance and off they went. There wasn’t time to pack or prepare anything; he left with only what he was wearing.
Dosh, 17, is a second born in a family of three. Francis, 20, is the caretaker and eldest brother. The youngest brother, Brian, is 9. Both parents passed away – their mother in 2013 and their father in 2017. Upon the mother’s death, the children were left with their paternal grandparents in rural central Kenya. Francis and Dosh left there when their youngest brother was 2 years old, and that was the last time they saw him. Due to their fluid family situation, Dosh is only in 7th grade and Francis is a casual worker.
During Dosh’s four month stay at Coast General Hospital, both of his legs were amputated and now he is still recovering from major burns. During that time the doctors went on strike twice because the government was not paying their salaries and other mismanagement. Eventually the hospital closed completely and all patients had to leave. Dosh was abandoned alone in the ward. We decided to move him to a Aga Khan Hospital, a private hospital also in Mombasa.
At this time Dosh’s burns are still healing so they can accept skin grafts. He goes to Aga Khan about three times per week to have the wounds cleaned and dressed. Dosh has endured four months of pain and he and Francis don’t have the resources to afford private hospital care.
Since they are from my home village Mpeketoni, Lamu County, Kenya I heard of their predicament and was moved to help. I networked all over the world and with the help of our good friends, we found Mr. Robert Buchanan who lives in New Zealand. Rob is director of MEND (Mobility Equipment for the Needs of the Disabled) www.mend.org.nz www.youtube.com/MENDNZ which for the last 30 years has helped amputees in Africa and India to walk, work, and live a full life. MEND has a prosthetics unit set up in Kenya, ALFA (Affordable Limbs for All). Dosh will receive his future legs from ALFA after his grafts have healed. Our dream is Dosh walking to school to finish his education and his brother Francis starting a small business to become self-supported. We estimate we will need $13,000 as listed below:
$500: Transport costs to/from the hospitals and eventually back home.
$5,000: Hospital costs for reconstructive surgery and grafting.
$1,500: Working with MEND NZ and ALFA charities to make custom prosthetic legs and the associated physical therapy – Working with partners
$2,000: Enrolling Dosh in specialized school for handicapped so he can catch up with his peers.
$2,500: Finding them a new home. Remodeling to meet Dosh needs.
$1,500: Seed money to start a better livelihood for Francis. E.G. buy a pump to irrigate a farm, tools, etc. He has given up everything to care for Dosh and needs a sustainable way to do so in the future.
God is faithful. So far, Dosh is progressing well, but to make this dream a reality I really need your help! I will be running a marathon on April 17, 2021 at the Indian Creek Trail, course TBD. First, please support our friends in Kenya and myself with prayer. If God is calling you to a financial donation, you can sponsor me with a per mile, or any donation. Cheering and anyone who wants to run with me is very welcome!
Please send your donations to this Go Fund Me account:
http://gf.me/u/zfj22v
If you have questions please email: [email redacted] or call at [phone redacted].
Thank you and God Bless.
“Not all of us can do great things but we can do small things with great love” – St. Theresa of Calcutta.
Greetings friends from Kamau Ngugi! I want to tell you why I’m running a marathon this spring, but it is quite a story. Please allow me to introduce my new friend Joseph, he goes by Dosh.
Seven months ago, Dosh was searching for food, he climbed a baobab tree to harvest the wild fruits. His peers were underneath collecting them as they fell. Unfortunately, he stepped on a branch which swerved and hit a power line and there was a huge explosion, boom! It was heard even from afar and people came running. The villagers could not rescue him because the baobab tree (which stores a lot of water) was still conducting electricity. Eventually Kenya Power Co. switched off the power. At that time, Dosh was still stuck to the tree. Villagers held bed sheets under the tree to catch him and after a while he did fall into the waiting sheets. An ambulance was already there waiting to take him to Coast General Hospital in Mombasa, 5 hours away. Providentially, Francis his elder brother had just arrived from his place of work and was in the neighbourhood. He was called to the ambulance and off they went. There wasn’t time to pack or prepare anything; he left with only what he was wearing.
Dosh, 17, is a second born in a family of three. Francis, 20, is the caretaker and eldest brother. The youngest brother, Brian, is 9. Both parents passed away – their mother in 2013 and their father in 2017. Upon the mother’s death, the children were left with their paternal grandparents in rural central Kenya. Francis and Dosh left there when their youngest brother was 2 years old, and that was the last time they saw him. Due to their fluid family situation, Dosh is only in 7th grade and Francis is a casual worker.
During Dosh’s four month stay at Coast General Hospital, both of his legs were amputated and now he is still recovering from major burns. During that time the doctors went on strike twice because the government was not paying their salaries and other mismanagement. Eventually the hospital closed completely and all patients had to leave. Dosh was abandoned alone in the ward. We decided to move him to a Aga Khan Hospital, a private hospital also in Mombasa.
At this time Dosh’s burns are still healing so they can accept skin grafts. He goes to Aga Khan about three times per week to have the wounds cleaned and dressed. Dosh has endured four months of pain and he and Francis don’t have the resources to afford private hospital care.
Since they are from my home village Mpeketoni, Lamu County, Kenya I heard of their predicament and was moved to help. I networked all over the world and with the help of our good friends, we found Mr. Robert Buchanan who lives in New Zealand. Rob is director of MEND (Mobility Equipment for the Needs of the Disabled) www.mend.org.nz www.youtube.com/MENDNZ which for the last 30 years has helped amputees in Africa and India to walk, work, and live a full life. MEND has a prosthetics unit set up in Kenya, ALFA (Affordable Limbs for All). Dosh will receive his future legs from ALFA after his grafts have healed. Our dream is Dosh walking to school to finish his education and his brother Francis starting a small business to become self-supported. We estimate we will need $13,000 as listed below:
$500: Transport costs to/from the hospitals and eventually back home.
$5,000: Hospital costs for reconstructive surgery and grafting.
$1,500: Working with MEND NZ and ALFA charities to make custom prosthetic legs and the associated physical therapy – Working with partners
$2,000: Enrolling Dosh in specialized school for handicapped so he can catch up with his peers.
$2,500: Finding them a new home. Remodeling to meet Dosh needs.
$1,500: Seed money to start a better livelihood for Francis. E.G. buy a pump to irrigate a farm, tools, etc. He has given up everything to care for Dosh and needs a sustainable way to do so in the future.
God is faithful. So far, Dosh is progressing well, but to make this dream a reality I really need your help! I will be running a marathon on April 17, 2021 at the Indian Creek Trail, course TBD. First, please support our friends in Kenya and myself with prayer. If God is calling you to a financial donation, you can sponsor me with a per mile, or any donation. Cheering and anyone who wants to run with me is very welcome!
Please send your donations to this Go Fund Me account:
http://gf.me/u/zfj22v
If you have questions please email: [email redacted] or call at [phone redacted].
Thank you and God Bless.
“Not all of us can do great things but we can do small things with great love” – St. Theresa of Calcutta.
Organizer
Simon Ngugi
Organizer
Olathe, KS