Helping Jigger Victims in Kenya

Hello, my name is Esther, and I am fundraising to help purchase bedding and cement the floors of poverty-stricken families in the rural villages of Kenya in partnership with Rise Up Society, a charitable organization that has teams that go deep into villages to help the very poor people.

These poor families are also afflicted with a menacing medical condition known as “Tungiasis" otherwise called “Jiggers”. This condition is an infestation of the skin by a burrowing flea called Chigoe fleas. The parasites burrow into the skin and then swell up with eggs; the larvae hatch, and the cycle continues. These fleas cause untold suffering in the afflicted, interfering with sleep, and causing itching, pain, and the inability to walk. The parasite can afflict all parts of the body. Victims are often socially stigmatized, left isolated and without family or communal support (modern leprosy?). This condition is no respecter of age because there are victims as young as just a few months old. The profile pictures show what a jigger looks like and jiggers being removed from a child’s foot.

Cementing the house floor is the most effective way to stop the spread of jiggers because they cannot survive on concrete. Hence, I am seeking your support to purchase cement for their floor and bedding because oftentimes, people sleep on rags or on the dirt floor of their house (as depicted in the profile picture). The total cost for concrete and bedding is $500 USD per house (for the average-sized house). Bedding includes a bed frame, a mattress and two blankets, and for concrete, the cost covers cement, river sand, murram or ballast and labor costs.

I have personally paid for bedding and cement for several families; however, more support is needed hence my reason for starting this fundraiser. Would you like to join hands with me to complete this mission? Any assistance you can give would be greatly appreciated....no donation is too small.

I thank you in advance for your support. God bless you!