Restart Africa: A Loving Sanctuary for Abandoned and Neglected Children

Deep in the countryside of Kenya's Great Rift Valley near the town of Gilgil is a very special orphanage fuelled by love, kindness and community empowerment. Established in 2008 by local resident, Mary Coulson MBE, after witnessing horrific post-election violence in Kenya, Restart Children's Centre started humbly in rented accommodation offering shelter to just six boys.

Over the last 17 years it has grown from strength to strength and now looks after 84 boys and girls who have been abused, abandoned and neglected by their parents. It moved in 2014 to a purpose built site where it remains today with two dedicated boarding houses, a central hall/dining room, a music room, library, kitchens, community craft centre and in-house uniform maker.

Restart Main Entrance looking at the Dining Room

Restart has five key initiatives that reinforce its committments to charity, community empowerment and sustainability.

1. The Sanata Women's Group - Started in 2009, this project helps to empower women in Gilgil by allowing them to practice beading and needlework. Literally meaning 'healing' in Latin, Sanata now provides gainful employment for around 30 women in a town with few other opportunities. Over the years they have worked with Ethical Fashion ITC, a UN backed organisation that connects small and remote artisans with the international fashion world. Sanata has completed assignments for Vivienne Westwood, Stella McCartney and Karen Walker to name a few.

2. Sustainable agriculture - On the grounds of Restart is a plot of land for growing vegetables and keeping animals that goes towards providing the children with healthy and sustainable food. This saves costs and even generates income by selling any extra vegetables in the local village.

3. Volunteering - Restart runs a volunteering scheme for willing helpers to stay for prolonged periods of time and help with all the daily tasks of running the institution. People come from far and wide to give back to those more in need and it is common that volunteers are inspired and moved by their work and often return again and again.

4. Herbs - Founder of Restart, Mary, grows a wide variety of herbs on the land at the centre which she develops into holistic medicinal treatments for her clinic in Nairobi.

5. Briquettes - Finally, Restart has its own briquette making operation that provides the centre with all its fuel requirements for heating and cooking.

   
   

Restart's youngest inhabitant, Patrick, aged two and a half years

Across the span of only three days in early September I had the pleasure of going to Restart four times to learn all about the institution and help out in the nursery when the children returned from school. Talking first to the founder, Mary, about how she set up the orphanage, why she felt compelled to look after the children and what challenges she is facing today, was both eye-opening and heart-warming in equal measure. Some of the stories we were told about the children while sat in her office were dark, desperate and deeply moving! But it was evident that despite all the challenges of the job, Mary cared deeply about each and every child. They even refer to her as mum.

Tears came to my eyes at the thought of what some of these children have been through. Repeating their stories here would feel like a betrayal of trust, but understand that whatever you are imagining is likely only half as bad as the truth! These children have seen it all, one boy (aged only 7 at the time and the eldest of 4) had to stand up before a judge and tell her that he never wanted to see his father released from prison for the atrocities he committed on his mother.

The beauty of Restart is that all this trauma is in the past. The entire orphanage is awash with smiles and laughter for, as Mary made clear to us, hers is a home of love. A place where past experiences are allowed gently to fade away as happy memories are made to replace them. Be that enjoying the grounds of the orphanage, playing with friends or going on excursions to nearby conservancies.

We arrived each evening at around 5:30 to greet the children after returning from school and the joy was instantly infectious. We originally went for 20 minutes and were still there an hour and a half later helping with homework, playing outside and offering a hand at dinner time. The atmosphere that Mary and her staff foster at Restart is carefree and offers each child the upbringing they deserve!

Lilian is a cheeky young girl learning to spell her name, Patrick is the youngest inhabitant aged just two and a half, Samson is Patrick's older brother with a naturally protective instinct, Raphael is a troublemaker, Peter is a hard worker. Each and every child is unique, happy and loved which made leaving the centre after just three days a very sad prospect.

These children have a happy life but it cannot go unappreciated that for all their smiles and laughter, they are different. They have been cruelly deprived of the one thing that we have had the pleasure of enjoying - parental love. There are often, we were told, questions such as "why does my own mother not love me?" and the answer almost every time came down to poverty, hardship, desperation.

In the early days Mary invited councillors to the orphanage to help the children digest and understand what they had been through but they only made the problem worse. "I tell you why", said Mary, "because children have a wonderful capacity to forget trauma when surrounded by love". Digging up the past was unproductive when all that is required is compassion and a sense of belonging.

Thankfully, though, owing to Mary's Herculean efforts and dedication to creating this loving home, Restart offers the perfect haven for children unfortunate enough to witness the horrors and afflictions of domestic violence and parental neglect. Family takes on a new significance as each child looks out for one another. They range in age from two and a half to post university age and yet there is no hierarchy or hatred. Restart is a place of love and it is reassuring to know that wherever I go, inside the walls of Restart exists a sanctuary of mutual respect, kindness and unconditional love.

Unfortunately, however, all this is now in jeopardy. For all its good intentions, Lumos - the children's charity set up by J K Rowling - is threatening the very existence of orphanages like Restart. According to its website, its stated aim is to safely reunite children with their families because "today, there are an estimated 5.4 million children in institutions around the world, and research proves that these institutions can have a devastating and lasting impact on their growth and development." With a broad brush stroke and by offering money to often corrupt and failing governments, Lumos fails to take into account the intricacies of each individual institution. Were J K Rowling to step foot in Restart she would sooner be inspired to write another novel about love and compassion than have it shut down for good.

This is Mary's current battle and for the sake of all the happy children that she looks after I wish her the best of luck. Until then, Restart continues to rescue children and empower the community and its resounding message, in word and deed, is one of love. So, if you have been considering donating time or money to a good cause in recent months and want to ensure the future of children in Kenya, then I heartily recommend sponsoring a child at Restart Africa, or better still get yourself out there and volunteer in the centre - you won't regret it and you will be back!

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