Jamestown College Visits Chogoria

Last week, a group of students and professors from Jamestown College, North Dakota arrived in Chogoria to visit Village HopeCore International. Below is an entry written by Taylor Brown, a business student at Jamestown College, about her experience in the village.

My name is Taylor Brown and I came to Chogoria with a group from Jamestown College of Jamestown, North Dakota in the United States. Jamestown College has been partnered with the Presbyterian Church in Chogoria for a number of years. This year, our class consists of six students and two professors. The various members of our group are volunteering at both the Chogoria Complex Primary School and at Village HopeCore International. Before we arrived in Chogoria, our group took a semester-long class on the culture and history of Kenya. We invited many speakers to come and share their experiences and knowledge of Kenya with us. We learned many facts about Kenya and the Swahili language and also grew much closer as a group.

We have really enjoyed our time in Kenya. It has been an incredible experience for all of us and very educational. Very few of us have ever been to Africa so words can’t describe how amazing it has been! The people are so loving and welcoming. We have been shown nothing but great hospitality and unique, tasty food. I am a business student at Jamestown College and have had the privilege of volunteering in the MicroEnterprise department at Village HopeCore. My experience has been very eye-opening so far. It has been incredible to go out and interact with the clients and see where they live and work. I have also enjoyed working with the people at HopeCore and learning about financing. They have helped me learn more Swahili, which has been great! I am excited to see what is ahead and learn more at Village HopeCore.