our inspiration

Born in 1928, Joseph W. Odipo was one of twenty-five children born in North Yimbo, Muguna Village. Joseph was a self motivated individual who later became a railroad Traffic Superintendent with the East African Railways Corporation. His profession took him far away from his home but he always held his village close to his heart. He vehemently believed in education that he personally sponsored many families in Yimbo in educating their own children.

 

Instrumental in the founding of Muguna Primary School, his impact established the first primary school in the region. He grew impatient watching so many local children, some as young as six years old, walk 3 miles to the nearest school. He mobilized the village to build a single classroom. Today that school has ten classrooms with over 470 students enrolled. The school project was the genesis of his numerous efforts to improve his own community. Unfortunately, he tragically passed away in an automobile accident in 1992 before realizing his dream of fully empowering the people of Yimbo.

 

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A forward-Thinking Culture

Many were inspired by his work, none more than his family. The family wanted to carry on his legacy; Charles and Ben, two of Joseph’s seven children, founded Friends of Yimbo (FOY).

FOY believes in educating and empowering local populations in order to achieve sustainable and comprehensive change thus ensuring the community is able to address its needs. It is the goal of FOY that this serves as a model for community development for the entire region. As a practice, FOY conducts a participatory needs assessment jointly with the village development committee before the commencement of any project. Indeed, these meetings are vital to the success of the project.

Sustainability is the key to all FOY engagements!

Muguna School Profile