Meet the Hiari Girls

sponsored by UNDER CONSTRUCTION LA

Leina is sponsored by Erin Kunkel

Nailepu Ntaii | English name _ Cathryn

Has 1 brother and 3 sisters. Favorite subject is Social studies. She wants to be a cardiologist. When we took her to school her family didn't show up at all. It took us hours to find her because she got lost on her way to school and didn't have any of her personal things that she needed to enroll. But we got her sorted. She's such a bright girl that she was one of the 5 girls that was accepted into the best school. In fact, during the placement exam, she tested so well on math and science that they didn't have her continue the test and just let her in. Her KCPE was 341.

Nailepu is Sponsored by Johana De French.

Moriana Metni | English name - christine

Moriana is the 6th born of 10 kids ages approximately 12-32. She loves math and football (the soccer kind) and would love to be a nurse. She’s also one of our photography class students and has a new love for photography. She had a KCPE score of 316. She’s a really sweet girl with spunky and fun personality. She’s really going to thrive in a learning environment.

Mosoni Seiyai | English name - Edna

Has 2 brothers and 3 sisters. She was a runaway when we found her. Her mother (pictured below) was hiding her at a distant relative’s house because her father had already chosen a much older man to marry her. He tried to marry her off when she was in class 6 (6th grade so approximately 12 years old.) She’s lucky to have a good Mama looking out for her. She had a KCPE result of 222

Sinantai Lengu | english name - Ester

Oldest of many children. Her father was in a hurry to marry her off to receive the cows and feed the family. But has agreed that if the option of school is on the table, they can wait. She lives in one of the furthest villages we work in and they are far from schools and opportunity. Sinantei had a KCPE score of 298 and she wants to study to be an engineer. She also wants to pave the road for her many younger brothers and sisters.

Nashipae Nkaapa | English - Eunice

Nashipae, Nash for short, love's Science and wants to study history. Pictured here without her family because she was a runaway when we found her. Her father had plans to circumcise her for marriage the night before she ran away. Her mother helped her escape and she met us at a church. In fact, we had already heard of her and had planned to visit her family and home to talk to the family about sponsorship but, we didn’t make it in time. If she hadn’t run away we would have missed her by a couple days. Nashipae has dreams of being a lawyer one day to fight for women’s rights and equality.

Nayieso Solonka | English name - Eunice

Nayieso ran away from home because her father was trying to sell her for school fees to send her brother to school. She was one of the rescues by Sintoya, one of our OG's (Original Girls). Sintoya hid her and organized keeping her safe until I could get there and get her into a school. Our meeting with Neyieso was brief and not at her home because of the conditions but we were able to eventually meet with the family and get their support. Nayieso says she’s 15 years old but it’s hard to know for sure as the Maasai don’t record birthdays. They do have to eventually claim a birthday when it’s time to start getting official documents for things like national exams for school, at which point they make one up.

Sinyati Tikoi | English name -Eunice

Sinyati wants to be a doctor. She has 3 brothers and 5 sisters. She was the second to last born. Of all 6 girls, only herself and one other daughter went to primary school. None went to secondary school. All the other sisters received “the cut” and were married off around 13 years old. Sinyati would be next if not for sending her to secondary school. Sinyati wants to study to be a doctor.

Moinan Peter | English name - Faith

Youngest of 6 kids. This girl has some real spunk. She’s very bright and hopes to one day be a lecturer. She’s one of the 5 of our girls that was accepted into the best school in the county because she did so well on her placement exam. Even the people at the schools are impressed when any girl from the bush is able to test that high. Her KCPE score was 301. It shows that with a proper education she can really do well.

Nkidingai Ntuala | English name - Joan

Nkidingai’s first name is really hard for many of us to say. She’s also happy going by her English name Joan, pronounced like Joe-en. Joan loves studying the sciences and wants to be a doctor. Specifically a surgeon. She hopes to come back to her community one day and start more projects to send girls like her to school. Pictured here with her mother who says that if she doesn’t go to school she will receive “the cut” and be forced to marry.

Nanue anyika | English name - Josephine

Nanue says she's about 14 years old but we don't know for sure. They don't actually record birthdays here until they finish 8th grade and have to take a national exam, at which point they just make a birthday up. Nanue wants to be a Doctor. She's also really into church and likes to go by her new Christian name Josephine. In fact she's seen here wearing her choir uniform which is the nicest thing she owns. She wanted to meet us wearing her Sunday best! Also it was Christmas Day when we took these photos : )

Keripa Mukepe Ngilisho

Keripa has an infectious smile, loves her mom, loves science, and wants to be a doctor. She comes from a very poor family of 6 kids. She has a really strong desire to come back to help her family and community after getting an education. Her KCPE score was 305 which is really high for a Maasai girl from the bush. Most don't hit 300. It's hard out there to keep up with your studies when you have all the responsibilities of that life. She works to take care of the family every moment that she's not studying. That includes fetching water twice a day, gathering fire wood, cooking, cleaning, caring for the children, milking the livestock, and so much more.

Lasoe Kayiok

Lasoe is a shy girl as most Maasai women are. They’re not raised to show confidence but it sure starts emanating from them after a couple years of getting an education and becoming their own human. She has an older sister shown below in a photo with her mother. Her older sister is one of the few Maasai women I’ve met that has actually received a secondary school (high school) education. She got that opportunity because she tested SO well in grade school that it was recorded nationally and she got sponsored by a bank to go to high school. It’s because of that that her mother realizes the importance of an education and wants that for Lasoe too. Her father is not in the picture but the other male figures in the family are still pushing for Lasoe to get married which also means mandatory FGM. Her sister and mother found us and hope that we can give her that opportunity at getting an education that her sister had.

Nairesiae nangari | English name -Lilian

Nairesiae is quite happy going by her English name Lilian. She speaks great English and is incredibly bright. Her story is exceptional and so is her personality. This girl ran away from a village about a 9 hour bus ride away so that she could stay with a cousin’s family and hopefully keep going to school. Her KCPE score was 370!!. She ran away, with her mother’s help, the night before her circumcision was to happen. Knowing next would be forced marriage. She’s one of the only 5 of our girls that tested high enough to go into the best school in the county. She wants to study language (no wonder her English is so good) and to be an accountant because she loves math. We were unable to photograph her home or immediate family. She’s pictured below with her cousin’s family that has been looking after her.

Nairesiae is sponsored by Barbara Schmidt and Michael Josephson

Sainko Loyo | English name - Lilian

Sainko was another one of our very bright girls. She had a KCPE score of 316. She loves school and is very much hoping to continue on to university and study to become a surgeon. We got her enrolled into a really great school that will give her the tools she needs to thrive. They also have a computer lab and will start teaching her computers in her second year of high school. So hopefully soon we’ll be able to email back and forth with her about her progress.

Kalai Lenkai | English name - Mary

Another one of our best students. Kalai we think is younger than her estimated age of 14. Yet her performance in school is really great. She has a KCPE score of 313. Which we’ve said before and we’ll say it again… anytime a girl from the bush gets anywhere close to 300 is a sign of an exceptionally strong student. This girl is going to go far.

Neema Ntoorian Nkiranto

Neema is another one of our very strongest students. With a KCPE score of 362 she’s headed in a direction of doing very well in school. Her mother is a widow with 7 kids. Neema is the 2nd to oldest and wants to forge a path for her siblings. She wants to study to be a doctor and has a very strong desire to come back and help her village. Not only with their lack of medical care but she also wants to be able to sponsor girls like herself.

Simayo Lesalaon | English name - Purity

Another of our brightest students. With a KCPE score of 356 Simayo is headed in the right direction. She has 4 brothers and and two sisters. All living in the humble little house shown below. She’s the third born which means a ton of the family responsibility falls on her. Coming from such hardship and to still get such good primary school grades shows what a dedicated student this girl is. Simayo wants to study to be a Doctor and is eager to continue her education to do so.

Sintoya Lekitoi Moko | English name - Rita

Sintoya loves science and wants to be a doctor. She has 2 brothers, 6 sisters. Fun fact, Sintoya has 4 names because she has a relative (Moko) who reached some fame as a Maasai singer so many people in her family keep his name attached to their own. The way naming works with the Maasai is they get their own first name, hers being Sintoya, followed by their father’s first name as their last name and often times these days an English name as well. But if there’s someone in the family that you’re particularly proud of being related too you can ask permission to carry their name as well. But not without permission!

Kiseyia Lekuni | English name - Rose

Kiseyia is a real gem. We’ve known her for about 5 years so since she was like 6-ish. She’s an incredibly kind young girl. She comes from a family with 6 boys 6 girls. She’s the 7th born.  She loves math and business. Her 3 older sisters have already been cut and married. She also has 4 step siblings from her dad’s deceased 2nd wife. So her mom has her hands more than full. She will be the first of her family to go to secondary school.

Maren | English name - Ruth

Meet Maren. She doesn’t have a last name because a child last name is always their father’s first name. Her family won't let her take her father's name because he passed away and her mother was not Maasai. So the family has disowned her mom and siblings since the father passed. Her story is is a tough one. Her growth has been obviously stunted from malnourishment. But her spirit is not. She’s a ray of sunshine. Her mom is a widow and has 7 kids so Maren has 2 sisters and 4 brothers. She's the 2nd born and is really hoping to get a good education so that she can help her mom and her family.

Maren loves Science. Her grades weren’t great in grade school. Her KCPE score was 244. But it’s not for a lack of effort or smarts. This girl has been working hard to keep her family afloat.

Naserian Lekuni | English name - Susan

Naserian is the eldest of 7 kids, 2 boys and 5 girls. She wants to be a doctor. But more importantly to her, she wants to set a path for her 6 younger siblings to follow. Naserian is one of our higher risk girls because not just her father but, also her mother supports FGM and early marriage. But that’s not what she wants for herself. She wants to gain an education before she becomes a mother. Naserian also has a great love for football (aka Soccer for you Americans ;). Naserian’s parents have allowed her to attend school instead of getting married as long as she’s being sponsored.

Naserian Semperia | English name - Sylvia

Sylvia is a very shy girl but she warmed up to us really quickly. She told us that she doesn’t want FGM and her family doesn’t necessarily want that for her either but if she doesn’t go to school then, according to tradition, they would give her “the cut'“ so that they could marry her off sooner. The Maasai believe that getting the cut makes you a woman. However if a girl goes to school there’s less of a rush to marry her off and then when she graduates, she’ll already be a woman. Which removes the necessity of the cut. Naserian wants to study to be a doctor and she also has a new love for photography. She’s one of our program’s photojournalism students.

nashipae Layian | English name - Sylvia

Nashipae loves Science and wants to be a nurse. She has a brother and two sisters. She’s a really sweet girls who laughs easily. Nashipae’s hope is that she can help pave the way for her sisters and her tribe by showing them that a girl can be anything that she wants to be with an opportunity at an education. Fun fact, Nash has a recorded birthday of Jan 1 which happens to be the same birthday as many of the other girls. That’s when we started asking questions about these birth dates and found out that they’re all totally made up. There’s no telling what her actually birthdate and the mother doesn’t know. But they’re estimating that she’s around 14.

Simaloi Solanka | English name - Valentine

Simaloi comes from a large family. Her mother is estimated to be in her late 20s to early 30s and has 8 kids. Simaloi had a KCPE score of 301. She loves school and want to study to be a doctor… specifically a surgeon if she can : ) Simaloi, like so many of these girls really wants to show her community what a woman with an education is capable of! She’s also one of our photography students and is excited to be able to show people a glimpse into the Maasai life one day.

Namnyak Mayiasek | English name - Vivian

Namnyak says she wants to work in hospitality. This was an unusual one for us. Maasai men are often hired at resort like places in Kenya as security guards (because no one messes with a Maasai Warrior) so she got the idea from a relative. She’s not yet seen a hotel but for now that is her dream. And it’s a really good one! There’s tons of hospitality work in Kenya. We love that she had a very original answer for this question. It’s hard for a lot of these girls to answer that one when they don’t yet know of all the jobs that exist in the world. It’s fun to see what happens after a few years of school and exposure to new ideas. Namnyak has 9 brothers and 2 sisters. Only one of these children is currently going to school.

Sakimpa Silantoi | English name - Vivian

Sakimpa in her own words says she is too young to wed and that the cut does not make a girl into a woman. She is so eager to avoid the cut and early marriage that she was able to talk her family into letting her repeat the 8th grade. Just to put it off a little longer. The way school works in these villages is, there’s little school houses out there that will accept the children up to grade 8 and the schooling is essentially free to the family. After that is high school but high school not only costs more but the high schools are far from these remote villages which means the girls would have to boarding students to attend. That is just beyond anything the family can afford. So their next step is to give the girl “the cut” to make her a woman and have her begin her new “adult” life as a wife. That’s their way of making her a contributing member to the community. Sakimpa loves science and wants to study medicine.