In our 'My Work' series, we get to know the people who make Meridian Trust what it is, hearing from colleagues across our schools and central team about their roles, and the work they're doing. This time, we hear from Cathryn Lawson at Stratton School, with a diary of a school trip to Kenya.
Team Kijani: our Kenyan adventure
When the opportunity arose to join Stratton’s Camps International expedition to Kenya, I knew I wanted to be part of Team Kenya. My Grandma was brought up in Nakuru, and I had always wanted to see the country she had called home. The opportunity to finally visit Kenya, while sharing such an incredible experience with our students, was simply too good to miss.
We were given the name Team Kijani, meaning Green Team, by Camps International, and our adventure began!
We met the students at Stratton at 4am, excited, nervous and, in some cases, extremely tired. After excited farewells to our families, we headed to Gatwick for our nine-hour flight to Nairobi. After all the planning, preparation and fundraising, Team Kijani was finally on its way.
The Wildlife Foundation
We arrived in Nairobi in the early hours of the morning and transferred to our first camp at The Wildlife Foundation.
We met a lovely local family whose cattle were threatened by lions and helped to build a protective enclosure, called a boma, to keep their livestock safe. It was hard physical work, but incredibly rewarding, and there was something very special about knowing that the work we were doing had a genuine purpose.
The spectacular surroundings quickly reminded us we were very far from home. Simply walking out of camp could turn into a wildlife encounter. We came across zebras and giraffes and even saw vultures feeding on their prey. It was quite an introduction to Kenya!
Camp Muhaka
Another early start followed as we raced through some intense security to catch the train across the country to Mombasa and our next destination, Camp Muhaka.
Here we had our first experience of the local markets, where the team quickly began honing their haggling skills!
Our major project at Muhaka was helping to build “Mamma’s House”. Local elders select a woman in their community who is in need of a home in which to support her children, and we were privileged to become part of the building process.
We learnt different techniques used to make the structure strong and how to plaster the walls. Getting involved in every stage gave us a real appreciation of the skill, effort and physical work involved.
We spent time with local children, painting a classroom at the school and, of course, taking part in a football match against the locals.
A day at a beach club in Diani was the perfect end to our time at Muhaka. It also happened to be my birthday, so there are definitely worse ways to celebrate!
SCUBA Camp and REEFOLUTION
From Muhaka we travelled to Camp Firefly, or, as we knew it, SCUBA camp.
There was little time to settle in as we were thrown straight into swim tests. SCUBA diving proved incredibly challenging, but the team rose to the occasion and passed with flying colours.
I, meanwhile, decided that SCUBA diving was definitely not for me! I joined the REEFOLUTION project with another student, exploring the mangroves on Wasini Island and helping to lower coral nurseries onto the seabed. These nurseries support the regeneration of the coral reef and help create an environment in which marine wildlife can thrive.
It wasn’t necessarily the experience I had expected to have when we arrived at SCUBA camp, but learning when to challenge yourself and when to take a different path became part of the adventure too.
The Team Kijani Olympics
We returned to Diani for a glorious few days of beach clean-ups and learning about turtles.
It was time for perhaps one of our most fiercely contested contributions to international sport: the inaugural Team Kijani Olympics!
Events included sand sculpture, flip-flop flinging and wheelbarrow races, alongside various land and water-based challenges. There was plenty of laughter and possibly just a little competitive spirit!
We had such a fantastic time in Diani that we were genuinely sad to leave. However, our final camp awaited us: Tsavo.
Saving the best until last
Built into the Marungu Hills, Camp Tsavo was breathtaking from the outset. With its fine red sand, steep climb to the dining area and its very own “Pride Rock”, it quickly became a favourite.
Here, we met a family with eight children who needed a new home. By this point we considered ourselves building experts, and Team Kijani made great progress, plastering the walls and laying the floor.
Then came one of the experiences we had all been waiting for: safari. It was incredible.
We saw elephants, zebras, giraffes, lions and water buffalo among many other animals, and watched the sun set from a rock in Tsavo National Park.
We learnt to make paper from elephant dung with the Tsavo Women’s Group and visited a Maasai camp, where we had the privilege of learning about their culture and traditions.
Memories for life
Our time in Tsavo, and our Kenyan adventure, ended in the most perfect way.
A campfire is a final-night tradition and ours included singing, laughter and a comedy night. There were scenes that I know will stay with all of us forever.
Looking back, Kenya challenged me both physically and mentally. I found myself pushed far outside my comfort zone on more than one occasion. I climbed mountains, helped build houses, explored mangroves, worked on conservation projects, encountered extraordinary wildlife and experienced communities and cultures completely different from my own.
Most importantly, I got to experience all this surrounded by an amazing team of students and staff.
I went to Kenya because of a personal connection to my Grandma and a desire to see a country that had been part of her story. I came home with Kenya now firmly part of my own story too.
I’d do it all again in a heartbeat. We’re already planning the next trip to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands.
