Turning young lives around

Life has a way of shaping someone. And one Kevin Ochieng, 35, is a true testimony of this.

His journey of life was once a roller coaster of despair, reckless living, suicidal thinking, but then came the healing and restoration that make up the miracle that he is today.

Kevin was born into a polygamous family, and his father abandoned them when he was only eight years old.

“My mum was the second wife, and after Dad left us, it was hard for her to raise us — five siblings — single-handedly. But she didn’t lose hope; she struggled to offer us the best,” says Kevin.

Despite this, he admits that there are times when he really needed a father figure, not only to provide for his needs, but to offer him guidance when he lost his way.

At the tender age of 12, Kevin suffered one of the worst forms of brutality that could happen to a child; he was molested by a man, a stranger. And that marked the beginning of his tribulations.

“My life took a sudden twist. The incident left me traumatised, but I couldn’t confide in anyone, not even Mum. I felt humiliated,” he recalls.

To try to forget about the pain, he joined a group of boys in his Umoja neighbourhood in Nairobi who were into drugs.

“I was introduced to smoking. I began with cigarettes then went into drugs, sniffing glue and drinking chang’aa.”

As the years went by, Kevin became addicted to drugs and his academic performance took a nosedive. He began engaging in criminal activities as a way of getting money to fund his addiction.

He admits that he even sat his Form Four exams while on a drug high, and scored a dismal D-minus.

In 1998, he and a friend planned a robbery in a city estate. At the last minute, his friend pulled out, but Kevin would not be deterred.

Unfortunately, he was caught by members of the public, who wanted to stone him to death.

He remembers: “They were intent on mob justice, but fortunately, God delivered me. The man that I had robbed was in the midst of the crowd. They asked him what he felt should be done to me, and he asked them to let me go. I felt a sense of relief. Many of my friends had been lynched or arrested and my narrow escape was a miracle.”

Kevin picked up his sandals and began walking to his home in Kayole (the family had moved from Umoja). His brush with death was his turning point. As he walked, he had a deep conviction that he needed to change.

“I felt God had saved me for a purpose. I didn’t change immediately, but the feeling that I needed to live differently lingered, and a voice kept speaking to me.”

In 2000, Kevin says he contemplated committing suicide.

“I was struggling a lot with my thoughts. Deep inside, I was hurting, but nobody knew about it. I started to sell valuables from the family home and nobody wanted to associate with me. At some point, my mother kicked me out, but when I made the resolve to change, she gladly took me back.”

His mother took him to her pastor, who prayed for Kevin and even helped him enrol in a Bible school in Bungoma.

In 2000, the idea of helping young people struck his mind, but he did not implement it immediately. In 2005, he went to college where he enrolled for a course in Community Development and later secured a job as a social worker in a non-governmental organisation.

In 2008, Kevin made the bold decision to resign from his job to follow his purpose of helping young people.  In 2010, he founded Goldmines Foundation, based in Lang’ata but with activities in Kibera, which seeks to inspire, encourage and motivate the youth. Kevin’s dream is to help young people realise their worth and maximise their potential.

“So far, more than 500 young people have benefited from our programmes,” he says.

With a desire to see holistic transformation in the marginalised youth, the organisation helps them to identify and nurture their talents in areas such as the arts, drama and football. Goldmines offers training and capacity building to help young people use their skills and talents to become self-reliant. The organisation sponsors a football team.

“We also provide mentorship through the ‘Change Factor’ programme. We visit high schools to talk to young people about realising their potential, and issues such as drug and substance abuse. We also hope to reach primary schools and colleges across the country. In addition, we have a leadership development programme geared towards helping young people become responsible citizens.”

Also in place is an entrepreneurs club through which the organisation provides loans and training to young people who want to venture into business as a way of reducing the rate of unemployment.

 “Several success stories have developed from this programme. For instance, one beneficiary is doing well in her second-hand clothes business, and two young men have formed a partnership and run a fruit juice business. Another runs an electronics shop. Their achievements encourage us to carry on,” says Kevin.

Despite the financial challenges and the negative perception from people who think the young people are just out to enrich themselves at the expense of others, Kevin says he is determined to make Goldmines even bigger and better.

His long-term goal is to set up an educational institution and a rehabilitation centre to help transform the youth into better persons.

Looking back, Kevin says he has found great fulfilment in what he does.

“It has been said success is what you achieve for yourself but significance is what you achieve for others. Seeing lives transform gives me great joy and fulfilment,” he says.