Nelson teens experience ‘life-changing’ Kenya trip

Experiencing Kenya’s largest slum and magical safaris in the Masai Mara have been “life-changing” for four Nelson teenagers.

The 16 and 18-year-olds spent two weeks in Africa last month, thanks to a collaboration between the Celestielle Charitable Trust and Victory Boxing Nelson.

The trip was paid for by the trust, with the group also raising funds to support two organisations dedicated to education and well-being in Kenya - Tabasamu and Elimu.

The travellers, accompanied by Victory Boxing’s Paul Hampton and Shaz Nicholls, were able to present shoes and socks to 54 children in the Kibera slum after washing their feet.

They were also able to purchase desks, a printer and a laptop for Molibany School in the Masai Mara.

“We are very fortunate to have this partnership with the Celestielle Charitable Trust and to give our kids this opportunity to travel,” Paul says.

“It’s a huge undertaking to take someone else’s kids to Africa, so there’s a lot of trust. But we are very fortunate, it is just magical.”

Salote Kafoa, 18, says the opportunity was “life-changing” and her favourite moment was the interactions with the children in the Kibera slum.

“Especially washing the kids’ feet and just cuddling them… It makes me want to give more; it just shows that we’re all human living in this world.”

Melody Wells, 16, who attends Nelson College for Girls, says the experience has made her “very grateful for everything”.

“I didn’t really know what to expect… everything was a culture shock. The safari was really cool and getting to know the people and bonding with the workers there - they just have so much passion for their job.”

Ruben Ketel, 16, was humbled by the experience.

“I think my favourite moment was when we were walking down this one road in the slums and there were four young boys. They had a plastic bottle filled with sand and they were using that as a football, kicking it around,” the Garin College student says.

“The poverty difference compared to here… you don’t really see that on the news; it was really eye-opening and makes you very grateful for what we have back here.”

For Joseph Schwenke, 16, it was his first overseas trip.

“My mum put my name down and I didn’t really think much of it, because I didn’t know if I was going to get picked,” the Nelson College student says.

Hanging out with the kids in the Kibera slum and gifting them new shoes was a standout moment for him, he says.

Paul says he was blown away by how the four young people handled every part of the trip.

“For these guys to deal with what they saw in the slum was incredible. They showed incredible maturity. They stepped up to the challenge and we’re just super proud.”