LIKUYANI, Kenya–A U.S.-based Credit Union Development Educator (CUDE) has helped to build a three classroom addition to a school here. The project was led by Brent Rempe, AVP-credit union development with Oklahoma City, Okla.-based WEOKIE Credit Union, who crowdfunded more than $10,000 for the new buildings at Don Bosco Special School. More than 25 CUDEs from across the United States contributed financially to the project.
The project began in June 2017 when Rempe was one of 16 U.S. CUDEs who were guests of the African Confederation of Co-operative Savings and Credit Associations (ACCOSCA, the continental credit union trade association in Africa) for the first International DE Workshop in Lake Naivasha, Kenya.
After visiting Don Bosco Special School on this trip and seeing firsthand the need for additional resources and upgraded facilities, the National Credit Union Foundation, which manages the CUDE program, said Rempe felt called to action and confident he could mobilize the DE Network to achieve the fundraising goal.
Also joining on the project was Mount St. Mary (MSM) High School in Oklahoma City. In addition to managing donations, MSM started the Rehema Na Vitendo Project, Swahili for Mercy in Action, to establish a partnership with Don Bosco that extends beyond classroom walls, according to the NCUF.
“Mount St. Mary intends to bring a small group of rising and graduating seniors to Don Bosco in 2019 to enhance the global citizenship and intercultural competence of its graduates,” the Foundation said. “Groundwork for this will be laid when three MSM teachers serve as part of a team of six Oklahoma educators hosted by ACCOSCA to spend two weeks at Don Bosco this summer. The team will work with students on reading and mathematics, provide teachers professional development, and assist the school in setting strategic goals to fill identified gaps.”
The Don Bosco classroom addition is expected to be completed in time for a ribbon cutting during the MSM teacher visit this summer.