Karibu Nyumbani by Carole McAteer
It had been five years since I last visited AMPATH in Eldoret, Kenya. I had begun my post-graduate career at Indiana University School of Medicine in pediatric HIV Research, spending most of my time in Eldoret from 2014-2018. This time, I was wearing a different hat than my normal IU hat; I was visiting Eldoret as one of the Lilly Connecting Hearts Abroad Ambassadors to participate in a Women in Leadership Development Pilot Program for Kenyan women in leadership positions at AMPATH/MTRH/Moi University.
Through my time living and working at IU School of Medicine at AMPATH, I developed a great appreciation for the power of personal relationships with Kenyan colleagues that are foundational to establish sustainable, institutional partnerships. Working in pediatric HIV research, I had a Kenyan counterpart, Josephine Aluoch, and we had impenetrable working bond as we led a team of research assistants. This professional connection catalyzed a friendship rooted in mutual respect. Her partnership reinforced my sense of belonging, creating a home for me in Eldoret.
I was elated to discover that Josephine would be participating in this pilot project and we would once again get to work together. As a CHA ambassador, I set an intention to further enhance my existing partnerships with old Kenyan colleagues and to explore developing new partnerships with my new Lilly lens. My aim was not only to promote constructive interactions necessary for a successful program, but to help our Ambassadors come away with an improved understanding of life in Kenya and the resilient and uplifting spirit of the Kenyan people.
During the two-week CHA trip to Eldoret, Lilly Ambassadors and Kenyan colleagues were able to build relationships by attending leadership workshops and participating in breakout sessions. It was fascinating to observe connections between the Lilly team and the Kenyan team develop over our short two-week visit. CHA ambassadors and Kenyan colleagues would group together during teatime, topics ranging from professional development needs to personal family stories, often coinciding with fits of laughter. After the trip, several Ambassadors and Kenyan colleagues remain connected through WhatsApp connections. I am immensely grateful for the women in this pilot program for opening their hearts and minds, creating a safe space for relationships and partnerships to develop.
Ambassadors and our Kenyan colleagues also had the opportunity to visit several AMPATH community organizations that address healthcare and social needs of the Kenyan community in western Kenya. Many of these organizations are associated with our Kenyan colleagues in our leadership program, which further contextualized the importance of the work our Kenyan colleagues do to support their community. We met the courageous women of a GISHE group outside of Turbo, visited and toured Amani (women’s shelter) and GMARC (gender-based violence) groups and toured facilities at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital and the Chandaria Cancer and Chronic Diseases Centre including Sally Test Child Life Program, Nawiri Recovery and Skills Centre, Rafiki Adolescent Centre, and MTRH Modules 1-4.
One notable tour was the cancer infusion center at Chandaria, which transformed from the 2014 infusion tent with plastic seats situated behind MTRH to now being located within Chandaria Centre with comfortable seats for patients. I was humbled in appreciation for the partnership between Lilly and AMPATH for their efforts in continuing to provide care for patients with cancer. Seeing AMPATH’s work from the lens of a Lilly Ambassador fortified my appreciation for AMPATH’s legacy in contributing to a sustainable healthcare model rooted in leading with care, a foundation for Lilly’s core values. Leaving the CHA trip to Eldoret, I am charged to bring this leading with care into my day-to-day as a woman in leadership at Lilly and focus on continuing interactions with my new Kenyan colleagues. This trip reinforced the feeling that Eldoret has my heart and I will always consider it home.
Vignettes from my trip:
Driving on Airport Road toward IU House, seeing children with oversized backpacks and school uniforms sprinting along the roadside--the sights and sounds were familiar and comforting. Pulling into the IU House gates surrounded by jacaranda flowers perfectly groomed to welcome you to a tropical oasis, I greeted the askari at the front entrance, John, a lengthy and serious man with a deep voice and managed to nudge a smile out of him when I recalled his name. Dunya Karama, the IU House guru, stood outside as my car pulled in. I couldn’t open the car door fast enough to greet her with open arms, a big smile gleaming from behind her mask--a smile so familiar and so warming to me. We hugged one another and laughed together remarking on the amount of time that had passed since we had seen one another, expressing excitement to work together in this Women in Leadership program. Her smile and kindness overwhelmed me with a sense of belonging. I knew I was home.
I set my things down in my room at Hilltop and went down the hill to help Dunya greet the Lilly ambassadors. The ambassadors arrived, all with great big jet-lagged smiles on their faces and we distributed them to their rooms and showed them the grounds of IU House. The next day the ambassadors explored Kerio View in Iten and I broke away to spend the day with my former Kenyan counterpart, Josephine. Seeing Josephine in person after five years of virtual connections and Whatsapp check-ins through the pandemic, I was overcome by a feeling of peace, comfort and familiarity. Her eldest sons were now in boarding school in Maseno, so we hired a driver and spent the day together driving to their school to motivate their classes in preparation for their exams. The entire day, we shared stories together, recalling fun memories of our four years working together. Seeing her boys, I felt like a proud aunt, seeing that they both have outgrown me in height and are proper young men. This mini family reunion filled my heart with a serenity I didn’t know I was yearning for. I knew I was home.
During week 2 the Ambassadors wanted a way to meet with the Kenyan colleagues outside of our working sessions. One ambassador proposed we host a happy hour after our sessions at the local watering hole, KwaBupe’s in Elgon View. After a fruitful day of leadership sessions, we headed together to the banda at the restaurant. Kenyans and ambassadors greeted one another with hugs and spent over two hours sharing stories and sharing a meal with one another. I walked out of the banda to take a call and started to walk back, only to see the group engaging in small group conversations, passing food to one another to share, clinking glasses together. The feeling I had was of overwhelming appreciation for the two groups coming together and Kenyans creating a space of trust and welcoming environment to enable ambassadors to feel at home in this new context and space. I knew I was home.
Week one was full of interesting story telling sessions and leadership workshops centered on the experiences of creating personal brands. It was Thursday, the night of our cultural dinner at IU House. The ambassadors and Kenyans were seated together at tables under a tent, preparing to share dinner and experience a cultural dance together. At my table, I had the pleasure of sitting next to my new Kenyan colleagues Sheilah, Siza, and Lucie and my old friend Josephine. We shared drinks and appetizers together, engaging in talks of our families and sharing my fond memories of Kenya with them. When the cultural dancers came by, Sheilah, Siza and Lucy lit up with excitement, jumping out of their seats, joining in on their own versions of the dances. The evening was full of joy and laughter, catalyzing the remainder of the CHA trip experience of ambassadors and Kenyan colleagues working together. I knew we were going to ‘Walk Together and Walk Far’. I knew I was home.