'Life changing' 100km trip helped provide clean water to Masai tribe

A joint group from St Paul’s church in Ealing and staff from Allsops Property Consultants have embarked on a life-changing trip to commission a clean water project in Masai Mara in Kenya.

With the support of Willetts Safaris and a number of Masai warriors, the mixed group comprising of members of St Paul’s and friends and family endeavoured to cycle from Nairobi to the Masai village of Olorte over some of the world’s toughest terrain.

The expedition lasted 10 days and took in a bike led safari which entailed cycling alongside some of Africa’s rarest wild animals.

“It was simply breathtaking and also a little bit terrifying to be cycling through the bush and be metres away from wild giraffes, gazelles jumping across the cycle track, and facing down charging herds of wildebeest.” said team member Darren Moore.

After completing the 100km mountain bike trek over unmade roads and across rivers the group arrived in the Masai Mara at Olorte. Olorte has been home to the RedTribe project that has been supported by St Paul’s church for over 10 years. The RedTribe project has been working hard to transform the lives of the thousands of Masai people by providing clean water taps, a school, farming support and healthcare.

In Olorte the team stayed at the volunteers camp and visited Masai homes. The Masai live in simple cramped mud huts housing up to ten family members and baby goats and cows. The team also met the young women of the villages who currently have to carry 30 kg of water on their heads and backs around 10 km every day.

“It is unbelievable how difficult it is for the Masai women to get basics like clean water. In fact, we tried to carry 20 litres of water to the village ourselves and struggled thanks to the temperature, the rough terrain and altitude of the villages,” said Ealing cyclist Tim Theobalds.

The trip culminated in the commissioning of a new pipeline in the village of Oloropil where the villagers experienced running water from a tap for the first time.

The overjoyed villagers held a water ceremony in both Masai and in English, where the villagers sang native songs and appointed the team honorary Masai warrior status.

Team leader Richard Bourchier goes on to explain. “This was such an incredible experience seeing the joy on the faces of the Masai villagers when they experienced clean water in their village. Clean water is the first step to addressing the health needs of this desperately poor region of the world. Freeing up time previously spent collecting water for their families will now enable the young girls to get an education which will greatly increase their prospects in the future.”

If you’d like to support future projects at the RedTribe than please have a look at their website

1 July 2019