Back in Kenya: In mid-February, our first chairperson, Verena Donislreiter, spent a few days with our local partners at YISOG.
Every minute on site was spent reviewing the current state of the projects, discussing challenges and planning the next steps of our collaboration with the YISOG team, led by Father Tito.
“These in-person meetings greatly strengthen our partnership. I was on a business trip to Ethiopia and didn’t want to miss the chance to combine it with a short visit to Kenya,” Verena shared. In her professional life, she also works in development cooperation and brings this valuable perspective to Ambatana’s work.
At present, 37 children live in the Rescue Centre in Kenya, the organisation’s main project. During school holidays, the number is usually even higher. The children are mainly girls who have been protected from forced marriage, as well as children who have lost one or both parents and have no one else to care for them.
And time and again, new children arrive at the door. While Verena was on site in Kenya, for example, a 14-year-old boy came with his three younger siblings (aged 7, 3 and 1½). Their father had passed away, and their mother was rarely at home, trying to get by on casual labour. There are no other relatives. Sometimes neighbours share food when they can. The boy takes care of his siblings – he hardly goes to school anymore.
With nowhere else to turn, they came to the Rescue Centre. There, they received a meal, and YISOG is now working with the local village chief to assess the family’s situation and determine how best to support them. No one is ever simply turned away.
Stories like these show just how urgently places such as the Rescue Centre are needed – as safe havens and points of contact, especially where no social safety net exists.
This work is made possible through donations, memberships and sponsorships. Sponsorships start at €30 per month, securing a child’s place in the Rescue Centre and enabling them to attend school.
Verena will share more about her visit to Kenya at the upcoming Ambatana annual meeting, which will take place on Friday, 27 March 2026, at 7 p.m. at the Tüssling Sportheim.
All supporters and anyone interested are warmly invited – we look forward to seeing many of you there!