Northern Virginia Group, STARS Children Africa, Educates and Mentors High School Orphans in Kenya, Africa

Herndon Virginia - A non-profit in Northern Virginia, STARS Children Africa, is investing in Kenya in high school orphans with local leaders who mentor their character development.

Ken Prussner, a Cornell University graduate international educator with 30 years of international experience is President of STARS Children Africa. He states, "High school education is key to opportunity for orphans in Africa. But character formation with education develops orphans as leaders and to overcome prior broken promises to them."

On visits to Kenya, he is finding good results of high school orphans, called STARS. He adds, "The Students Transforming Africa and Renewing its Society' receive four-years of high school. Local partners manage school fees and teach life skills and model integrity. A good high school costs only $1.50 a day. However, this cost is too high for an average Kenyan earning less than $1.00 a day, and insurmountable for orphans."

One of the STARS is Faith Kibuye an A- student in her junior year. "I am a girl aged 15 in Form 3 at Nyakach Girls High School. My ambition is to become a pilot. I was born in a family of five with loving parents. In 2003, I was in Primary 6 when I became an orphan. I had great dreams, but death killed every flicker of hope in my soul. I was able to finish primary school and began high school, but could not pay the fees. I tried again, at Nyakach, and shyly sought out the principal. God does not forget His people. The principal found my mentors, Pastor Joshua and his wife Abigael, and STARS Children Africa. I now have renewed dreams. I also learned an important lesson about 'fear;' it is simply 'false evidence appearing real.' Thank you for helping me."

United Nation studies find that orphans in Africa do not attend primary school as often as their peers do. In high school, the disparity is even greater. Orphans are more often forced into child labor or prostitution and contracting HIV/AIDS. Attracting support through the media is easier for younger orphans than for high school age orphans.

STARS Children Africa "30 by 3" fund raising campaign seeks to raise $30,000 for the STARS, like Faith, to return to their schools in January 2009. Learn more at www.starschildrenafrica.org.