Queens Elizabeth

Our journey today took us out to new areas of Kenya that I had yet to experience, into the Maasai Land – a region of seemingly unending stretches of plains full of acacia trees and wildlife. We were on a journey to visit more savings groups in the region, where I came across two women by the name of “Elizabeth”.

Our first visit of the day was to the women of the “Biraka Miracle” group. “Biraka” in the Maasai language means “water trough”. Around 50 or 60 years ago, a large watering hole in the town attracted the area’s large population of thirsty zebras for a cool drink. The town was named “Biraka” and its main road, “Oloolotikosh” (meaning “zebra” in Maasai). The watering hole has since dried up, likely in large part due to seasonal droughts that often devastate this region, but the town retains its name. The zebras (from what I hear though unfortunately did not see) still reside nearby.


Here in Biraka, in the Biraka Miracle group, we met our first Elizabeth. She is a widow with 3 children, 2 who are grown, and a 12 year old. She earns an income by cooking French fries and selling them in the town. But her goal is to one day become a shopkeeper. She pointed for me across the road from where we stood to a grey building, and said that there are spaces for rent in the building. She wants to save enough money to rent a space there and with a loan from her group, start her own shop. I asked her what she would sell in her shop and she said things like sugar and milk. She says that though she has little now, she continues to wait on God. She knows God has a future, a better future, ahead for her. She tells me many times in our conversation to remember her when I return to the US. “Remember me: Elizabeth,” she says. I tell her I will and ask if I may take a picture of her so that I may remember and pray for her. She tells me to greet my people in the US. So, I send you greetings from Elizabeth of Biraka.

A long and dusty ride through the grasslands of Maasai Land takes us from rural Biraka to the lively city center of Kitengela. The town is bustling with activity, and the whole area is under transformation as development is popping up everywhere. We pull into the Kitengela Health Centre, a hospital offering free services, primarily focused on HIV testing and treatment. Here we meet the Joiners Association, and our 2nd Elizabeth of the day. When we first arrived today, the Joiners Association was a 14-member group, all of which are women. By the time we left today, it had become a group of 20 women, as six more women showed up at the end of the meeting asking permission to join. They had found out about the group’s activities, and were eager to participate themselves.



The Elizabeth of Joiners is a seamstress of table linen. She buys material and sews 14-piece table linen sets to sell in her community. The material she buys costs 900 Kenya Shillings (about $12), and from that she can make 3 sets of table linens for which she sells at 1,200 Shillings each – a total profit of 2,700 Shillings or $35 from one purchase of material! She’s thankful for the Joiners Association because it’s enabled her to access loans at the sizes she needs. Loans offered from nearby banks are too high, she tells me, and with this group she can save in amounts that are manageable for her. Elizabeth dreams of buying a piece of land one day and building a house of her own. She has two children, a 14 year old girl and 6 year old boy. She laughs with me when I tell her that a girl of 14 must be difficult to manage! She says it is okay though. She feeds her healthy food, and the girl is well-behaved. Elizabeth speaks with an air of confidence that shows me she is not fearful of the future, but instead looks towards it with hope.

Both of these women are Queens in my eyes. They are strong and full of conviction. They dream of a future that is beyond what they can see now. They have faith in God to provide for them, and they work hard each day to support themselves and their families. They are business women, mothers, women of God. They exhibit power worthy of a royal title, so, in my official blog scroll, I hereby dub them Queen Elizabeth of Biraka and Queen Elizabeth of Kitengela. Long may they reign, and continue to grow in God’s grace.

Wendy