Kate Cummings (Kenya)


Kate Cummings

Kate Cummings (Vital Voices in Kenya): Kate was born in the North Carolina mountains, and received her BFA in photography at Sewanee (The University of the South) in 2004. Kate co-founded a meditation group at the Hampshire County Jail in North Carolina where she led meditation sessions with inmates each week. Upon graduation, Kate was awarded the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship. This allowed her to spend a year photographing in India, Vietnam, Thailand, New Zealand, and France. During this year, she photographed Zen Master and international peacemaker Thich Nhat Hanh's first return to Vietnam since his exile 39 years before. Her images were published internationally. She returned to Vietnam in 2007 with Nhat Hanh and his International Peace Delegation to photograph healing ceremonies. Kate moved to western Massachusetts and began teaching photography to at-risk girls. At the time of her fellowship, Kate was studying for her master’s degree at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in Boston. After her fellowship, Kate wrote: “Best experience? This is an impossible question! I think, that by spending so much time with Kenyans in their homes and families and in the community setting… I gained a deep understanding of their successes and their significant challenges...I look at myself now as having the potential to be as strong and caring as the amazing women I met in Kenya.”



06 Sep

Gentle locomotive

Neipamei Ngodia is the only girl in her family of 18 children and three mothers

Posted By Admin

Posted Sep 06, 2009

0
05 Sep

The Gift of an Unwritten Future

In this interview, Kakenya Ntaiya talks about the freedom she has found in education.  Tracing

Posted By Admin

Posted Sep 05, 2009

1
29 Aug

In Uniform

We left Eldoret at six in the morning, piling boxes of shoes, shirts, socks, and

Posted By Admin

Posted Aug 29, 2009

2
19 Aug

Trouble in Umoja

I’m interrupting our story of Kakenya’s school and the people of Enoosaen to update you

Posted By Admin

Posted Aug 19, 2009

0
12 Aug

Uniform Euphoria

We have made it.  This is a milestone.  We have matching, freshly starched uniforms for

Posted By Admin

Posted Aug 12, 2009

87
12 Aug

Education as Inheritance

As the parents entered the gate to Kakenya’s school, I noticed the majority of them

Posted By Admin

Posted Aug 12, 2009

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12 Aug

Parents’ Day

We arrived at the school for Parents Day, and found the girls  in their temporary

Posted By Admin

Posted Aug 12, 2009

0
07 Aug

Life on the farm and in the family

Life at Kakenya’s homestead has been as rich and full of learning as our time

Posted By Admin

Posted Aug 07, 2009

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07 Aug

Meeting with the MP

Just after arriving in Enoosaen, we visited Mr. Gideon Konchella, the Member of Parliament (MP)

Posted By Admin

Posted Aug 07, 2009

0
05 Aug

This can’t happen again, and it will

Kakenya got off the phone, shaking her head.  “Some bad news today.”  She stood up,

Posted By Admin

Posted Aug 05, 2009

1
05 Aug

Please, she is not the moon

Walking into town with Kakenya is an event.  Old women stop her every ten feet,

Posted By Admin

Posted Aug 05, 2009

0
04 Aug

Kakenya’s Center for Excellence

“All I want to do is see my girls.  Are we going to make it? 

Posted By Admin

Posted Aug 04, 2009

0
31 Jul

Solomon

At first, I took Solomon Kariuki for what he said he was – shy.  In

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 31, 2009

0
31 Jul

Mentoring in Nakuru

Now I’ve returned to where we should be: nearly in the present.  We visited Nakuru

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 31, 2009

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31 Jul

Charles Wakibia is here (for you)

As soon as we got out of the matatu and began walking towards Lelmolok camp,

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 31, 2009

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31 Jul

The Youth at Lelmolok

After speaking to the men and women of Lelmolok, we were eager to hear from

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 31, 2009

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31 Jul

The Damage Done

When we sat down with the men of Lelmolok Camp, we learned more about the

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 31, 2009

1
31 Jul

What the Women Say

When we arrived at Lelmolok IDP Camp, the women and men were assembled, waiting for

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 31, 2009

0
24 Jul

Beatrice’s Story

I am disturbing the chronology of events in favor of telling you a little more

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 24, 2009

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24 Jul

The Forgotten People

Lelmolok Center is surrounded by cornfields and the distant, rolling hills of Kenya’s western highlands. 

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 24, 2009

1
23 Jul

Most importantly, the children

I’d only be telling my side of the story if I didn’t introduce you to

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Posted Jul 23, 2009

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23 Jul

The Money-drug

We met Felistus at the orphanage that Saturday, just after the four-hour mass and right

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 23, 2009

3
23 Jul

Vital Voices Global Advisor

After staying with Abby Onencan until July 10th, Luna and I left for Nakuru and

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 23, 2009

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23 Jul

Abby Onencan, and the immeasurables of the heart

It is apparent when first meeting Abby Onencan that she is more than the sum

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 23, 2009

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23 Jul

Finally, Youth Matter

Ripe for Harvest is, in founder Abby Onencan’s own words, a non-profit organization dedicated to

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 23, 2009

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23 Jul

Envisioning the Light at the End of the Plan

I should say first that the participants of the first workshop were not all councilors

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 23, 2009

1
23 Jul

Prayer and Planning: Meet Kenya’s Local Government

I returned from Umoja and settled back into Nairobi, having just enough days in the

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 23, 2009

1
20 Jul

Rose

I may have a few extra entries regarding Umoja that could pop up in my

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 20, 2009

63
19 Jul

Leaving Umoja

Written June 21st, 2009: This morning I am leaving Umoja.  The sun is barely above

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 19, 2009

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19 Jul

Refusing Tradition

Umoja Uaso breaks the rules in many ways – they do not rely on men,

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 19, 2009

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03 Jul

Getting to know Umoja

Although I’ve told the stories of Umoja, I haven’t gone into detail about individual women

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 03, 2009

7
02 Jul

The (imagined) space between us

The Magic Five – the women who composed my timed and measured team of jewelry

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 02, 2009

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02 Jul

The System’s Weight

My tasks at Umoja sound simple.  Rebecca is going to Sante Fe in July to

Posted By Admin

Posted Jul 02, 2009

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24 Jun

Injustice’s Secret: Become the Dominant Pattern

It took me half of the first day to realize it, but then everywhere I

Posted By Admin

Posted Jun 24, 2009

4
22 Jun

Samburu Beauty: Welcome to Umoja

When Rebecca first stepped out of the cab, I thought, I didn’t know people could

Posted By Admin

Posted Jun 22, 2009

7
22 Jun

Back in town! But first, a belated video

Just returned from the dusty wilds of northern Kenya, I’m now back to electricity, palatable

Posted By Admin

Posted Jun 22, 2009

244
09 Jun

Nairobi: a balancing act with patience, papayas and live wires

One glance at this picture, and you know Kenya is full of miracles.  In particular,

Posted By Admin

Posted Jun 09, 2009

268
27 May

Before departing or arriving

I have just returned from India two days ago after a whirlwind pilgrimage to the

Posted By Admin

Posted May 27, 2009

2

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