What can we do to help with the situation in Kenya?

In response to this question, Mary Kay Rehard, former FUM Field Staff to Friends Theological College in Kenya, has come up with an excellent list to help you and your Quaker meeting raise awareness of unfolding events in Kenya’s post-election crisis. Here are ways you can help Friends in Kenya to begin the process of reconciliation and peace-building:

• Remind Friends that over half the world's Quakers live in Kenya (about 150,000 or more), and most are very poor—the current situation is placing extra strain on families and institutions that were already struggling.
• Encourage Friends to visit the FUM home page: http://www.fum.org/ and the Kenya News blog regularly: http://www.updatesonkenya.blogspot.com/
• Make a link for these sites on your monthly meeting's website and ask the yearly meeting to do the same.
• Identify one member of the meeting as a "Kenya point person" to be especially attentive and share news with the meeting—and if you identify someone, ask them to contact Mary Kay Rehard (mary.k.rehard [at] gmail.com) so that she can send them email "alerts" when there is something urgent to report or to see on the blog.
• Contribute to AGLI (African Great Lakes Initiative) to meet the huge demand for AVP (Alternatives to Violence Project) workshops and peace skills trainings in Kenya by contributing online (http://aglionline.org/sub/donate.htm)
• Contribute to FUM's Kenya Relief Fund (http://www.fum.org/contributions/index.html), to assist the projects chafing under rising prices due to shortages of essentials (like Friends Theological College, Kaimosi and Lugulu hospitals, Samburu and Turkana missions), and to help the Yearly Meetings that are providing shelter and assistance to the needy refugees in their area.
• Announce that Kenyan Friends have conducted a Quaker Peace Conference in response to the post-election violence and ensuing humanitarian crisis. It's taking place this week in Kakamega, 24-27 January. Look for reports to come out of that timely meeting.
• Feature Quaker service and ministry projects in Kenya: make a posterboard or use a bulletin board to illustrate the work of Friends United Meeting (FUM), African Great Lakes Initiative (AGLI), and Right Sharing of World Resources (RSWR). This could be a project for the Peace and Social Concerns Committee, the First Day wchool children, or an intergenerational meeting activity.
• Write to FCNL (Friends Council on National Legislation) to encourage them to distribute some materials on how Quakers can give input to elected officials about the post-election crisis. Visit their website to comment (http://action.fcnl.org/contact) or contact them by post or phone: FCNL, 245 Second Street NE, Washington, DC 20002, 202-547-6000,  Toll-free: 800-630-1330
• Write editorials for the local newspapers and magazines you read, to raise awareness about Kenya's situation. Friends are currently compiling “Talking Points” on some topics that you will find soon on the Kenya News blog.
• Look for AFSC's (American Friends Service Committee) upcoming article about peacemaking efforts by Friends in Kenya and encourage them to continue to support those efforts. Visit their website to access their publications or comment. (http://www.afsc.org/news/newsletr.htm).
• Include a piece on Kenya in your upcoming newsletters—any material off the blog would be suitable, browse the right sidebar for concise chronology, country profiles, maps. Several reports by Kenyan Friends are featured there.
• Plan a fundraiser event (like a simple meal, a concert, a tag sale, or a silent auction, etc.) to raise funds for either AGLI and/or FUM.
• Invite a speaker: Patrick Nugent (patrick.j.nugent [at] gmail.com) and/or Friends Theological College faculty member Benson Khamasi (currently in Richmond, Indiana, an ESR student), a member of staff at Friends United Meeting (terrij [at] fum.org), AGLI supporters (dawn [at] aglionline.org) or Roland Kreager (rswr [at] rswr.org) of RSWR (Right Sharing of World Resources) to speak to your monthly, quarterly or yearly meeting about Kenya's post-election crisis and the ways the crisis may impact Friends ministry and Quaker service in Kenya.
• Pray for peace and unity to prevail in Kenya.

These ideas are available in electronic form at the following URL:
http://updatesonkenya.blogspot.com/2008/01/how-can-i-help-1232008.html