Wavers & Beggars Dr. Warren Bruhl

Working as volunteers with Dreamweaver International, two dynamic mother-daughter teams speak with Dr. Bruhl about their experience working in Kenya.  Karen Fusco and her daughter, Nicole along with Kylee McDonald and her daughter, Haylee provided education, healthcare, and empowerment to thousands of people while visiting.  They speak about their experiences working in the slum of Mathare, the bush of Kenya, and in the schools.  They encourage anyone who is thinking about visiting to come and serve and help create a change in this part of the world.  

Christine Naserian Njeri is a Maasai woman with a passion to end the brutal and senseless ritual of FGM (Female Genital Mutilation) in Africa.  Christine is a graduate of St. Paul University in Nairobi, Kenya and serves as a volunteer leader with the Teule Orphanage in Latoikitok, Kenya.  Christine travels extensively throughout Kenya, speaking to male and female leaders of tribal communities to educate them about the need to end the dangerous practice of FGM.  Through common sense educational programming and tireless passion to make a change, Christine hopes to one day see this out-dated practice end.  

Joseph Nkaapa - Raising the Standards, Finding Excellence in Children in Kenya
Joseph Nkaapa is the director for the Kimana School of Leadership and Professional Studies in Kenya, East Africa. Joseph began working with the Kimana School after the co-founder of the school, Mrs. Sandy Taylor (1944-2016), urged him to come and take a class at the school and use his life for God's glory and to make a difference. As Nkaapa discusses with Dr. Bruhl, he was standing under a tree and Mrs. Taylor challenged him, encouraging him that though his present circumstances where humble, God had a much bigger plan for his life. Now Joseph Nkaapa operates the fastest growing primary school in Kenya on the Kimana Campus. Opening in January 2016, Nkaapa leads a team of educators, campus staff, and other community personnel, making a dramatic difference in social challenges that exist in his community. Poverty, drought, corruption, income inequality, gender bias, poor sanitation, starvation, and many issues are requiring significan leadership and action in East Africa. Nkaapa believes the Kimana School of Leadership and the Kimana Christian Academy (Primary School) are already having a significant impact on changing behavior and opportunity in East Africa. Nkaapa sees his role as a leader to serve, raise standards, and strive for excellence as he learned from his mentor, Mrs. Sandy Taylor. Though Mrs. Taylor departed in 2016 to go home with the Lord, her work and love continues one through Nkaapa and others who work at the Kimana Campus.
NOTE FROM DR. BRUHL: I am very proud of Joseph and all he has accomplished and continues to in his community. Though I am frequent visitor to Kimana and serve as a leader, I can only accept a small portion of the true credit that is deserved for the success of this institution and the role it has on changing lives in East Africa. It is my hope one day thousands of visitors will come and see all that has been accomplished and will marvel and come to support and make a difference as Ken and Sandy Taylor, Joseph Nkaapa, and others realized could be accompished. This interview was an honor to conduct with my brother Joseph Nkaapa. I am humbled by him and all he does for others.  

Gerry Kennan - Helping Haitian Children to Thrive, Grow, & Suceed in Life
Gerry wa appointed to the Illinois Pollution Control Board by Governor Bruce Rauner in 2015 and served as chairman for two years. He has many years of experience as a regulator, entrepreneur, consultant, and financier in the electric, natural gas, and telecommunications industries. Mr. Keenan is a prior partner in Price WaterHouseCoopers Consulting LLP and now devotes the majority of his time to serving under served populations, mostly in Haiti. 
Working in Sasye, Haiti since 2002, he has seen tremendous progress and challenging disappointments befall the people of the region he serves in. Still, he is encouraged and offers sound advice to anyone interested in helping improve the economy and lives of people in Haiti.
Dr. Bruhl's notes - I have followed and worked with Gerry for several years and he to put it simply, "He gets it! He understands how this thing called charity works and what you have to do to create sustainable change in places where people struggle with so little resources. I consider him one of the most admirable men in charity work I know and was honored to do this interview."
 

Pete Caliendo - Baseball is Life (A Journey to Spread Hope with Sport)
Peter Caliendo’s baseball experience covers a wide range of geography and responsibilities. Newly appointed Technical Commissioner for the 2009 World Baseball Cub to be held in Europe September of 09. 2008 was on the jury of appeal for baseball in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. He’s been a head coach and assistant coach, instructor and clinician, scout and evaluator, author and lecturer, President and General Manager. President of Caliendo Sports International and Pitch and Hit Club of Chicago. On the Board of the International Sports group a non for profit promoting coaches education worldwide.
Technical Commissioner for the International Baseball Federation (IBAF), governing baseball worldwide. Serves on the IBAF Steering Committee. Pete has served twice in Taiwan for the World Games, in Holland for the World Games, in Rio DeJaneiro Brazil for the Pan Am games and just recently in Beijing, China for the Pre Test Olympic games.
He is also the President of the Pitch and Hit Club of Chicago, a professional baseball club which honors individuals in professional baseball and raises money to promote our national pastime.
2011 was given the American Baseball Coaches Association Meritorius Award, the Illinois High School Man of the Year and the Pitch and Hit Club Paul “Dizzy” Trout Ambassador Award.
Appointed to the Greater Woodfield Sports Council.
Former President of the Calgary professional baseball franchise in the Northern League.
He’s been in charge of Belgium’s National Team and responsible for the selection, training and development of U.S. entries in the Pan American Youth Championships, guiding those teams to gold medals in 1992, 1993 and 1996. In 1999, Pete was an assistant coach on the USA team in the International Cup in Australia.
Pete Caliendo has lead clinics for Major League Baseball International, USA Baseball and many other baseball organizations in various Latin American and European countries, and throughout the United States. Pete has organized and coached a team from Japan to compete against the White Sox minor league teams at the Chicago White Sox spring training program. He has also done some private coaching for Japanese players.
He has been an associate professional scout for the Texas Rangers and Toronto Blue Jays, responsible for identification and evaluation of potential Major League prospects.
Pete has lectured on baseball all over the United States, Canada, Europe and Latin America, has written articles for various publications and an international coaches book. Has a set of 5 baseball instructional DVD’s developed specifically for the voluteer coach to help them organize, teach and have fun throught thier practice and games.
Pete was formerly (1999-2001) the Director of Baseball Operations and first base coach for the Schaumburg Flyers, a very successful independent league team in the popular Northern League.
 
Dr. Bruhl's thoughts...
Loved interviewing Pete and following his passion to serve and spread hope with baseball, a sport I too love dearly. 

Kenton Lee - Shoes That Grow Founder Giving Every Child Hope by Protecting Their Feet
THE PROBLEM
Over 2 billion people suffer from soil-transmitted diseases and parasites. They live in areas that do not have adequate sanitation.  They struggle with proper hygiene.  They do not have the right clothing, resources, or healthcare.  And being sick = struggling.  Kids miss school, can’t help their families, suffer with pain. Many of these diseases and parasites get into the body because people don’t have shoes.
There are over 300 million children who do not have shoes.  And countless more with shoes that do not fit. Sometimes they receive donations of shoes, but these are kids.  Their feet grow.  And they outgrow donated shoes within a year.  Right back where they started. 
Kenton first came up with the idea for a shoe that grew while working at an orphanage in Kenya in 2007.  He noticed a girl in a little white dress who had holes cut into her shoes so her growing feet could push through the toe box of the shoes, giving her feet room and helping her to avoid painful feet. But Kenton thought something had to be done.  Why couldn't we come up with a shoe that would grow with a child? However, rejection from shoe manufacturers and others discouraged him initially. But his belief that children living without shoes was unacceptable and his perseverence eventually led to the development of the The Shoe That Grows (theshoethatgrows.org). 
I truly enjoyed this interview with Kenton and was inspired by his drive and passion for helping children around the world. This is a significant health problem and Kenton is on to something powerful here that could change health outcomes for millions of children.  As well, his organization is now manufacturing shoes in partner countries where the shoes are most needed, creating jobs, and opportunity for people to work their way out of poverty.