Kennedy Odede: Executive Director

Kennedy was born and raised in the Kibera Slum.  As the oldest of eight children, he assumed responsibility for his family at the age of ten.  In Kibera he became a certified HIV/AIDS counselor, worked at a community health center, and ran several slum-wide AIDS education campaigns.  In 2005 he foundedSHOFCO-Kenya, one of the largest organizations in Kibera and the only organization founded and run by residents of the slum itself.  Kennedy is currently a sophomore at Wesleyan University in Connecticut.  At Wesleyan he is the Campus Organizing intern as well as the founder of the student group Wesleyan Friends of Africa.  He recently completed a prestigious human rights fellowship in France with Humanity in Action.  He is twenty-five-years-old, speaks five languages, and brings his extensive experience in grass-roots organizing as well as passion for social justice and poverty alleviation to his work with Shining Hope for Communities. Email Kennedy at kennedy@hopetoshine.org

Jessica Posner: Managing Director

Jessica is a Colorado native and has been involved with professional theatre for ten years as an actor and director.  In the past several years her interests have shifted to theatre as a tool of social change and activisim.  She has appeared on panels around the world, including at the Humana Festival where she spoke about her involvement with the largest nationwide theatre festival in U.S. history, Suzan Lori Parks’ 365 Plays/365 Days.  She has lived in Kenya for eight months working with SHOFCO-Kenya.  In the fall of 2007 she created and directed a play with young people in Kibera about their lives and struggles, living inside of the slum itself.  During the summer of 2008 she directed and created a play with young people from different ethnic groups to work through the division resulting from Kenya’s 2007 post-election violence.  Jessica graduated phi beta kappa from Wesleyan University in May 2009 with honors in African-American studies.  She is twenty-three-years-old, fluent in Swahili, and brings her passion for grassroots community initiatives to her work with Shining Hope for Communities.  Email Jessica at jessica@hopetoshine.org

Inslee Coddington: General Manager

(information coming soon). Email Inslee@hopetoshine.org

Ari Tolman: Grants and Communications Director

Information coming soon.  Email Ari@hopetoshine.org

Leah Lucid: Development Director

Information coming soon. Email Leah@hopetoshine.org

George Okewa: Administrator

George Okewa in thirty-years-old.  He was born in Kibera and has lived there his entire life.  In Kibera George is a well-known and respected community organizer and activist.  After graduating from high school George continued to educate himself, attending seminars in community health and development.  He has organized around issues of labor injustice, unemployment, and the government’s denial of services to the people of Kibera. In 2005 George worked with Kennedy Odede to help start SHOFCO-Kenya, the first community organization founded and run by the people of Kibera.  George has since led slum-wide sanitation and anti-violence campaigns.  In 2006 George founded Kibera’s own grass-roots security organization to protect and serve residents, as the police do not work inside the slum.  George’s work has received widespread acclaim, even attracting the attention of Prime Minister Raila Odinga himself.  George believes that the uplift of women is central to changing Kenyan society and the lives of all people in Kibera.  He also believes that for such change to take place men and women must work together for equality, education, and justice.  Email George at george@hopetoshine.org

Madahana Mable: Head Teacher

Madahana has lived in Kibera her entire life.  She is the youngest in a family of nine, and has eight older brothers.  As a child Madahana used to devour storybooks and magazines and would cry as she watched her older brothers go to school.  Eventually her father agreed to send her to school, which is very rare for girls in Kibera.  Madahana studied hard and after graduating from high school worked for several years to save money to pursue her dream of becoming a teacher.  She first got her certificate in early childhood education and development and then went on to get an advanced diploma in early childhood education and development from the University of Nairobi.  She has taught at schools in Nairobi for the past ten years, however was often frustrated by the poor management and teacher-centered model of education.  While she taught Madahana continued her own education, attending seminars in community development and women’s empowerment.  In addition to teaching she has also helped to start several community groups that use microfinance programs to improve the lives of women.  Madahana believes strongly in a child-centered, experimental approach to education that focuses on play and creativity.  Because of her own experiences of abuse as a woman in Kibera she is especially passionate about teaching the slum’s girls.  She believes that, “when you educate a girl, you educate the whole world.”  Email Madahana at madahana@hopetoshine.org