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LET ME LIVE CONCERT: LENDING A HELPING HAND

“Of all the things you might lose in life, never lose HOPE”

Hope is the perhaps the only thing that keeps us going during the toughest of times. Hope gives us reason for waking up each day. The only way someone can drive from Nairobi to Mombasa at night in a car whose headlights light up only a distance of 200m is by hoping that after the 200m, there will be another 200m and so on till they get to the coast. People who have lost hope in life look like zombies, like the walking dead. Loosing hope is worse than losing anything else because it leaves you with no reason to live. The main reason we hope is because for most times its natural. The sun will raise, darkness will fall, the rains will come and so on. The fact that we are breathing now, even if we will die tomorrow we always have reason for our hope. We always have it in our subconscious that things will be ok. The fact that you are alive now means that you have the potential to become anything you wish for in life, you can become a doctor, an engineer, the best athlete ever and a host of many other things. Yeah, hope has the power to push the smallest of dreams to magnificent realities. Before we move on, watch the video below

At 16 years, most form twos are thinking about how many letters they will get from those chics from the sister school. Talking about who has the most purple supras, the best designed tshits and so on, the more focused ones will be thinking about how they will become doctors, pilots, make a lot of money and tour the world. They will be looking at the future with the optimism of a newborn, they will looking forward to a future that promises all the good things in life, a future that is in their hands, where they have the perfect chance to craft the future they want. This is a time when the sky is surely the limit.

But for one boy, Caleb Ngugi Kipkan, the story is different. Caleb’s wish is to live to be what God wanted him to be. Caleb is fighting to live for one more day as a normal kid. While the rest of us almost have the belief that we shall see tomorrow, caleb does not have that luxury. Caleb is suffering from Acute Leukemia, he is currently going through chemotherapy but he needs more than that to enjoy life like the rest of us are doing. Most of the times when we see such features on TV we usually expect a big corporate like Nakumatt or Equity bank and the like to come with a big cheque to help out. This is a very good thing these corporates do, but what if God had a different plan. What if he wanted you had me to be the corporates of the moment, its not a far fetched dream. Each and every person can help out in their own unique way. Caleb needs 5.5million shillings to go for a bone marrow transplant in South Africa and its with this in mind that a group of young Kenyans came together to raise funds for Caleb at an event dubbed “LET ME LIVE”.

The idea that the young Kenyans can come together to support another young Kenyan is a big step in the right direction. I got a chance to sit with some of them and get to know what they hoped to achieve through this initiative. Find them on twitter @teamcaleb16

Kifalme:You guys have just come from getrudes hospital, how is Caleb doing?

TeamCaleb16: Caleb seems to be doing well, yes he is weak but at least he is undergoing treatment. Right now he is undergoing chemotherapy though he needed more blood to be able to undergo this. Enough people have come and donated blood so now he is in a position to proceed with chemotherapy.

Kifalme: How did you guys come to know Caleb?

TeamCaleb16: we saw the feature on Citizen Tv and because we are also part of wapidamu.org that helps in getting blood donors to victims in need. We came in to help.

Kifalme: What do you hope to achieve by this event?

TeamCaleb16: We are hoping to do our best and help Caleb get treatment. We might not be in a position to raise everything but we want to do our best. We wanted to do it with Adawnage only but when we raised the issue with other people they were willing to support and that how we ended up with this event.

Kifalme: Who are the people helping in organizing the event?

TeamCaleb16: here the members of Teamcaleb16 : Faith Bwibo a.k.a @bwibz , Ben Ngetha, Jacktone otieno a.k.a @jacktheinxusa, Brian Omondi a.k.a @itsBrayo, Jackson Kipkan, Leah Midamba @Leahmidamba and Noah Otiende

Kifalme: How can people help, especially those who might not have money to contribute.?

TeamCaleb16: People can help in many ways, actually for now he can can do with blood type O+ so anyone who get a chance, kindly head to Getrudes Muthaiga

Kifalme: What do you guys want to achieve?

TeamCaleb16: We just hope Caleb will get to live long and enjoy life. go back to school. We would also want him to live without pain, that’s why we are doing this

THE EVENT

Last Sunday, amid a heavy downpour, many young Kenyans braved the rain to gather at NPC Woodley for the ‘Let me Live concert’. The rain messed up the programme a bit so the event had to start a bit late but all that could not deter the young Kenyans ready to praise God and help raise money for a worthy cause.

Starting with a word of prayer, the MC for the day started us off with an energetic dance routine. Maybe it was in a way to get people warm given that the weather outside was still not letting up. Many artists who had attended gave a good account of themselves for the short time they got to make presentations. Webi performed his song “outside my window”. Next up was Zidi straight from their Kivuli2012 the previous day. Performing the song that defines them more than their name “Breathe” they set up a nice tempo for the next performance. The very talented Gerry wainaina had his time on stage and you could help but admire the talent in this guy. S.P.A.T were up next, the duo of saint P and Allan T had a lot of energy, doing some cool house music before getting into the all too familiar Hip Hop thing. A taste of something different was on next. In their element, saints dancers left no doubt as to why they are among the best in the country. Doing some serious acrobatic moves, the sequence was just a marvel.

At this point, the event slowed down so that people would get to see the clip about the Caleb. The silence across the church was prove that even after watching the clip over and over again, it was always going to be a sobering moment watching Caleb explain his condition. Next was the time for donations, as Rosie sang ‘Let me Live’ in the background, people got a chance to give their personal donations to the family, hug and encourage them. This was the whole essence as to why we went there and big up to the event organizer for allowing people to make extra donations to the family. Perfomances continued after this with Adawnage doing Safari and Uwezo before backing up carlisto in his performance. Other performance also followed as the event drew to a close.

Maybe only a sizeable group showed up but I truly believe each and every person who has played a part in this event did something special. Only God has the power to heal, but when we are in a position to help, then we should do it with zeal and clarity of motive.

Here at kifalme make this prayer for Caleb “ maybe the lord who started a good work in you, he who gave you the life you so much cherish, the family you love and the smile that easily camouflages the pain you are going through, keep you with his mighty hand. We stand with you at a time when we don’t understand your pain, your worries, your cries and even your joy. We know this is a tough time and perhaps tougher than what we have experienced or we will ever experience. We feel your pain and even though we might never understand it, we will always take strength in the fact that people did something that put a smile on your face however big or small. We stand on the promise that by his stripes we are healed and proclaim healing upon your life. We pray for healing, for joy, for peace, for renewal and for restoration. Whatever the devil has stolen will be taken back by force, the force of faith, the force of prayer and the force of good deeds. May God bless each and every person who has supported this initiative either is organizing, giving, donating blood and praying. Because he lives, you will face tomorrow, Amen”.

Let me digress a bit, on 01/04/2012, we helped a friend of ours who was involved in an accident in 2006 that left her with a broken spinal cord get a vehicle to help her move around. Though the group of people who showed up were very few, they gave in excess of what she needed and seeing the joy on her face as she narrated how she had managed to get enough money to buy a car was a priceless moment. I might not have given a colossal sum of money, but I was sure my small donation helped someone get something that they had prayed a lot for. Its was God using us to bless someone in a way they never expected.

I pray that through Caleb you will get a chance to be used by God to put a smile in someone’s life. it’s a feeling that you can never replace with anything. just do it

Mpesa Line: Grace Kipkan on 0727 647 085

Bank Account: Caleb Ngugi Kipkan’s medical fund Co-op Bank University Way

Account number 01109172153500;