As life expectancy in Kenya and around the world improves, the number of older people who find themselves alone and lonely in their later years has gone up. At the same time the number of young people has increased with more than sixty percent of the population being under thirty five years of age. Even as the numbers of the elderly rise, they are still a small percentage of the population and their needs for community are largely unmet.
I remember watching my parents and their urban peers retire and finding that after many years of giving their lives to work and living in the cities, they had neither connection in the village nor did they want to retire there because their children and grandchildren are resident in the city and will be so for a while to come.
Therein lay a major challenge. What would they do with their time since the very people they want to be close to are fully engaged Monday to Friday from morning to evening? I wondered if there were more elderly people with the same dilemma and how they were handling things.
When I first heard about Sholder Trust I was intrigued because it answered a real problem. Here was an organisation that answers the questions of the elders of connection and engagement from a personal perspective. SHOLDER Trust is a Christian Organisation founded in 2016 with the vision of, “Communities in which the older people are integrated, valued, heard, and supported spiritually, socially and economically.”
This is a community of elders seeking to provide solutions for themselves and their peers and build a supportive community. They also seek ways to connect and integrate with society from the youngest to the oldest in a way that appreciates the value of all parties. This includes an annual charity walk, seminars, hang outs and home visitation that provide a sense of hope and community to otherwise lonely elders.
Although this is a reasonably young organisation, it has already given value to the Kenyan landscape. In 2018 the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection partnered with SHOLDER to bring service and hope to the rapidly growing number of over 2 million older persons in Kenya and incorporated the annual Sholder Walk as part of the national celebrations of the International Day of the Older Persons that is celebrated on October 1st.
I have had the opportunity to work with the Sholder Trust team this year and understand their drive and intention to bring a sense of community to the urban elderly across the country and ensure that not only do they have a sense of hope but that they leave a good legacy by sharing the wisdom they have gained through their years of life and work for the subsequent generations.
It has been even more intriguing to realise that there is need to think about and plan for my later years so that I do not end up in the situation many have found themselves after spending their healthy and productive years providing for their children and grandchildren. I find myself mulling over what I need to do.
The 2019 Walk will take place on Saturday, 28th September 2019 at the Uhuru Gardens from 7.00 am. There is a choice of a 10Km or 5km walk starting at Uhuru Gardens, down Langata road, through Nairobi West or South C (depending on the distance selected), to Nyayo Stadium and back to Uhuru Gardens. Registration is Kshs 1000.00 and includes the cost of a t-shirt and all the funds raised will go to supplementing the efforts of the trust to meet and provide community and connections for the elderly.
I extend an invitation to all of us to support this event in one of several ways or even all of them:
- Register for and participate in the walk. Registration is simple and online at https://www.sholder.org/event-info/the-3rd-annual-sholder-trust-walk
- Follow and engage with Sholder Trust on Instagram (@sholdertrust), Facebook (@hopetotheold) or Twitter (@sholderorg)
- Like, share, engage and join the conversation
Here’s to an exciting opportunity for engagement and learning with the elders.
Kyesubire Greigg Class of 2000
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