HOW DID WE COME ABOUT?
This is our story as told by our co-founder Oneko Arika
Growing up in Nairobi Kenya in the 80s I was exposed to a very dynamic and colorful environment that had a lot of cultural music and sports (like boxing) which was always connected in some way to entertainment. Like so many other places in the world, there were also the "bad boys" in the same hood. Many friends I grew up with ended up dead or wasted away from drug abuse and crimes that they graduated into with time, mostly due to being idle and watching the behavior of the older kids. I once got out of a bus in my neighborhood to sounds of gunshots at my primary school. It was at that moment that I knew I had to do something to change the sound. My idea was to replace the noises of violence with the sound of drums. Then I saw an article in a local newspaper that had the headline "Dying Young In Eastlands" where I could identify over 15 young men's photos who I knew involved in armed robbery who were killed by the police. It's that background upon which I felt the need to stop the spread of the criminal mentality and show kids at a young age that they don’t have to follow that same path. I was a product of that exact environment but was able to overcome a life of crime by focusing on sports (boxing) and music (drumming). Before long, I was a drummer/percussionist performing with artists around the world. I started using my little income as a performer to get kids in my neighborhood to just come and drum with me. Just like that the idea of Marching Forth was born.
In 2008, the name “March Forth Kenya Kids” was conceived and we officially became a 501c3 non-profit incorporated in Los Angeles, CA. We teach music and different forms of art and movement (including yoga), to help give young people a positive path to focus in life. We do our work mainly in the neighborhood where I grew up, but also hold workshops for young people in America. In Kenya, we have drumming, dancing, and yoga classes every Saturday and have organized several large scale events in Nairobi. We have hosted reggae concerts in the community giving our students the chance to curtain raise for big stars who they look up to. Some of our past special guests include Tippa Irie (UK), Dr. Ring-Ding (Germany), Rocky Dawuni (Ghana) and Gilah Yelin Hirsch (Los Angeles). We do all of this for free to uplift the community as the people we work with live in a very economically challenging environment. We have some amazing success stories of young people growing up and now earning a living through what they started with us, not to mention the significant increase in test scores we have seen with students participating in our programs.
OUR TEAM
Meet our team!
Lynn
Co-Founder and President
Lynn started her career in the health care industry, but music and culture is her passion. A lover of all types of music and the arts, Lynn has taken her business acumen and moved into the world of music management and nonprofit development. In addition to managing all of the operations of MFKK, Lynn transitioned into a very successful career of managing multiple international reggae artists across multiple continents. Her first experience in Kenya was taking care of patients who had limited access to healthcare in very rural parts of the country. She has volunteered with multiple global health organizations including the IU-Kenya Partnership and the Paul Chester Children's Hope Foundation (PCCHF). Lynn immediately fell in love with Kenya and quickly made the decision that she would continue to work with her new friends and chosen family halfway across the globe. As a clinician, Lynn is scientifically minded. It is very rare that someone like Lynn can also have a passion for the value of the arts and such a personal connection to the non-medical needs of a foreign culture. Lynn understands how to help treat those who are already ill but she also sees the bigger picture that by stimulating the creativity within the youth today we will spend fewer resources later. Lynn has experienced first hand the healing power of music and art and wishes to share that with all who are open to experience such a simple but transformative activity. It is Lynn's goal is to recast the conversation about Kenya to the world, that it is one of rich diverse culture and joyfulness vs one of poverty and tragedy.
Sammy
Yoga Instructor
Sammy began his yoga career as a teacher in 2019. After attending a series of yoga classes, his desire to transform his life and live healthy became a passion. Sammy earned a scholarship to train with the Africa Yoga Project (AYP) in Kenya. Since becoming a certified yoga teacher, he has been practicing and teaching yoga in his community. He has completed YOD Level 1 training. He is also a wellbeing leader within his community offering mindfulness practice to all ages. He is a child safe guarding champion with the AYP. He is very passionate and loves working with kids. He believes nurturing young minds will make the future brighter for all beings under the sun. Sammy is an art enthusiast when he is not teaching or practicing Yoga. His artworks have featured in several art exhibitions within Nairobi and abroad. Sammy started working with MFKK in February 2020.
Ben
Program Administrator
Ben Kilonzi, aka "Adui", is well-known in the neighborhood and has been a friend and supporter of MFKK from its inception. He is a long-standing shop owner that serves a large part of Nairobi with basic wares, foodstuffs, and basically anything you might need. He has become a household name in the neighborhood. His shop caters for the population's unique needs to allow people to afford daily groceries as a low income population. He is willing to sell even sugar by the teaspoon. He currently stores all of our March Forth equipment, has served as our on-the-ground accountant, and provides the snacks we give to students after every class. We have been working with Adui in this capacity since 2010.
