Extraordinary
Women: Celebrating Priscillah ‘Braveheart’ Waithera Kirugo
Some parents raise their
children to become mature adults, while others raise their
children to become ‘Giants.’
Just ask Laszlo Polgar,
the Hungarian Psychologist who published a book called ‘Bring up genius’ and
raised his daughters to become the first females to earn the title of ‘chess
Grand master’ by the ages of 21 and 15.
Our Extraordinary Woman –
Priscillah (‘Braveheart’ as I love to call her) Waithera Kirugo also
believes in raising children to become who they were meant to be at an early
age. She believes in instilling all the core and essential values alongside nurturing
their talents, while allowing them to pursue their interests
honourably.
Even in the face of
extremely difficult odds, courageous Priscilla has found a way to come out
tops to become a passionate teacher, lecturer and mother of the
rising star – Natalie Wambui in Kenya.
Priscilla has a
‘brave heart’ that she seems to have passed on to her daughter.
There is much to be
learnt from her story.
NEKITA: Who are you?
PRISCILLAH: My name is Priscillah Waithera Kirugo.
I am 31years old and I live in a small town town called Ngong in Kajiado County
of Kenya. I am a single mum. My daughter is called Natalie Wambui and she
is 9 years old.
NEKITA: Please tell us a bit
about your background.
PRISCILLAH: I am the fourth born in a family of 5 children.
Three boys and two girls. I took my O-levels in a school in Murang’a
County, scored a B- and unfortunately didn’t make it to university immediately.
I have worked so hard to further my studies and so far I hold a diploma in
Information Technology from the Nairobi Institute Of Business
Studies. Currently I am working on my degree at the African Nazarene
University.
My late dad was a Bishop
and ours was a strict Christian family. Growing up life was not easy because as
preacher’s kids there were a lot of expectations from people therefore there
was too much pressure. But by the grace of God I have overcome so many
challenges and currently I started my own initiative called Achievers Kenya
where I take ICT programs to public schools and mostly schools in marginalized
areas.
NEKITA: Describe yourself in two words.
PRISCILLAH: I am God-fearing and hardworking.
NEKITA: What’s your
best quality?
PRISCILLAH: My best quality is my love for God and
people.
NEKITA: What’s your
worst quality?
PRISCILLAH: My worst quality is that having had my heart broken
by people I trusted and even family I tend to question too much of peoples
motives and find it so hard to trust.
NEKITA: What do you do, and
what do you hope to be doing in the next 5 years?
PRISCILLAH: As I stated earlier, currently I take
computer programs and implement classes in public schools. I enjoy my work a
lot because it comes with a lot of fulfilment. In five years time, I hope to
have my own resource centre where I will give children from poor backgrounds
facilities to come study, learn, research and realize their potential as well
as nurture their God given talents and abilities.
NEKITA: Your daughter seems
to be a bit of a celebrity these days. Can you tell us how she became
a celebrity and even came to meet the president and first lady?
PRISCILLAH: My daughter Natalie Wambui is 9 years old. I
conceived her out of wedlock. Her father is from the Luo Community and I am
from the Kikuyu community. His people didn’t approve of our relationship and
unfortunately he succumbed to their pressure.
We broke up when I was 2
months pregnant. My parents being church leaders were ashamed of me and
rejected me as well. I lived in the streets of Nairobi when I was pregnant
between 2 and 4 months. At 4 months, a church watchman rescued me. He sheltered
me in a church that he was guarding in the city until I was 2 weeks to my due
date.
A good Samaritan rescued
me from living in a church – rented for me a small place to live and paid
my maternity fees. That experience taught me how to appreciate everyone in life
no matter their social status.
Natalie developed some
heart problems when she was almost 4 years old. She had to stay in a
hospital and undergo surgery. She was in so much pain and could not write. The
doctors encouraged her to communicate to them through writing and every day she
would describe how she felt through writing. Slowly she began keeping journals
every day.
She recovered but her
passion for writing never stopped. She also loved the idea of reciting
everything she wrote about and so I knew she loved poetry and spoken word.
One evening friends came
to our house for dinner and they saw many files in her room containing things
she had written over the years. They challenged me to publish for her. After
much thought, I decided to work hard and I published.
At the time I could
not raise the publisher’s fee and so I took up a job in a missionary family to
baby sit a child who had cerebral palsy. The child could not sleep well so
I would baby sit in the night having left my daughter home alone at
night. One day the missionary couple asked me why I was so determined to work
at night and I told them how much it meant to me to publish Natalie’s
work. They were touched and they paid for 1000 copies of Natalie’s first
books.
That is how her first
book – Natalie’s Poems came about. Once the book came out, marketing it
was very hard. Most bookshops didn’t take it as they said poetry books didn’t
do well in the market. I knew I had to go an extra mile. I began hawking the
books in the streets, parking lots and petrol stations. I got overwhelming
support from people. Gradually I met media personalities in the streets and one
interview led to another. One day the president happened to be attending a
fundraiser in a church near our neighbourhood and a lady who had bought Natalie’s
book called and invited us to the church for Natalie to perform a poem. Natalie
didn’t manage to perform a poem because the president didn’t have much time for
any presentation but she got the courage to autograph her 2 books and walked to
where the president was, knelt down and introduced herself. He was very
impressed and he arranged a visit of Natalie and I to statehouse the following
day to meet the first lady. The first lady hosted us well and Natalie became
ambassador of Beyond Zero which is a program that was started by the first lady
to provide better maternal care for mothers while giving birth.
Personally I do not see
Natalie as a celebrity and I always keep her grounded. I pray that her values
will always guide her. But I know her story and what she is doing with her
talent will inspire a lot of other children and people and she will touch and
change many lives for the better.
NEKITA: How were you able to raise your
daughter Natalie to be so intelligent? Is she naturally gifted or both?
PRISCILLAH: I always nurture her talent. I do this
by buying her as many books as I can. I also take her to events
where authors hold forums. Natalie takes part in many poetry functions and
spoken word events from other artists. Above all I pray for her and encourage
her all the time.
NEKITA: What advice
would you give to parents who equally wish to nurture their children’s talents?
PRISCILLAH: I would advice parents on this: Spotting a gift in your
child is one thing, nurturing the gift is another.
“As
parents we have to invest our time and resources to encourage the talents
in our children. And it’s always good to know that Talent without discipline is
useless.”
This all requires a lot
of work.
NEKITA: I noticed you
and your daughter are very patriotic. Where does this come from?
PRISCILLAH: Yes we love our culture. I
personally feel that our culture and diversity as the Kenyan people is what
makes us stand out. We should not try to change or copy too much of borrowed
culture when our own is equally good for us. Its time we embrace and love
ourselves for us to be loved by the outside world. We have beautiful sceneries,
wildlife and resources in our country. The people are full of love and warmth.
Why would we forsake all these things that God has given us?
“I know
Natalie will travel far and wide globally in her journey of life but she should
never forget who she is and where she came from. She should carry the positive
Kenyan spirit and be a true and proud African.”
NEKITA: What advice do you
have for others who wish to follow in your footsteps?
PRISCILLAH: My advice is that people should not be afraid to
dream and after they dream they should be ready to put all the work required to
make their dreams come true. Nothing good comes easy but with God, discipline
and consistency, all things are possible.
NEKITA: What has been your major career milestone?
PRISCILLAH: A big milestone
for me was when I was nominated for an award called The Good Samaritan Award in
June last year for the work I have done with public schools and three months
later won the award. It felt good to know that no matter how much I struggle to
the point of almost giving up at times, there is always someone watching and
hard work never goes unrewarded.
NEKITA: How does your
family support your career?
PRISCILLAH: My nuclear family is only Natalie and myself and
she is very supportive and understanding of what I do. It makes me love her
more. My external family and I have reconciled and we are in the healing
process of our relationship. We are taking it one step at a time.
NEKITA: How do
you balance your career and home life?
PRISCILLAH: Natalie is a very independent child.
She is able to look after herself and help out with small chores at home. I
always try to give her my love and attention whenever we are both together. We
spend each day with gratitude knowing it’s a gift from God. This gives her the
confidence to know that I love her even when I am away at work. For
parents it’s good to keep reassuring your love to your children as it builds
their confidence, self esteem and prepares them to face the world in future.
NEKITA: Which female
inspires you the most?
PRISCILLAH: The female that inspires me the most is
the late Nobel Laureate Prof. Wangari Maathai. She overcame so many
obstacles and fought for what she believed in which was the Environment.
She said her ‘’little thing’’ was planting trees. We all have our ‘’little
things’’ that we could do to make the world a better place.
NEKITA: What is the greatest
lesson you’ve learnt in life?
PRISCILLAH:
“The greatest lesson I have learnt in life is that we all fail and make
mistakes but true success comes to those who rise every time they fail.”
NEKITA: What has been your biggest
accomplishment in life?
PRISCILLAH: My biggest accomplishment in life is my
daughter Natalie. Being a mother was like an awakening for me. I love being a
mother. It’s a life long journey.
NEKITA: What has been the
most trying obstacle that you’ve overcome in life and how did you overcome
this?
PRISCILLAH: My greatest obstacle was when I was in
the streets pregnant and later being hidden in a church by watchman. I feared
giving birth in that situation and my daughter and I being a ‘’street family’’.
I always prayed and read Gods word which comforted me and gave me hope. Faith
has played a big role in my life.
NEKITA: Everyone has a sense
of fashion and personal style. What’s yours?
PRISCILLAH: My style and fashion is
quite simple. I buy what I like and I try it on and it looks good on me I
certainly buy and wear it.
NEKITA: What is
unique about you?
PRISCILLAH: Having lived in the streets, once a
month I invite about 30 street children for a book reading where I create
a forum for motivational people to talk to them and make them feel that
their situation is not permanent.
NEKITA: What do you do
in order to relax and unwind?
PRISCILLAH: I watch movies and listen to Christian
Contemporary Music.
NEKITA: Tell us a
secret about yourself that no other person knows.
PRISCILLAH: No one knows that I love day
dreaming but now you know!
NEKITA: Tell us in two
sentences what you think of sex, love and marriage.
PRISCILLAH: Love is from God because
God is love.
Marriage is a holy
institution given to man by God and sex is best enjoyed within the confines of
true love and marriage.
NEKITA: Which movie has
inspired you the most?
PRISCILLAH: I love the movie War-room. Am
inspired by the power of prayer and how prayer is able to overturn life’s
situations.
NEKITA: Which popular
personality inspires you the most?
PRISCILLAH: As I said earlier the late
Prof. Wangari Maathai’s determination inspires me a lot. Also the late Mother
Teresa and all she did for humanity.
NEKITA: What is your
life’s slogan?
PRISCILLAH: Dream, Dare, Believe.
NEKITA: If you had the
power to change the world in one way, what would you do?
PRISCILLAH: I would provide equal education
opportunities to all children.
I leave you with one of
Natalie’s poems:
“As I grow older from year to year
Began thinking of the number of years I turn
Kept wondering what I do with them
But still God keeps adding me….”
Began thinking of the number of years I turn
Kept wondering what I do with them
But still God keeps adding me….”
Priscilla’s Facebook
page is called ‘Natalie’s Poems.’ She created it to support her daughter.
Both Natalie’s books
are on Amazon. Look for ‘Natalie Wambui.’ The first book is called ‘Natalies
Poems’ and the second one is called ‘Kenya; My Country, My Story.’
Extraordinary
Women: Celebrating Priscillah ‘Braveheart’ Waithera Kirugo
Some parents raise their
children to become mature adults, while others raise their
children to become ‘Giants.’
Just ask Laszlo Polgar,
the Hungarian Psychologist who published a book called ‘Bring up genius’ and
raised his daughters to become the first females to earn the title of ‘chess
Grand master’ by the ages of 21 and 15.
Our Extraordinary Woman –
Priscillah (‘Braveheart’ as I love to call her) Waithera Kirugo also
believes in raising children to become who they were meant to be at an early
age. She believes in instilling all the core and essential values alongside nurturing
their talents, while allowing them to pursue their interests
honourably.
Even in the face of
extremely difficult odds, courageous Priscilla has found a way to come out
tops to become a passionate teacher, lecturer and mother of the
rising star – Natalie Wambui in Kenya.
Priscilla has a
‘brave heart’ that she seems to have passed on to her daughter.
There is much to be
learnt from her story.
NEKITA: Who are you?
PRISCILLAH: My name is Priscillah Waithera Kirugo.
I am 31years old and I live in a small town town called Ngong in Kajiado County
of Kenya. I am a single mum. My daughter is called Natalie Wambui and she
is 9 years old.
NEKITA: Please tell us a bit
about your background.
PRISCILLAH: I am the fourth born in a family of 5 children.
Three boys and two girls. I took my O-levels in a school in Murang’a
County, scored a B- and unfortunately didn’t make it to university immediately.
I have worked so hard to further my studies and so far I hold a diploma in
Information Technology from the Nairobi Institute Of Business
Studies. Currently I am working on my degree at the African Nazarene
University.
My late dad was a Bishop
and ours was a strict Christian family. Growing up life was not easy because as
preacher’s kids there were a lot of expectations from people therefore there
was too much pressure. But by the grace of God I have overcome so many
challenges and currently I started my own initiative called Achievers Kenya
where I take ICT programs to public schools and mostly schools in marginalized
areas.
NEKITA: Describe yourself in two words.
PRISCILLAH: I am God-fearing and hardworking.
NEKITA: What’s your
best quality?
PRISCILLAH: My best quality is my love for God and
people.
NEKITA: What’s your
worst quality?
PRISCILLAH: My worst quality is that having had my heart broken
by people I trusted and even family I tend to question too much of peoples
motives and find it so hard to trust.
NEKITA: What do you do, and
what do you hope to be doing in the next 5 years?
PRISCILLAH: As I stated earlier, currently I take
computer programs and implement classes in public schools. I enjoy my work a
lot because it comes with a lot of fulfilment. In five years time, I hope to
have my own resource centre where I will give children from poor backgrounds
facilities to come study, learn, research and realize their potential as well
as nurture their God given talents and abilities.
NEKITA: Your daughter seems
to be a bit of a celebrity these days. Can you tell us how she became
a celebrity and even came to meet the president and first lady?
PRISCILLAH: My daughter Natalie Wambui is 9 years old. I
conceived her out of wedlock. Her father is from the Luo Community and I am
from the Kikuyu community. His people didn’t approve of our relationship and
unfortunately he succumbed to their pressure.
We broke up when I was 2
months pregnant. My parents being church leaders were ashamed of me and
rejected me as well. I lived in the streets of Nairobi when I was pregnant
between 2 and 4 months. At 4 months, a church watchman rescued me. He sheltered
me in a church that he was guarding in the city until I was 2 weeks to my due
date.
A good Samaritan rescued
me from living in a church – rented for me a small place to live and paid
my maternity fees. That experience taught me how to appreciate everyone in life
no matter their social status.
Natalie developed some
heart problems when she was almost 4 years old. She had to stay in a
hospital and undergo surgery. She was in so much pain and could not write. The
doctors encouraged her to communicate to them through writing and every day she
would describe how she felt through writing. Slowly she began keeping journals
every day.
She recovered but her
passion for writing never stopped. She also loved the idea of reciting
everything she wrote about and so I knew she loved poetry and spoken word.
One evening friends came
to our house for dinner and they saw many files in her room containing things
she had written over the years. They challenged me to publish for her. After
much thought, I decided to work hard and I published.
At the time I could
not raise the publisher’s fee and so I took up a job in a missionary family to
baby sit a child who had cerebral palsy. The child could not sleep well so
I would baby sit in the night having left my daughter home alone at
night. One day the missionary couple asked me why I was so determined to work
at night and I told them how much it meant to me to publish Natalie’s
work. They were touched and they paid for 1000 copies of Natalie’s first
books.
That is how her first
book – Natalie’s Poems came about. Once the book came out, marketing it
was very hard. Most bookshops didn’t take it as they said poetry books didn’t
do well in the market. I knew I had to go an extra mile. I began hawking the
books in the streets, parking lots and petrol stations. I got overwhelming
support from people. Gradually I met media personalities in the streets and one
interview led to another. One day the president happened to be attending a
fundraiser in a church near our neighbourhood and a lady who had bought Natalie’s
book called and invited us to the church for Natalie to perform a poem. Natalie
didn’t manage to perform a poem because the president didn’t have much time for
any presentation but she got the courage to autograph her 2 books and walked to
where the president was, knelt down and introduced herself. He was very
impressed and he arranged a visit of Natalie and I to statehouse the following
day to meet the first lady. The first lady hosted us well and Natalie became
ambassador of Beyond Zero which is a program that was started by the first lady
to provide better maternal care for mothers while giving birth.
Personally I do not see
Natalie as a celebrity and I always keep her grounded. I pray that her values
will always guide her. But I know her story and what she is doing with her
talent will inspire a lot of other children and people and she will touch and
change many lives for the better.
NEKITA: How were you able to raise your
daughter Natalie to be so intelligent? Is she naturally gifted or both?
PRISCILLAH: I always nurture her talent. I do this
by buying her as many books as I can. I also take her to events
where authors hold forums. Natalie takes part in many poetry functions and
spoken word events from other artists. Above all I pray for her and encourage
her all the time.
NEKITA: What advice
would you give to parents who equally wish to nurture their children’s talents?
PRISCILLAH: I would advice parents on this: Spotting a gift in your
child is one thing, nurturing the gift is another.
“As
parents we have to invest our time and resources to encourage the talents
in our children. And it’s always good to know that Talent without discipline is
useless.”
This all requires a lot
of work.
NEKITA: I noticed you
and your daughter are very patriotic. Where does this come from?
PRISCILLAH: Yes we love our culture. I
personally feel that our culture and diversity as the Kenyan people is what
makes us stand out. We should not try to change or copy too much of borrowed
culture when our own is equally good for us. Its time we embrace and love
ourselves for us to be loved by the outside world. We have beautiful sceneries,
wildlife and resources in our country. The people are full of love and warmth.
Why would we forsake all these things that God has given us?
“I know
Natalie will travel far and wide globally in her journey of life but she should
never forget who she is and where she came from. She should carry the positive
Kenyan spirit and be a true and proud African.”
NEKITA: What advice do you
have for others who wish to follow in your footsteps?
PRISCILLAH: My advice is that people should not be afraid to
dream and after they dream they should be ready to put all the work required to
make their dreams come true. Nothing good comes easy but with God, discipline
and consistency, all things are possible.
NEKITA: What has been your major career milestone?
PRISCILLAH: A big milestone
for me was when I was nominated for an award called The Good Samaritan Award in
June last year for the work I have done with public schools and three months
later won the award. It felt good to know that no matter how much I struggle to
the point of almost giving up at times, there is always someone watching and
hard work never goes unrewarded.
NEKITA: How does your
family support your career?
PRISCILLAH: My nuclear family is only Natalie and myself and
she is very supportive and understanding of what I do. It makes me love her
more. My external family and I have reconciled and we are in the healing
process of our relationship. We are taking it one step at a time.
NEKITA: How do
you balance your career and home life?
PRISCILLAH: Natalie is a very independent child.
She is able to look after herself and help out with small chores at home. I
always try to give her my love and attention whenever we are both together. We
spend each day with gratitude knowing it’s a gift from God. This gives her the
confidence to know that I love her even when I am away at work. For
parents it’s good to keep reassuring your love to your children as it builds
their confidence, self esteem and prepares them to face the world in future.
NEKITA: Which female
inspires you the most?
PRISCILLAH: The female that inspires me the most is
the late Nobel Laureate Prof. Wangari Maathai. She overcame so many
obstacles and fought for what she believed in which was the Environment.
She said her ‘’little thing’’ was planting trees. We all have our ‘’little
things’’ that we could do to make the world a better place.
NEKITA: What is the greatest
lesson you’ve learnt in life?
PRISCILLAH:
“The greatest lesson I have learnt in life is that we all fail and make
mistakes but true success comes to those who rise every time they fail.”
NEKITA: What has been your biggest
accomplishment in life?
PRISCILLAH: My biggest accomplishment in life is my
daughter Natalie. Being a mother was like an awakening for me. I love being a
mother. It’s a life long journey.
NEKITA: What has been the
most trying obstacle that you’ve overcome in life and how did you overcome
this?
PRISCILLAH: My greatest obstacle was when I was in
the streets pregnant and later being hidden in a church by watchman. I feared
giving birth in that situation and my daughter and I being a ‘’street family’’.
I always prayed and read Gods word which comforted me and gave me hope. Faith
has played a big role in my life.
NEKITA: Everyone has a sense
of fashion and personal style. What’s yours?
PRISCILLAH: My style and fashion is
quite simple. I buy what I like and I try it on and it looks good on me I
certainly buy and wear it.
NEKITA: What is
unique about you?
PRISCILLAH: Having lived in the streets, once a
month I invite about 30 street children for a book reading where I create
a forum for motivational people to talk to them and make them feel that
their situation is not permanent.
NEKITA: What do you do
in order to relax and unwind?
PRISCILLAH: I watch movies and listen to Christian
Contemporary Music.
NEKITA: Tell us a
secret about yourself that no other person knows.
PRISCILLAH: No one knows that I love day
dreaming but now you know!
NEKITA: Tell us in two
sentences what you think of sex, love and marriage.
PRISCILLAH: Love is from God because
God is love.
Marriage is a holy
institution given to man by God and sex is best enjoyed within the confines of
true love and marriage.
NEKITA: Which movie has
inspired you the most?
PRISCILLAH: I love the movie War-room. Am
inspired by the power of prayer and how prayer is able to overturn life’s
situations.
NEKITA: Which popular
personality inspires you the most?
PRISCILLAH: As I said earlier the late
Prof. Wangari Maathai’s determination inspires me a lot. Also the late Mother
Teresa and all she did for humanity.
NEKITA: What is your
life’s slogan?
PRISCILLAH: Dream, Dare, Believe.
NEKITA: If you had the
power to change the world in one way, what would you do?
PRISCILLAH: I would provide equal education
opportunities to all children.
I leave you with one of
Natalie’s poems:
“As I grow older from year to year
Began thinking of the number of years I turn
Kept wondering what I do with them
But still God keeps adding me….”
Began thinking of the number of years I turn
Kept wondering what I do with them
But still God keeps adding me….”
Priscilla’s Facebook
page is called ‘Natalie’s Poems.’ She created it to support her daughter.
Both Natalie’s books
are on Amazon. Look for ‘Natalie Wambui.’ The first book is called ‘Natalies
Poems’ and the second one is called ‘Kenya; My Country, My Story.’
Comments
Post a Comment