When we first met Lucia, her story was unremarkable. She was much like the thousands of other students who apply for a KEF scholarships on an annual basis - academically talented, but from a family that does not earn enough to pay for high school.
In Kenya, public high school is not free.
Lucia - raised by a single mother who is a subsistence farmer in one of Kenya’s poorest and most arid regions - could have never gone to high school without our help.

Lucia (middle), during games time at a KEF Lifeskills workshop.

In 2018, Lucia was the President of her high school and graduated as the top student in both her school AND the entire district! And it doesn't end there...

Lucia has just been awarded a full scholarship to Rhodes College in Tennessee where she plans to major in Biochemistry. Her dream has always been to improve health services in Kenya and Africa at large.

Lucia's journey began with the basic opportunity we gave her to stay in school. But evidently, the magic of KEF lives in the strength, determination and courage of KEF students, who when given the opportunity, show us that they have the ability to overcome their circumstances and succeed in untold ways.