The Board
KIRO
My name is Bigira Mustafa David Prince KiroKiro, but please call me Kiro. In 1992 problems between the Hutus and Tutsies in Rwanda, Africa threatened my life. Since I was a Zairian national who couldn't return home due to problems with the Mobutu regime, I came to the United States where I received asylum. I used to have a store in Costa Mesa, California called AFRICAN CORNER. It is now in Fountain Valley, California. I sell African art, jewelry, incense, reggae accessories and tobacco pipes. I love the United States of America. It has been so good to me. I thank God every day that He brought me here to live safely with all you guys!
I love Africa too. I love the people, their joy, their ability to pick themselves up from a disaster, find something to laugh at, and go on. People everywhere have problems but sometimes I think Africans have a few more, especially the children. On my last trip to Africa they touched my heart. I have to do something to help them. I've asked for help and it has come in the form of THE MOSES KAZIBWE MEMORIAL FUND FOR AFRICAN CHILDREN. I am proud to be a part of this organization.
GRETCHEN MCKAY
Since childhood I have been drawn to Africa: African patterns, African music, and African culture. However the responsibilities of being a single parent kept me from exploring the continent until 1994 when I was able to make my first trek to East Africa . Landing at the Nairobi airport, I experienced a deep, soulful connection to the land and the African people. My exploration of this magnificent continent continued through study and more visits. Then in 1999 I had a consultation with a Zulu sangoma, an African tradition healer who merges with his ancestors to heal others.
Traditional Doctor Petros Hezekial Mntshali , whom I lovingly call P.H., came to the United States. for a lecture tour. Giving presentations and consultations from the East Coast to the West, he found that many Americans had "lost their ancestors." Much to his surprise, P.H. also found many traditional healers practicing in the United States. It was during my own consultation with him in June of 1999 that P.H. diagnosed me as a traditional healer. He said that my ancestors were "calling" me back to my ancestral roots as a healer and would lead me on an accelerated path.
After my initial consultation, I began investigating my ancestral heritage. I also started planning a trip to Southern Africa for the summer of 2000 with the intention of visiting P.H.'s homestead in Swaziland. It was during this stay that he began working with me to confirm my ancestors' wish for me to be trained in the ancient African shamanic path of the sangoma.
Returning to California, I continued honoring my ancestors through shamanic work until the summer of 2001 when I went back to Swaziland to complete my training. The study and practice of shamanism in the United States during the previous five years accelerated my training in Africa. After two rigorous months of work, I qualified as a sangoma and was intiated into this African tradition with the support of a hundred beautiful Swazis and two American friends ( www.ancestralwisdom.com for more information).
In 2001 I left my twenty-six year teaching career to become a full-time sangoma/shamanic practitioner. I keep in regular contact with P.H. but also study with Sandra Ingerman (www.shamanicvisions.com/ingerman.html )and other master healers. I use the African divination system of bones to diagnose physical and spiritual illness; use healing herbs, flower essences, and aromatherapy in my work; perform soul retrieval and extractions for clients; and use numerology, ritual, and ceremony in my practice. I also facilitate workshops in beginning and advanced shamanic healing techniques. My practice involves private consultations and community work, educating people in the ways of the ancestors, utilizing the shamanic techniques of African and Western traditional healing to facilitate physical and spiritual wellness. I continue to work with American children in the classroom, assisting in developing cultural sensitivity and understanding.
It is my heart's desire to assist the ancestors in building a bridge of understanding and compassion between the people of the United States and Africa. Participating with THE MOSES KAZIBWE MEMORIAL FUND FOR AFRICAN CHILDREN will help me achieve this goal.
JUDY KNIGHT
I like to make things happen. It brings me joy. It always has. So being a part of THE MOSES FUND makes me happy which is a good thing since a lot needs to happen.
Everything in my life has led me to this point. Growing up in the South and what that made me aware of makes me want to cross cultural boundaries. It's not that I know how to communicate with people different from me, only that I want to.
Being a mother taught me how to keep children in my heart, letting them know, no matter what, that I heard what they said about how they felt and I cared, whether I could fix it or not. It's also taught me that even if the odds against success are overwhelming, focusing on love succeeds.
My love of beauty allows photographs like the ones of children on this website to inspire me. I look at the perfection and joy on their faces. It enchants me. The artist in me is happy at present to make fliers and posters. It sounds inconsequential, but then many of my duties are mundane, ordinary, laborious, unglamorous, and boring.
I am the earthworm of this organization, the one who eats all the little pieces of thought and worry, emotion and information, and digests. I spend an awful lot of time digesting. Sometimes it feels like too much, but out of me comes a soil that's rich and ripe where ideas take root and grow into reality.
The task of helping children in Africa is daunting. Sometimes the sheer magnitude of just the thought of it makes me cry. I ask, "What is the single most important thing we can do that will make a difference in the lives of African children?" I'm gradually digesting that the question is the answer.