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COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL April 20, 2016 3A Kenyan native tells his remarkable story Gordon Okumu recently approached the Sentinel about volunteer opportunities in writing, photogra- phy and design. First, though, he offers the tale of how he came to fi nd himself on the other side of the world: A stranger in your midst BY GORDON OKUMU For the Sentinel T here is this stranger in your midst, someone you might have met at the Trin- ity Lutheran Church serving during the Community Sup- per program or at the Cottage Grove Public Library. You may have met him attending a 912 Project meeting or simply seen him cycling around the City, and you wonder who this com- mon but unfamiliar face is. My name is Gordon Okumu. I am a Kenyan Citizen; I was born in 1986 in Migori, a small town in western Kenya. When I was six months old, my father, a taxi driver, died in an auto collision, leaving me to be brought up by my mother, a single parent. In early 1990, my mother and I moved to Nairobi (Kenya’s Capital). She was employed as a domestic servant and we set- tled in one of the slums in the outskirts of Nairobi. I was eight months old. When I was 14, in my last year of primary school, my mother died of typhoid fever. A Catholic priest took pity on me and provided my school fees through high school. I worked nights as a watchman and weekends as a gardener to pay for schoolbooks, school supplies, clothing and food. After completing high school in 2005, I earned high scores on the national high school exams, landing a job as an untrained teacher in a Catholic girls’ high school in Nairobi. While work- ing there, I became interested in becoming a Roman Catholic priest. In 2008, I joined the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and entered the novitiate in Tanzania to pre- pare for priesthood. However, in 2010, I realized it was not my calling to become a Jesuit priest, and I petitioned for re- lease from the Society. I was allowed to leave and went back to Nairobi. While still with the Jesuits, I had established contact with Chaplain Jonathan Landon – who was then on active duty in the US Army – and learned about the International Com- munion of the Charismatic Episcopal Church (CEC). When I left the Jesuit novitiate, I joined a CEC congregation in Nairobi. I was an active partic- ipant in that congregation, tak- ing on several volunteer service projects. The African College Edu- cation Fund, a ministry of the CEC, offered me a scholarship that covered all education and living expenses and enabled me to obtain a diploma in mass communication with majors in public relations and advertis- ing (which is roughly equiva- lent to an Associate’s degree in Cottage Grove again named Tree City, USA for 2015 Tree dept., care ordinance and forestry budget help meet requirement C ottage Grove was named a 2015 Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation in honor of its commitment to effective urban forest manage- ment. Started in 1976, the Tree City USA program, sponsored by the Arbor Day Foundation, in partnership with the U.S. For- est Service and the National As- sociation of State Foresters, is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. Cottage Grove achieved Tree City USA recognition by meet- ing the program’s four require- ments: A tree board or depart- ment, a tree-care ordinance, an annual community forestry bud- get of at least $2 per capita and an Arbor Day observance and proclamation. “Tree City USA communities see the impact an urban forest has in a community fi rst hand,” said Dan Lambe, President of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Ad- ditionally, recognition brings residents together and creates a sense of community pride, whether it’s through volunteer engagement or public educa- tion.” Trees provide multiple bene- fi ts to a community when prop- erly planted and maintained. They help to improve the visual appeal of a neighborhood, in- crease property values, reduce home cooling costs, remove air pollutants and provide wildlife habitat, among many other ben- efi ts. More information on the pro- gram is available at arborday. org/TreeCityUSA. The Arbor Day Foundation is a million-member nonprofi t conservation and education or- ganization with the mission to inspire people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees. More infor- mation is available at arborday. org. America). While at the University, I was elected a student leader in the university student government, and I developed a strong inter- est in politics. I formed an am- bition to run for the position of Member of Parliament for Suna West Constituency in Migori County (my hometown), and spoke publicly of my intentions to obtain offi ce and lead a de- termined opposition to tribal- ism, nepotism and corruption in government, which is ram- pant in Kenya. After my fi rst visit to the US in September, 2015, as a free- lance journalist covering the Papal visit to the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia, my political opponents appeared to have the idea that I had for- eign support for my campaign and was pursuing power for the benefi t of U.S. interests. As a result, my life has been threat- ened, I have been assaulted and robbed, and there have been two attempts to poison me. My visa remained in effect, so I returned to the U.S. and have submitted an application for political asylum. How- ever, I have not abandoned the Kennedy students robbed while working A group of high- school students experienced a sour end to their work week when they discovered that their bus had been burglarized as they worked. Matt Hall, Kennedy High School instructor and head of the Kennedy Conserva- tion Corps, which offers job experience to students for conservation-related programs, said that he and a student work crew had parked at the weigh station on the southeast edge of Cottage Grove while they courtesy photo Okumu has already made himself known in Cottage Grove in a short time here through his volunteerism. hope of returning to Kenya as an activist working for positive change in the government of my country. While in the U.S., I am living with the Landons and currently volunteering at Trinity Luther- an Church in the Community Supper program, at the Cottage prepared the pollinator gar- den under construction at nearby Row River Nature Park for planting on Friday, April 8. The day was a hot one, Hall said, so he left the windows on the bus open. Upon return, Hall said that three backpacks and a fi re- fi ghter-style hard hat were discovered missing. One student was found to be missing the driver’s permit and house keys that were in his backpack; another was missing a case contain- ing about 20 CDs, while another had an “expensive hoodie” and wallet stolen. “It was my bad for not closing the windows,” Hall said. “It was one of those learning moments for me, for sure, and I felt really bad for them. It was a bad end to a really great day.” Grove Public Library and now the Cottage Grove Sentinel. I consider my volunteer service to be an offering of thanksgiving in response for God’s salvation and provision and also an opportunity to get to know more about my new home, Cottage Grove! Seniors gear up for Lion King pageant C ottage Grove High School will host its 22nd annual Lion King pageant on Saturday, April 30 at 7 pm at the high school Cafetorium. The event includes dances, skits and lots of laughter. This annual fundraiser supports Children’s Mir- acle Network, where all proceeds go to Riverbend Hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and the Pediatric Unit. Over the years, organizers say CGHS has raised nearly $250,000 for CMN. This year’s contestants are: Nico Cornelius, Justin Epperson, Eli- jah Foreman, Brad Geisler, Brandon Hughes, Kendrick Murphy, Payton Presley and Jayden Tucker. Tickets are sold at the door for $10. They may be bought at the high school next week or are available at the door for the same price. 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Cottage Grove, OR 541-942-2491 Want to i nd this week’s best shopping deals? Curious about the latest local developments? We have you covered with locally focused coverage of everything from jobs, politics and education to sports, shopping, dining, entertainment, comics and more. Expand your mind with the kid scoop page each week! Start your $29 Subscription* today, and start getting more out of every week in South Lane County! Cottage Grove Sentinel 541-942-3325 www.cgsentinel.com * New subscribers available through 04.29.16.