Eileen's mother gives emotional account of how daughter waited four years to join RVIST
Agnes Chepkurui, Eileen's mother says the daughter stayed home for four years after KCSE before joining RVIST.
“Mum wacha nikazane nataka kukujengea nyumba,” these were the last words Eileen Cherotich said to her mother when they spoke a few weeks ago.
Eileen had just resumed classes after the closure of her school, Rift Valley Institute of Science and Technology (RVIST), due to the students’ unrest.
It is often believed that the pain of losing a child comes second only to that of giving birth. Agnes Chepkurui, Eileen’s mother describes her daughter as her pride and joy and the one she could always rely on.
“Eileen had always shown great promise ever since she was young. She got a C plain in her KCSE but we did not have funds to take her to college. She was forced to stay home for four years as we looked for a way out,” she recalls.
The late Eileen Cherotich was a student at RVIST in Nakuru.
The mother of eight says that it was not until their church, African Inland Church (AIC) Soimet came to their rescue through a Harambee, that they were able to take Eileen to college.
“We had tried applying for HELB but failed the first time. We tried the second time and luckily we were able to get it. Together with what the church had raised, we were able to facilitate her joining the school and also pay fees for a few semesters,” the heartbroken mother reveals.
Mama Eileen says she works manual jobs (Kibarua) from time to time as she and her husband do not have a dependable source of income to be able to cater for the other children who are also in school.
“Eileen was my third born of the eight children and seeing that we are from a humble background all my hope was on her to be able to offer me and her siblings a better life.”
She continues, “The first born is a male who also works from time to time while the second born is a girl. I had a challenge of raising school fees for the girl so she stayed home till the time when she was married off. She never finished school.”
Ms. Chepkurui says the day her daughter joined RVIST is a day she will always remember as she was so proud of her daughter.
“I do not even know where to start planning for my daughters send off. I am stuck between a rock and a hard place both mentally and financially and I am therefore pleading for help from well-wishers who may wish to help us cover some of the funeral expenses,” she says sobbing heavily.