In 2004 the Kenyan Government mandated that primary school, up to eight grade, would be free of cost to children, however, the government did not increase funding to support these changes. Classroom sizes increased dramatically, at times an 80 to 1 student to teacher ratio. A lot of the school buildings also became worn down due to overcrowding. The Kinondo Kwetu Trust funds extra teachers at the Kinondo Primary School and has made improvements to keep the buildings safe for the children. Kinondo Primary School also has a garden on the premises. The purpose of this garden is multifaceted: to teach children to garden and possibly sell their products, to teach healthy eating, and to provide meals to those who cannot afford them.

As a team, Surgical Aid for Kenya, made our first visit to the Kinondo Primary School in March of 2024. We saw that although Kinondo Kwetu Trust was doing an excellent job supporting the school there was more that could be done. The school supports a dental hygiene program, teaching students the importance of brushing their teeth from a young age. So in March and July of 2024 we brought approximately 500 toothbrushes each time to hand out to students. On both visits, we brought school supplies like paper, pens and pencils, pencil sharpeners, chalk, and notepads. During our July 2024 trip we decided to add some fun to our donations and brought soccer balls with pumps, and jump ropes. Teachers and children alike were excited to have these additions, their current soccer balls and jump ropes were made out of old string.

Although our primary focus is, and always will remain surgical trips, when we learned about the school through our coworkers at the hospital we wanted to provide broader support to the community we are serving in the operating rooms. Our goal moving forward is to continue bringing donated supplies to the school, and to start fundraising to support those families who cannot afford school uniforms for their children.