September 2026
Building security for New Dawn’s future
For 20 years, New Dawn School has been a place of stability and hope for
young people growing up amid tremendous uncertainty in Nairobi, Kenya.
This year, as New Dawn celebrates its 20th anniversary, it also has
another remarkable reason to celebrate: After years of petitioning and
praying, the school finally owns the land it calls home.
New Dawn is one of the longtime partners of Saba, International, the
Mount Horeb-based nonprofit founded by Cathy and Tim Woller. The
school serves young people from the Huruma and Githigoro informal
settlements, providing secondary education along with meals, counseling,
mentorship and spiritual support.
But for nearly all of the school’s existence, there was uncertainty beneath
its very feet.
The land where New Dawn operates is owned by the Kenyan government.
Since 2008, New Dawn’s leaders have worked for legal title to the
property. Several times, they appeared to be nearing the finish line, only to
have the process fall through.
Still, they kept going. And in early 2026, that prayer was answered.
New Dawn was granted title not only to the land on which the school
operates, but to additional land as well. With that long-awaited security
comes the opportunity to invest in the property and New Dawn’s future in
ways that simply weren’t possible before.
And that brings us to Saba’s next goal: helping New Dawn build a security
wall around the perimeter of its property.
The wall will help protect the school, its students and the land that New
Dawn worked so long to secure. It’s a tangible next step made possible by
an extraordinary milestone — transforming legal ownership of the
property into greater safety and stability for the young people who come
there every day.
For Cathy and Tim, the story is a powerful example of the Biblical
steadfastness of God. The Wollers will make their annual visit to ELC on
Sept. 19-20 to share more about New Dawn’s journey, Saba’s work and
what lies ahead.
ELC has been blessed to walk alongside Saba for many of those years. Our
Benevolence Program has supported Saba’s partnerships with New Dawn,
Bethel Kibera School and The Nest, helping provide education, nutrition,
shelter and opportunity to children and families in Kenya.
This September, our Benevolence gifts can help New Dawn take the next
step.
You can contribute financially by:
Mail: Send a check to ELC and note “Benevolence” in the memo.
Online: Visit the ELC website and click “Give”.
Digitally: Download the “GivePlus Church” mobile app, or text “Benevolence” to 608-400-0183 with the amount you wish to give.
On behalf of Benevolence,
Adam Mertz
adammertz2@gmail.com
