This March, we celebrate the arrival of new life and the opening of new doors.
At Lalmba, “New Beginnings” are a daily reality. Because of your partnership, our local staff are on the front lines ensuring every child has a chance to thrive, no matter how remote their home.
Your support provides the medicine, salaries, and facilities that allow Lalmba staff members like Hiwot and Steve to serve their own communities with compassion.
Thank you for making these new beginnings possible.
Steve Oketch, Matoso Clinic In-Charge, treats a two year old girl for a severe respiratory illness. She responded well to the care and has made a full recovery.
Family members carried this mother for miles on a handmade stretcher to reach the Agaro Bushi clinic. Our skilled medical team met her at the gates, providing the urgent care she needed for a safe
delivery.
Volume 62. No. 2
January – March 2026
In December, a three-month-old baby named Meseret, suffering from weakness and dehydration due to lack of breastfeeding, was brought to the Agaro Bushi clinic in the arms of her grandmother. Meseret’s mother, struggling from post-delivery psychosis, left their home and the infant was no longer breastfeeding.
Lalmba’s medical team immediately stepped in, providing a bottle and starting Meseret on formula. They sat with the family, teaching the girl’s aunt and father how to continue the feedings at home.
But at the “end of the road,” life is rarely simple. When the family didn’t return for their follow-up, our Public Health Coordinator, Hiwot Wondimu, didn’t wait. She traveled into the Shefa community to find them. She discovered the entire household had been ill and unable to travel to the clinic for more formula. They had begun giving Meseret cow’s milk just to keep her belly full.
Hiwot and the Agaro Bushi staff walked alongside the family, Hiwot holding baby Meseret – Agaro Bushi Medium Clinic, Ethiopia explaining the vital importance of the formula for a baby so small. Their persistence paid off. The following week, Meseret returned to the clinic. We are happy to report she had gained almost an entire kilogram! She is now smiling and reaching for the world around her.
It is your support that puts Hiwot on those remote foot paths to check on families like Meseret’s. You are the reason our local medical and public health teams have the formula and the resources they need to ensure no child is forgotten.
Help our teams save lives by providing essential medical equipment.
You can access this list here.
Every weekday morning at Lalmba’s Matoso Clinic in Kenya, before the doors open to the public, our team gathers. They greet one another, join in song and prayer, make announcements, and prepare for the day ahead. It is a great way to start the morning and prepare for any challenges the day may bring.
While the clinic officially closes in the evenings and on weekends, the care never stops. A nurse or clinical officer remains on-call to ensure any emergencies are handled. One weekend, this past January, it was Steve Oketch, our Clinical Officer and in-charge of the clinic, who had the weekend shift.
It turned out to be a busy weekend. During the Monday morning debriefing, Steve shared the news of his weekend: he had delivered four babies in just forty-eight hours. Most remarkable was a set of twins, one boy and one girl, who shared a single placenta. This is a high-risk complication even in modern hospitals, but in a remote clinic, it requires extraordinary skill and composure.
As the staff heard the news, the team erupted in applause and cheers for Steve’s dedication. In this part of the world, a safe delivery is a hard-won victory. Four in one weekend is a monumental achievement.
Steve’s tireless work is a reflection of Lalmba’s commitment. He shows up for the community when they need it most, no matter the hour. Your support ensures that when a mother arrives at our gates in the middle of the night or over a weekend, a skilled medical professional like Steve is there to help.
We sat down with Steve just after that morning greeting to talk about the experience. You can watch that interview and hear Steve share the story himself below.
Our team in Kenya is celebrating a historic milestone! During the week of March 16th, we will officially celebrate the grand opening of the new maternity ward at the Matoso Clinic.
For years, our nurses have performed miracles in cramped, repurposed spaces. Now, mothers in the Matoso region will have a dedicated, modern environment to welcome their children into the world.
This “new beginning” was made possible by a dedicated community of Lalmba supporters who believe in the safety of mothers and infants. We want to share a special thank you with those of you who stood by us over many years to fund this renovation. Because of your persistence, the original clinic building is now a modern maternity ward, complete with a new solar system that powers the entire facility (installed after this photo was taken).
We also want to recognize the Tri-Lakes Dynamic Rotary Club and Rotary District 5470. Their generous funding for maternity beds and essential equipment has transformed this building into a fully functioning medical center.
This milestone belongs to everyone who stands with Lalmba. Whether you gave specifically to the renovation or support our daily operations, you are the reason we are improving care at the end of the road. Your shared commitment ensures that children in Matoso, and across all our programs, begin their lives with the medical care and health they deserve.