Fees
We ask volunteers to pay a fee of $150 US per week during their time working with us. This covers accommodation, meals, and airport transfers, and also injects some money into our organisation. The fee to confirm placement is $200 ($150 for one week’s fees and a $50 registration fee). If you would find it difficult to pay these fees, please contact us
(https://www.rileyortonfoundation.org/contact-us.html) to make an alternative arrangement that is more compatible with your financial situation.
(https://www.rileyortonfoundation.org/contact-us.html) to make an alternative arrangement that is more compatible with your financial situation.
Pre-Departure Information
Lake Victoria and Kisumu
Visa
You will need a visa to enter Kenya. A 3-month single Kenyan tourist visa costs $50 US. More information can be found here: http://evisa.go.ke/evisa.html. If you are planning to travel to Uganda and/or Rwanda during your time with us, we recommend that you get an East African tourist visa rather than a Kenyan visa. An East African tourist visa costs $100 US and allows you to enter Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda.
You must buy your visa online before leaving for Kenya. Please check the Kenyan government website to find further information about visa requirements for your country.
Vaccinations, Anti-Malarials, and Travel Insurance
We strongly recommend that you visit a travel clinic or doctor well before your departure date. Your country will likely recommend/require that you are given certain vaccinations before heading off to Kenya. Yellow fever, typhoid, and Hepatitis A are all regularly recommended. Please ensure that you keep a record of your yellow fever vaccination with you if you are crossing borders in Africa or returning to your home country, as you may not be allowed to cross borders without proof that you have had this vaccination.
There are three types of anti-Malarials available. Please discuss with your doctor which is best suited to your circumstances. This medication is very important in Kisumu. Anti-Malarials can be purchased in Kenya, but please ensure that you have enough for the days prior to and immediately following your arrival. To further protect yourself against malaria while in Kenya, bring insect repellent with you.
There are hospitals and medical clinics throughout Kisumu. We would recommend purchasing travel insurance before you arrive, to ensure that you can receive high quality care if you fall ill during your stay without having to worry about costs.
Fundraising
We encourage volunteers to fundraise for specific projects. For instance, you can raise $200 US to pay a teacher at Akili School for a month, $1,000 to purchase a drip system or shade nets for one of our farms, $1,500 to purchase farm machines, $4,500 to sponsor 15 girls / a class for a year, or $20,000 to drill a well at the farm. There are many other uses to which funds can be put, including the purchase of general school supplies, or the expansion of any of our projects through the construction of new buildings, etc. Our partners at Mama Hope are willing to create a fundraising page for you on stayclassy.org where you can accept tax deductible donations from friends and family. Feel free to talk to us about what areas of our organisation are in particular need of support at the moment, or any specific use that you might have in mind for your funds. Our organisation does not have a reliable source of external funding. As such, these contributions are pivotal to maintaining and enhancing our capacity to carry out our work.
Packing suggestions
Things You Can Bring to Donate to the ROF
You will need a visa to enter Kenya. A 3-month single Kenyan tourist visa costs $50 US. More information can be found here: http://evisa.go.ke/evisa.html. If you are planning to travel to Uganda and/or Rwanda during your time with us, we recommend that you get an East African tourist visa rather than a Kenyan visa. An East African tourist visa costs $100 US and allows you to enter Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda.
You must buy your visa online before leaving for Kenya. Please check the Kenyan government website to find further information about visa requirements for your country.
Vaccinations, Anti-Malarials, and Travel Insurance
We strongly recommend that you visit a travel clinic or doctor well before your departure date. Your country will likely recommend/require that you are given certain vaccinations before heading off to Kenya. Yellow fever, typhoid, and Hepatitis A are all regularly recommended. Please ensure that you keep a record of your yellow fever vaccination with you if you are crossing borders in Africa or returning to your home country, as you may not be allowed to cross borders without proof that you have had this vaccination.
There are three types of anti-Malarials available. Please discuss with your doctor which is best suited to your circumstances. This medication is very important in Kisumu. Anti-Malarials can be purchased in Kenya, but please ensure that you have enough for the days prior to and immediately following your arrival. To further protect yourself against malaria while in Kenya, bring insect repellent with you.
There are hospitals and medical clinics throughout Kisumu. We would recommend purchasing travel insurance before you arrive, to ensure that you can receive high quality care if you fall ill during your stay without having to worry about costs.
Fundraising
We encourage volunteers to fundraise for specific projects. For instance, you can raise $200 US to pay a teacher at Akili School for a month, $1,000 to purchase a drip system or shade nets for one of our farms, $1,500 to purchase farm machines, $4,500 to sponsor 15 girls / a class for a year, or $20,000 to drill a well at the farm. There are many other uses to which funds can be put, including the purchase of general school supplies, or the expansion of any of our projects through the construction of new buildings, etc. Our partners at Mama Hope are willing to create a fundraising page for you on stayclassy.org where you can accept tax deductible donations from friends and family. Feel free to talk to us about what areas of our organisation are in particular need of support at the moment, or any specific use that you might have in mind for your funds. Our organisation does not have a reliable source of external funding. As such, these contributions are pivotal to maintaining and enhancing our capacity to carry out our work.
Packing suggestions
- Light shirts. Women can wear tank tops, but please ensure they are modest and your shoulders are covered when appropriate.
- Light pants, jeans or leggings are acceptable. Skirts should be knee length or longer. However, try to avoid wearing floor length dresses - rain, dirt roads, and such dresses to not mix well.
- Shoes: sandals and a pair of sneakers.
- Toiletries: the larger grocery stores in Kenya have a large selection of toiletries. To avoid extra baggage weight, we recommend only bringing products you cannot live without.
- Power Adaptor: We use the same power outlets as the UK here in Kenya. If you are not from the UK, you should bring with you an appropriate adaptor.
- Towel.
Things You Can Bring to Donate to the ROF
- Old but working iphones
- Laptops (New or gently used for the library / mHub)
- Shoes (All types)
- Socks (New packets only accepted)
- Children’s Underwear (New packets)
- Clothes (all types except school uniforms)
- Blankets and Bedsheets (Any color)
- Reading Books for all age groups (Novels, Bibles, text books, encyclopedias)
- Pencils/Pens/Erasers/Sharpeners/Chalk/Crayons/Colouring markers
- Mathematical sets
- Scientific Calculators (to be used in the library)
- Copybooks/Notebooks/Scrapbooks/ Drawing Books
- Educational Posters
- Footballs
- Football Kits
- Toy Cars
- Cuddly Toys
- Jigsaws/Games
- Hairbands/Scruncies/Hairclips
