THE EVANGELIZING SISTERS OF MARY IN TIKRIT MISSION
Tikrit Mission is located in Kenya West Pokot County in Masol Location and Tikit Sub-location. It is under the Catholic Diocese of Kitale.
Primary Evangelization in Pastoral Ministry, Health and Education Services in the community
The Sisters were invited by the local community who requested health services after a malaria outbreak that claimed the lives of many children and adults. A German Doctor, known as Dr David Rhoden, visited the area and witnessed the child mortality rate and was moved to construct a health facility for the community. Dr Rhoden died in a motor accident on his way from purchasing materials to complete the construction of the Health Centre. Fourteen years later, his family decided to fulfil the will of Dr Rhoden and Decided to invite the Evangelizing Sisters of Mary to continue with the project. Having been granted permission by the Local Ordinary of Kitale Diocese Rt. Rev. Maurice Anthony Crowley, the Evangelizing Sisters of Mary Constructed a convent and officially opened the community on 28th October 2019
BACKGROUND ON DR. DAVID RHODEN HEALTH CENTRE/MATERNITY
— The Plan
The plan for this Health Centre was initiated by a German Professor called Dr David Roden, who visited Tikit on his study tour. He realized that the area had lots of Mosquitos and people suffered a lot from Malaria and more especially Children where he witnessed two or more cases of child mortality in a day. Besides, Tikit is about 26 Kilometers away from Psigor where there was a Mission Health Facility run by some Catholic Nuns.
— The Vision
Dr David Rhoden believed that if he construct a Health Centre, this very nun would offer to come over and offer health services to the people of Tikit who had no means of transport to take them to the health Facility in Psigor. It is with this strong passion to save the lives of the people of Tikrit location that Dr David requested the village elders to give him six acres of land to be able to construct a Health Centre and fulfil his dream to save the people of Tikit. The community elders responded positively and allocated the six acres of Land where Dr David Roden immediately began construction of the Health Centre.
—The Story
All the plans came to a standstill for nearly fourteen years. Meanwhile, the People of Tikit kept pleading to Mrs Hidat Rhoden and the Children, to consider the will of Dr David Rhoden and fulfil the plan for the Health Facility; The family decided to approach the leaders of the very Sisters Dr David Rhoden had in mind i.e. the Missionary Congregation of the Evangelizing Sisters of Mary to take over the plan open a Health Centre.
JOHANNES PAUL MARIA SCHOOL
Johannes Paul Maria School is run and owned by the Missionary Congregation of the Evangelizing Sisters of Mary. The Idea of beginning the school was conceived when the first sisters visited Tikit to carry out need assessment in the area through the community invitation to establish a Health center in the area. On arrival in the area, the Sisters where welcomed some children whom they found sitting under the tree playing. As the Sisters requested to know if some of them do go to School but to their surprised, none of the children goes to school.
The Sisters responded positively and requested the Community to add more pieces of land so that they can open a Health Centre, a Nursery School and with time have a Centre for youth and women empowerment. The elders once again responded positively and allotted more acres of Land for the Sisters to construct a Convent House to enable them to offer health, education and social services to the community. The Congregation then constructed a convent house and partially equipped the health facility with some of the essential equipment’s and drugs and officially opened the Community on 28th October 2019.
