When the 8,000th baby took his first breath at Ruben Health Centre last week, nobody had to ask whether the lights were on, the nurses were present or the doors were open. They always are.
Our maternity unit opened on 18 May 2018. Five days later, on 23 May, Pricillah Wairimu became our very first mother and welcomed the first baby born at the Centre. That little boy is now 8 years and 5 months old, and he has grown up alongside the unit that welcomed him into the world.
Read MoreOn a rainy Saturday morning, one decision stood between life and loss. A newborn at Ruben Centre was struggling to breathe, and with hospitals on strike and resources stretched thin, hope seemed distant. For a brief moment, it felt easier to walk away.
But compassion intervened.
What followed was not one heroic act, but a chain of ordinary people choosing to stay. Nurses refused to give up, leaders persisted, and strangers stepped in. Months later, that fragile baby returned alive and thriving, a powerful reminder that sometimes saving a life begins with the courage to choose differently.
Read MoreThe arrival of a new baby in Mukuru once came with as much fear as joy. Too often, safety depended on chance rather than care. Over the last seven years, that story has slowly and steadily changed. Today, birth is no longer a gamble but a moment of protected life.
Read MoreA few months ago Br Frank heard about the closure of Edmund Rice Camps in Australia and given he was one of two founders of the whole Camps idea, he decided he would celebrate their closure by opening them up again here at Ruben Centre. There is a good history of camps at Ruben, but they were slowly squeezed out by the orchestra since every school holiday was taken up by music camps.
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