About Blessed Generation Kenya
The best outcome for any child is growing up in their own family, in their own community, with the support they need to build a stable future. Everything BG does is organised around making that possible — or, when it is not, coming as close to it as an institution can.
Because of that conviction, BG continues its investment beyond primary school — providing social-emotional guidance alongside academics, and supporting the families children come from wherever possible. That reduces longer-term risks: early dropout, exploitation, and crime. More importantly, it builds lasting resilience in the communities where BG works.
The result is measurable. A 98% KCSE pass rate. 75+ alumni now in university or professional careers. And some of those alumni now sponsoring the children who sit where they once sat.
Five programs. Every child covered — completely.
01
Education — every barrier removed, from first class to final degreen
01
Safe homes — family-scale, not institutional
01
Community outreach — keeping families together
01
Education — every barrier removed, from first class to final degreen
01
Safe homes — family-scale, not institutional
01
Community outreach — keeping families together
The Lighthouse Village — 14 foster homes now studied as a national model
Working couples take in BG children as full family members. Built in partnership with the Pharus Foundation. By 2025, grown to 14 homes. Other Kenyan NGOs are now visiting to study and replicate the model.
14
2017
40
Built over four decades by people who stayed long enough to see it work.
The first children are cared for in a small residential setting near Nairobi — basic shelter, food, and primary education. The name reflects a simple conviction: that these children, given the right conditions, would become a blessed generation for Kenya.
When the orphanage faced closure, Ria Fennema — a teacher from Hurdegarijp in Friesland who had first visited Kenya as a volunteer in 2000 — takes over management and moves to Kenya permanently. The organization begins to develop more structured education, qualified Kenyan staff, and a broader vision for what BG can become. Fester Medendorp joins in 2004.
Child protection services report 15,000 children in need along the Malindi coast — largely orphaned by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. BG surveys affected families and makes a discovery that will shape its entire model: many children can stay at home if their family receives targeted practical support. The outreach program is born before the shelter even opens. Land is purchased and both a shelter and a school are built within twelve months.
Child protection services report 15,000 children in need along the Malindi coast — largely orphaned by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. BG surveys affected families and makes a discovery that will shape its entire model: many children can stay at home if their family receives targeted practical support. The outreach program is born before the shelter even opens. Land is purchased and both a shelter and a school are built within twelve months.
Ria Fennema — Director
98%
KCSE pass rate — BG Ruiru, every year since 2015
75+
Alumni in university or professional careers
14
Lighthouse Village homes — a national model
~100 qualified Kenyan staff carry this work forward every day. Two people from the Netherlands started it — and stayed.
The real engine of Blessed Generation is its Kenyan team: teachers, social workers, healthcare staff, house parents, administrators, and outreach workers at all three locations. They are the reason BG works. Leadership from the Netherlands built and continues to shape the programs — but the daily delivery of care is the work of the Kenyan staff who chose this as their vocation.
Education — every barrier removed, from first class to final degreen
A trained teacher from Friesland who first visited Kenya in 2000 as a volunteer. When the orphanage faced closure in 2001, she took over management and moved to Kenya permanently. Over two decades later, she and her family call Kenya home. She publishes regular newsletters from the field — direct, honest accounts of the work that sponsors describe as the most grounding communications they receive from any organization they support.
Education — every barrier removed, from first class to final degreen
A trained teacher from Friesland who first visited Kenya in 2000 as a volunteer. When the orphanage faced closure in 2001, she took over management and moved to Kenya permanently. Over two decades later, she and her family call Kenya home. She publishes regular newsletters from the field — direct, honest accounts of the work that sponsors describe as the most grounding communications they receive from any organization they support.
Education — every barrier removed, from first class to final degreen
A trained teacher from Friesland who first visited Kenya in 2000 as a volunteer. When the orphanage faced closure in 2001, she took over management and moved to Kenya permanently. Over two decades later, she and her family call Kenya home. She publishes regular newsletters from the field — direct, honest accounts of the work that sponsors describe as the most grounding communications they receive from any organization they support.
DIRECTOR & CHAIR LADY OF THE BOARD
Ria Fennema
Hurdegarijp, Netherlands → Kenya · Since 2001
A trained teacher from Friesland who first visited Kenya in 2000 as a volunteer. When the orphanage faced closure in 2001, she took over management and moved to Kenya permanently. Over two decades later, she and her family call Kenya home. She publishes regular newsletters from the field — direct, honest accounts of the work that sponsors describe as the most grounding communications they receive from any organization they support.
Operations · BG Kenya
Fester Medendorp
Netherlands → Kenya · Since 2004
Joined Ria in Kenya in 2004 and has managed the operational, construction, and infrastructure dimensions of the organization ever since. From building classroom blocks in Ruiru to overseeing the development of the Lighthouse Village in Malindi, Fester’s contribution is foundational — if less visible than Ria’s in the storytelling. He and Ria have two children who grew up in Kenya.
Blessed Generation operates as two distinct legal entities. One manages on-the-ground operations in Kenya. The other serves as the funding and governance anchor in the Netherlands — run entirely by volunteers, so nothing is deducted between your gift and the programmes it funds.
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Execution
- Accountable to the Kenya NGO Coordination Bureau.
- Direct management of schools, residential homes, and medical clinics.
- Lead partner for local child welfare authorities in Coast and Nyanza.
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Provision
- ANBI status — donations fully tax-deductible for Dutch donors
- Run entirely by volunteers — no paid staff, minimal overhead
- €40/month costs the average Dutch donor ~€27 net after ANBI tax benefit
Next step
You now know who we are and what we have built. The next step is meeting the child your support would reach.
Browse the gallery of children currently waiting for a sponsor at BG Ruiru, Malindi, and Nyamira. Every profile is a real child enrolled in a real program. €40 per month covers everything they need. Tax-deductible for Netherlands donors.
