St. Michael School Hosts Maasai Warrior
St. Michael School in Penn Yan hosted Isaac Kasura, a member of the Maasai tribe in Kenya in October as part of the school’s Kenyan connection. When Principal Dave Paddock invited Jim Nowak, a retired Fairport High School teacher to visit St. Michael School to talk about the school he was building in Maseno, Kenya two years ago little did he realize that it would lead to a strong connection between the two schools and eventually a visit by a real Maasai warrior to his small school in Yates County.
Paddock met Kasura when he visited the Mbaka Oromo School in Kenya in November, 2010 and invited him to visit America and come to St. Michael School. Kasura, a safari guide as well, traveled from his tribal homeland and spent a week at Paddock’s home on Keuka Lake.
“This was Isaac’s first trip out of Kenya and was quite an experience for him. He was fantastic with our kids and they loved him. Isaac speaks excellent English and is the father of two small children himself. It was a great experience for our students and really strengthened their overall global awareness, something we try to stress at our school,” Paddock commented.
The boys and girls at St. Michael have exchanged letters with the students at Mbaka Oromo for the last two years and have sent gifts to both the school students and Isaac’s children as well.
“Our connection with friends in Kenya has really helped our students learn about the world and to appreciate all that we have at St. Michael and in the United States. It also allows us to put into practice our important mission as a Catholic school to help others whenever and wherever we can,” states the St. Michael School Principal.
Paddock hopes to return to Kenya in the near future to visit Kasura and the school and will undoubtedly be bringing school supplies and other items from the boys and girls at St. Michael School for their friends at Mbaka Oromo School.
