The Mamas of Asembo Bay

Asembo Bay, KENYA — Here in a small village on th shores of Lake Victoria, about an hour’s drive from Kisumu (not far from where Barack Obama’s Luo grandmother lives) is a most remarkable group of women: The Asembo Bay Women’s Cooperative.

They are 26 in number, nearly all of them widows, and they care for about 70 children (more than a few of whom are orphans). In this part of the world, when a woman is widowed the custom is for her to be “inherited” by another male member of her husband’s family, usually leaving her pregnant, destitute, and with disturbing increasing frequency, HIV positive.

These remarkable women said no and got organized. Together they run a number of businesses – from farming and wholesale fish smoking, to dairy farming and milling ground nuts (a staple in the diet of this area).

We spent the day with them on Saturday and Sunday. The women, who wear matching regal purple dresses, welcomed us with open arms (literally) and fed us, body and soul, before dancing for us and with us (we’ll spare you the video of us mzungus dancing for now) and finally, praying for us.

Marvelous. Stunning, really. Such an immense blessing.

Here’s a video of the mamas (as they are called) dancing for us, followed by some pictures of the Mamas and children from Asembo Bay, and finally a word from one of the young widows herself.