St. Mary's Mission Hospital - Rift Valley

The shores of Lake Elmenteita is where you will find St. Mary’s Mission Hospital - Rift Valley run by a Maryknoll priest and doctor Fr. Bill Fryda. It is a beautiful setting with the lake framed by extinct volcanoes on one side and the escarpment of the Rift Valley on the other.

Lake Elementeita is a soda lake famous for flamingos and pelicans. It has no outlet so only tilapia fish are able to survive in its salty water. During the dry season when the water level falls, people “harvest” the minerals from the shore to sell to livestock owners for salt licks. It is a beautiful place. We wish we had brought along our binoculars. We could see patches of pink in the distance, but weren’t close enough to be able to see the birds.

The guest house.
We spent two nights there while I had a medical test. They have a guest house where people can stay while seeking medical treatment yet don’t need to be hospitalized. As we were checking in we were asking about the lake so they gave us a room on the second floor lakeside so we could view the lake from our window.

The mission hospital is extremely impressive. It’s only four years old. Fr. Bill Fryda is not only a Maryknoll priest but also a doctor. This is the second hospital he has established during his time in Kenya. His hospitals treat patients at cost in the Nakuru and Rift Valley area. In order to attract doctors and other medical personnel away from the big city comforts, the staff is provided housing for their families on the hospital grounds. Another amenity is a club house and a swimming pool for relaxation.

The women's ward.

We had a chance to meet Fr. Bill the first evening we were there. He was riding in his golf cart with his adopted granddaughter back to his house. We had a nice chat and he explained a little more about his work. His first hospital was built in Kiberia, the largest slum in Nairobi. (See our blog dated ********.) Once that hospital was running well, he felt called to open another hospital to help the poor in a rural area. Both hospitals are called St. Mary’s Mission Hospital.

Not only has he started the two hospitals, he opened a secondary school three years ago on the hospital grounds in Kibera, St. Mary’s School. The majority of the students in this school are bright street children who have been able to stay away from drugs, alcohol, sniffing glue and other vices so easily available to those who have no parents to guide them. They are on scholarship. During the month of December these students have no home to return to. So they go to St. Mary’s Mission Hospital – Rift Valley for the month where they are provided with housing, meals, meaningful work, free time and a beautiful setting away from the slum and streets. During the morning, they volunteer in the hospital. In the afternoons they enjoy free time including access to the swimming pool. Fr. Frieda laughed explaining they built the swimming pool before the chapel. Therefore they call themselves the church of the splashing water. The chapel is now under construction.

The day that we arrived was also the day that the 60 students from St. Mary’s School - Kibera also arrived. They stay in 8-man tents located on the hospital grounds. One of them, Kennedy, helped us check-in to the guest house. He later took us down to the pavilion near the lake so we could get a closer look. He was very articulate and a pleasure to chat with. Both evenings we watched a football (soccer) match between some of the staff and the high school boys. Some things are universal! What an opportunity for these young people and how lucky they are to be admitted to St. Mary’s School.