A letter and a bad road were all it took for the St Joseph the Worker Catholic Church in Kangemi, Nairobi, to host the late Pope Francis on November 27, 2015.
Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, he was the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
According to the Parish Catholic Men Association moderator, Peter Magu, when they got wind that the Pope was to visit Kenya, he wrote to the Vatican representative in the country alongside Pascal Munjage, inviting him.
“After it was announced the places he was going to visit, we were not in the picture,” says Magu.
As assessments and arrangements were made regarding where he was to visit, it was noticed that the St. Austin Church in Mukuru kwa Njenga was inaccessible due to ongoing road construction and the Church's location.
The team behind the planning then settled on the Kangemi-based Church thanks to the letter sent by Magu and Munjage.
St. Joseph got the chance due to its proximity to Uhuru Highway and being home to a school and a dispensary.
“In the itinerary, they needed ambulances, parking for the vehicles within our school and fire services,” says Magu.
The government came in and connected the Church with three-phase electricity and tarmacked the connecting road to the highway.
“The father gave me a difficult task to coordinate with the committee that was running everything,” says Magu.
He says that they were given 45 minutes with the Pope, but the time was not enough, and his handlers gave them 30 minutes more in the plan.
“He ended up staying here for more than two hours, which affected the other places he was to visit.”
Pope Francis met children, the sick, physically challenged from all the Churches under the Parish.
“He said that his main theme was to meet with the people, and he did not want to be hurried up.”
Magu says that the experience of gifting the Pope will forever be etched in his memories as one of the best things to ever experienced.
Collins Otieno, a Parishioner, was at the time a technician.
He says that his knowledge of the Church's electricity and sound systems is what got him the ticket to sit in and listen to Pope Francis.
“It was not easy for all Christians to access the place, as Kangemi, we had been given 400 slots only,” says Otieno.
Happiness is the word he uses to describe his experience of being part of the team that made Pope’s visit a success.
“I was one among the few, with a special feeling and happiness,” he said.
His involvement got him some newfound fame thanks to the media coverage the Pope and the Church got during the visit.
Margate Njoroge, the Church moderator, vividly remembers the visit as her daughter was among those who got the rare Pope’s touch.
“One of the reasons why he came here is because this Church is run by the Jesuits, and the Pope was one,” she says.
Kenya is among five other nations in East Africa which are home to Jesuits, alongside Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda.
The African headquarters are in Kenya.
Njoroge says that she got to the Church at 3am to secure her place and feels lucky that her son was among those chosen to meet the Pope.
“I stretched my daughter for his [Pope] touch, but his security team pushed me. Luckily, he had seen us, and he stretched his hand to bless her,” she says.
According to Njoroge, she can see the blessing being manifested in the growth of her daughter, who is now 13.
Magu, Otieno and Njoroge say that Pope Francis’ death is personal due to their experience; they all called on the Catholic faithful to pray for one another as well as his family.
