Over the years I have had the incredible opportunity to travel to many great places. I have seen both wealth and indulgence as well as poverty and harshness.

As the years went by, I discovered the works of a man named Tim Hetherington. Tim believed, as do I, that the only way for someone to truly experience another culture (short of personally visiting) was to have that story brought home, (to life say to speak,) for them, through photographs, videos and personal stories. Tim’s work inspired me to do the same; to bring the world that is outside of your reach, into your homes, into your living rooms, through video, through photographs and through stories.

As I traveled, I found that those who had less, were more generous, more compassionate, more trusting and more faithful. Upon my visit to Kenya in January of 2013, I was awakened to the fact that many Canadians, myself included, are simply blind to that which is not visually presented to us. I took literally thousands of pictures during my time there. Pictures of children who faced great challenges, beyond the comprehension of North American children, pictures of adults who have endured hardships beyond that to which you or I could ever possibly imagine. Through it all, the most amazing thing happened. I experienced love and kindness like I had never felt before.

I met children, who rather than spend hours making excuses why they couldn’t go to school, would walk miles and miles and miles, often in treacherous conditions, just to get there. Children who genuinely wanted to learn. I met adults who had virtually nothing, but were willing to give all that they had, if you so desired it. This is a place I want everyone to experience, if not personally, then through photographs, videos and stories. Our Kenyan Kids is an organization that needs your help, to help those who so desperately need us.