Sharing Guy's Journey

Thoughts, comments, observations, reactions, enthusiasms

  • Personal History
  • History
  • Art & Architecture
  • Music
  • Nature
  • Travel
  • Current Events
  • Journal
  • Knowledge Services

Guy’s African Family (Complete with Namesake)

April 24, 2011 By Guy St. Clair

As these African notes begin to wind down (after all, it’s now been nearly four months since I left Nairobi and the wonderful friends I got to know throughout Kenya), it seems appropriate to share a few more photographs of my African “family.” While I had noted the relationship in a previous post, there had not been time to edit the photographs, and I published just a couple.

Here’s what I wrote in that December 31, 2010 post:

Another highlight was a visit to Nyanguru Village, to go to Charles’s home and visit with his children and be with his and Jane’s family. I had visited Nyanguru Village, near Kisii, earlier in the year because Mr. Charles (who started out as my driver and quickly became one of my best friends in Kenya) had invited me to get to know his family. Go here to read about that visit.

 

Although I had been to Nyanguru Village before, this visit in December was very special because now I was going to have the opportunity to visit my African namesake. Claire Kwamboka Ombongi Masese, born just a few weeks earlier, is names for Charles’s recently deceased sister, and her first name is taken from my last name. I was very honored when Charles and Jane connected to “St. Clair” and chose to name their baby Claire. We’re calling her “Angel Claire,” which is her daddy’s special name for her. It was a wonderful day in Nyanguru Village (and in Mr. Guy’s heart) when we went to see Claire and all of Charles’s wonderful family.

Now I have the photographs of that family gathering, at Charles and Jane’s house on December 22, 2010. You can view them here.

Filed Under: Personal History Tagged With: Kenya - Nyanguru Village nr. Kisii, Masese (Charles Ombongi), Masese (Claire Kwamboka Ombongi)

Guy St. Clair is a writer and editor living in New York City. In his blog, Sharing Guy’s Journey, Guy writes about any subject that crosses his mind (some friends refer to the blog as “Guy’s online journal”).  In his professional life, Guy is the Series Editor for Knowledge Services, from De Gruyter Saur in Munich and Berlin. 

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts

  • Frances Hesselbein: A Friend of the Heart, Forever January 23, 2023
  • Personal History: Knowing Frances Hesselbein January 23, 2023
  • The Power of Purpose January 19, 2023
  • The Hours: A Follow-Up December 16, 2022
  • A New American Classic from The Metropolitan Opera December 6, 2022
  • Vancouver: A Very Different Work of Public Art November 13, 2022
  • Vancouver: Christ Church Cathedral November 3, 2022
  • Vancouver: A Very Welcoming City October 29, 2022
  • Crossing Canada by Train (4) October 19, 2022
  • Crossing Canada by Train (3) October 19, 2022
  • Crossing Canada by Train (2) October 18, 2022
  • Crossing Canada by Train (1) October 17, 2022
  • Aboard Amtrak’s Maple Leaf to Toronto October 10, 2022
  • Vienna: A Third Memorial October 9, 2022
  • Vienna: Remembering the Holocaust October 2, 2022

Copyright © 2023 Guy St. Clair. All Rights Reserved.