The SFH Community is a community of courageous, determined, and hard working people. Our community is the people with a dream for the future. They are the ones who leave their homes and loved ones, to travel both near and far, to pursue these dreams. Education is what drives our community, and the hope and love of our communities sustain us. We are students of all levels, we are graduates, we are working professionals. Our community are those who are not afraid to be themselves. When the world around them tells them that they can’t and shouldn’t, they stand brave and keep on moving.
This past Thursday at Garissa University College, our community was under attack by a group of violent individuals whose vision of the future is bleak and small. We condemn the vicious acts carried out by Al Shabab against the students, and we are burdened by the lives cut short at the hands of these senseless acts.
We have great sorrow over the loss of 147 of the world’s future leaders. We mourn the 147 innocents young people who went to school through scholarships, through the extreme sacrifices of their parents and relatives who wanted a better life for them. We send love and sympathy to those who knew and loved them, who had so much hope for them; and for the families and communities these 147 were poised to support and sustain. Sisi ni Garissa; We are Garissa. We identify with the students and we come from the same stories and circumstances, and so we mourn the loss of 147 of our own.
We are inspired by victims, who stood strong in the face of death, even when they were targeted by their killers. We honor the students at Garissa who continue to be courageous, determined, and hard working, in the wake of this immense tragedy. We hope to follow your example, and continue to be a light in dark places.