The Maseno Project

The Rt. Rev. Simon M Oketch
Diocesan Bishop of Maseno North.

Bp Simon has been Diocesan Bishop for 13 years. He is a keen advocate of development in his Diocese and has been a regular attendee of New Wine conferences in the UK for many years. He is a keen sportsman and enjoys a round of golf at the Kakamega Golf Club.

Dr Apollo B. Orodho
Agricultural Project Co-ordinator

Dr Apollo has a Phd. from Phoenix Arizona and is a retired former Director of the Kakamega Division of the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute  KARI.

He has studied in many countries around the world and has been involved in many different aspects of agricultural research and development.

He brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the project. He brought the initial concept of farm schools to Kenya from models he had seen in Indonesia and Thailand.

Festus Owour
Field Manager & Micro Finance manager

Festus leads a team of 33 facilitators to run the 26 farm schools currently operating.

Festus is a talented football coach and has been involved in the project since starting on the 1st farm school in 2005. He became a facilitator, then an Assistant Manager and recently has moved to Field Manager. He is a tireless worker and is passionate about all he does.

Noel Lanya
Assistant Manager – Store house Manager

Noel manages the storehouse in Ekwanda as well as being involved in field activities too

She is also a Lay Evangelist and is Assistant Chairperson for Ekwanda Orphan Programme and devotes herself to her work. She is a gifted interpreter and speaker and loves working with the poor and outcast children in the region.

Japheth Mudalungu
Accounts Clerk

Japheth is a qualified book keeper and started with the project in April 2009 and has made a huge difference in the way the financial records and reporting has progressed, leading to a high degree of transparency. He is based in th storehouse at Ekwanda and also assists with sales and stock control.

Rev. Bruce Collins
Project Chairman

Bruce started his working life as a Chemical Engineer, later becoming a Marketing Manager in London with Unilever, a major multinational company. He was ordained in the Church of England in 1983, planted and led a new Church in Notting Hill from 1986 to 1990. He then moved to Harrow to be Vicar of Christ Church, Roxeth and St Peter’s, Harrow.  In 1991 he was asked to become Team Rector of four churches in the Roxeth area which he oversaw until 2003.

Since 1997 Bruce has been on the leadership team of New Wine initially overseeing the early development of New Wine’s networks in England and abroad, and since 2003 concentrating on New Wine’s international faith-sharing work and country networks. The international work now extends to over 20 countries in North America, Western Europe, Africa, India, South East Asia and New Zealand.

He has been visiting the Diocese of Maseno North since 2002, and has overseen the Maseno Project since it was launched in 2005.

He and his wife Siân, moved from Harrow to live in Wales in mid-2007, where he is now helping develop the work of New Wine Cymru (Wales).

Neil Johnson
Project Manager

Neil lives in Cardiff, Wales, with his wife Rebecca, and their three children Lois, Nathanael and Suzanne. Having been born in Wales, as a young child Neil's family emigrated to New Zealand where he was brought up. Neil has had a wide variety of experience in life, including working on various farms, preaching in many churches, and making visits with his family to farming related Christian work in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

From Home Neil runs his own Landscape Gardening business.  He enjoys time with his family, being outdoors as much as possible, and playing the odd game of field hockey. Neil and Rebecca and the children meet with other Christians in their local church, Llandaff North Methodist Church.

Revd Dr Stephen Hance
Trustee

Stephen is Vicar of Ascension Balham Hill in south London, where he has served since 1999. He is a published author and has a doctorate in church leadership. He travels widely to teach on leadership and mission, and particularly loves to travel to western Kenya, where he was born.

John Price
Trustee & Treasurer

John lives in Harrow and attends Christ Church Roxeth where the project started.. He is a semi-retired accountant who is currently treasurer of several small charities and has a heart for God’s Kingdom to grow. He has been a Trustee since the start of the project.

Rev’ Fraser McDermott
Trustee

Fraser is Vicar of St Cuthbert’s North Wembley, London, UK. He comes from New Zealand and has lived in the UK since 1986.

Fraser first visited the project in 2007 and has been a keen advocate of the Maseno Project ever since.  St Cuthbert’s has been sponsoring FFS's since 2007.  He has been a trustee since 2009.