In November 2011, Purity Elderly Care Foundation (PECF) a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) was registered in honor of the late mother of the founder and Chief Executive Officer, Ms. Wanjiku’s mother was diagnosed with cancer of the colon in 2009 at its final stages. Wanjiku says "I was too 'busy' to go back home to take care of my ailing mother and she and I knew very well that the cancer had m
etastasized and she did not have long to live". Six days to her mother's demise, Wanjiku went home on 28 May 2010 and her mother succumbed on 3 June 2010 in Wanjiku presence. After laying her mother to rest, Wanjiku returned to South Africa (SA) amid overwhelming soccer world cup (2010). She says her mind was occupied with the world cup and this is when it dawned on her that "if I had time to spend time on soccer, I also should have had time to give compassion to my ailing mother and more importantly support her with personal care giving like bath her, change diapers, es**rt her to hospital and help with taking medicine, plait her hair, sing with her among others for the period she had left" she exclaims. This drove her to a serious conviction to dedicate her whole life to serving the Older Persons of society. Although Wanjiku participated personally in philanthropic activities and with Rivers Foundation (under Rivers Church) in Johannesburg, SA, she begun by visiting and helping the Older Persons in Soweto and Alexander, Johannesburg. She says she mainly visited to give them compassion, es**rt the sick to hospital and clean homes, visit museums, listen to the rich SA history etc. She involved the Rivers Foundation (RF) (whose theme is "HELPING PEOPLE") in her activities, but due to the many diversity in activities of the RF, Wanjiku decided to dedicate and focus her charity activities to her calling of taking care of the Older Persons, both male and female who are vulnerable. While at it in SA, she explains "I felt my calling was back home where there is more need and where the so-cial fabric has altered family values, with most of us travelling around the globe". She took a decision to quit her well paying job and informed her employer, Lexmark International where she employed as a Project Manager, seconded to one of the largest financial institutions, Stanbic Bank. She explains 'this did not go down very well with my employer, friends and the church as they did not understand me or this calling I kept talking about. They all suggested that I go for counseling for a mental check up. Their surprise, I attended a few sessions which reported that I was normal and that it was a decision that was immutable and unstoppa-ble". "I wrote a concept paper which I believed I would work with and in August 2011, I packed my bags, left my high lifestyle of living in a posh house, luxury cars and globe roving, came home to Kenya to serve hu-manity which I have been doing with compassion, humility and commitment" She explains. Since then, she has been helping the Older Persons with the help of volunteers, community health workers, donors, sponsors and like-minded partners.
