During our recent group trip, WECO founders Rebecca and Jenny sat down with Hellen Nkuriaya, founder of the Tepesua CBO, to learn more about her powerful work lifting women out of poverty and providing pathways to education for underprivileged Maasai girls. Hellen shared the story of how her work began: as a former primary school teacher, she would often encounter women asking for food to feed their children. She consistently gave what she could, while knowing this model of support wouldn’t be sustainable for either her or the women.
“Most of the women used to come to my door for food. I would help when I could, but I knew they needed something more — a way to sustain themselves.”
Her realization planted the seed for what is now the widows’ village: a safe haven for vulnerable Maasai women who lost their husbands and had little means to support themselves and their children. She designed a program for women to build the skills necessary to earn a living and create opportunities for themselves and their families. The women’s program began simply: with beadwork and sewing, projects that could be taught and shared without formal education. Women learned to make jewelry, sew reusable sanitary pads for girls, and make eco-friendly shopping bags to sell locally as well as to tourists. These small enterprises give women the financial stability to afford basic necessities like food, healthcare, and some school fees for their children.
The Tepesua CBO has since expanded to include a primary school for around 120 students in grades PP1-5, and as of 2025, a sustainable community farm that will serve as an income-generating engine for the entire community. By planting fruit trees, vegetables, and staple crops, the women will be able to nourish their families while building resilience against droughts and food shortages. The long-term plan is for each woman to tend her own plot, keeping the profits from selling produce at local markets. As a traditionally pastoralist culture, this is a huge step for the community, and will enable them to be agile and adaptable to challenges that come their way, including climate change and the growing complication of grazing land restrictions due to increased private property. Running the farm will also help teach the community about the importance of saving and reinvesting for the future. Eventually, Hellen and her team hope to build partnerships with local banks like KCB to support microcredit programs that empower women to create their own enterprises and produce additional income and opportunity.
The heart of Hellen’s work is reflected in the stories of the women and children whose lives have been transformed by her efforts. Take Nataiya, a widow with five children. Married off at just 13 to a man many decades her senior, she was left alone to provide for her family after his death. Now, her children attend the Tepesua school, and her son, Naoi, serves as a sort of class president, working with the other students and helping with day to day school activities. Nataiya volunteers her time tirelessly, cooking for the community, caring for the village sheep, and supporting Hellen with her many projects. She has become the unofficial president of the widows’ village, helping introduce the concept of volunteering and community work to the other women. Our volunteer group met Nataiya during our visit, and the women in our group were invited to help her ‘mud’ her house—spreading a mixture of cow manure, dirt, ash, and water over the exterior to reinforce it—a task traditionally performed by only women and through invitation. We were honored to work alongside her and the other women in the village, and were rewarded with some of the best Kenya Chai we drank during our entire trip!
Later that day, our group visited with the entire widows’ village to present the women with donated items we brought with us. Among the items were beads, pliers and jewelry-making tools, and period underwear donated by our partners at Saalt (for both the women and the students at the school). We were all incredibly moved by one comment from a woman who shared that, for years they had been using their teeth to help with their beadwork. With the jewelry-making tools we brought with us—such a small gift by our standards—she was overwhelmed with gratitude. She told Hellen, who translated for us, how she can “now die with dignity,” because she had the right tools to do her craft and that her work is respected.
These ripple effects extend to Hellen’s former students as well. For example, Siamanta, once a child supported by Hellen, went on to earn a master’s degree in sustainable agriculture and has now returned to lead the farm project, bringing both her education and her lived experience back to her community. Her vision of a food forest is now transforming the village into a hub of sustainable farming and women’s enterprise.
And, all of our work this year with the Tepesua CBO has been contingent on Wuama, another of Hellen’s students whom she raised as her son. Today he is a university graduate and community leader, supporting vulnerable boys and girls and serving as our liaison for the Tepesua CBO projects. Keeping track of all these projects is not easy. Wuama is a critical support figure for Hellen, helping her with the widows’ village, farm project, mentorship program, school operations, and project development. His story reminds us that Hellen’s model has created a sustainable future for her projects by involving the younger generation—so this important work can continue long after she is gone.
Even beyond Tepesua, Hellen works to open doors. She has partnered with United States International University–Africa (USIU) to ensure her girls have a chance at competitive higher education opportunities. Her former student Selea earned admission and sponsorship there, paving the way for others to follow. But the road is not an easy one. Girls often fall through the cracks between ages 13–15, when they are most at risk of being married off. Hellen works tirelessly to keep these girls on track, and one critical component of doing so is through mentorship programs that help show the girls what is possible if they work hard and stay in school. The girls who have engaged in mentorship are much more likely to succeed—which is why WECO is focusing on expanding this program in particular.
Hellen’s personal journey has also not been without obstacles. As a young Maasai woman who was also married off at a young age, she has worked hard to gain the respect of elders to be recognized as a community leader. This took years of persistence and setbacks. Yet today, she is sought after for her wisdom, invited to share her vision at county and national levels, and has been recognized with national awards, including being named #7 on Kenya’s 20 most influential women’s list in 2024. She was also nominated by the First Lady of Narok County to receive an Honorary PhD. Her leadership is not only respected, it is celebrated, and remains central to the success of these programs. 
WECO is now preparing for our next phase of work with the Tepesua CBO: training women in sustainable agriculture, forming savings cooperatives, and mentoring the next generation of girls. Planting for the food forest is expected to begin this October—with an initial crop of onions due to their strong market value—and the first harvest is anticipated for December. Women will be supported by agricultural trainers, including graduates like Siamanta, ensuring skills and knowledge remain in the community. By blending immediate relief such as food, shelter, and schooling with systemic change through skills, income, and leadership, the Tepesua CBO is creating a model that will ensure it lasts for generations.
As Hellen describes, “I want to leave behind something that will live in people’s hearts, not just on paper.”
This work is critical because it is not only community-driven and culturally rooted; it is quite literally a homegrown solution shaped by those who intimately understand the specific local challenges. It proves that when women lead the change, families are healthier, traditions endure, and communities grow stronger.Our goal for the widows’ village is to make it a model for sustainable community empowerment in East Africa; one that can include more Maasai women in need and that can be replicated by other women’s groups. Hellen would like to continue welcoming more women to the widows’ village who have very little opportunity to provide for themselves.
We are honored to partner with Hellen and the Tepesua CBO in sowing these seeds of hope and resilience. Our work demonstrates how real impact can happen when communities lead the change. It shows how women and girls, given the tools and opportunities, can transform not only their own futures but those of their families, communities, and future generations.
Together, we are helping to ensure Maasai women and children not only survive, but thrive, carrying forward a legacy of dignity and empowerment.
See this video of our interview with Hellen to learn more!
