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Let's Help Revive The Career of William Kariuki, a Taxi Driver Who Lost his Limb in A Grisly Road Accident

Meet William Kariuki, a one-handed taxi driver from Thika's Makongeni Estate who plies his trade using his old taxi van at St. Mulumba Hospital, near Polysack Limited, Makongeni. 

In October 2013, Karis, as he is popularly referred to by his peers, lost his wife through ailment. And as fate would have it, early the following year, he was involved in a tragic road accident at Kinungi, Naivasha Road as he was coming back from his rural home in Magumu, Nyahururu in Nyandarua County. This accident changed a young man’s life forever. He along with the other casualties in the matatu they were travelling in were rushed and admitted at the Kijabe Mission Hospital. He spent more than six months in the facility where he incurred a huge hospital bill which has not yet been cleared fully as yet. Their family farm was put as security to cover for the bill.

The doctors were forced to amputate his right hand a factor that changed his active lifestyle completely. It was a hard transition and hard for him to accept that it was not going to be the same but he was nonetheless still determined about his future.

Determined to earn his living, Karis went back to his old manual car and back to his old trade as a taxi driver. He has been doing this for a while despite the challenges and the risks involved, considering that his was an old car whose most operations need some effort. It should not escape your mind that this is a Right-Hand Drive vehicle with its gear lever on the left hand side of the driver.

His story is simply one of a determined man who has vowed to overcome his challenges one day at a time.
It is for this reason that friends sat down and thought of coming up with a Funds Drive to assist him buy an automatic disability-friendly vehicle by March this year, one which he can engage gears once as he ferries his passengers. May be a special car designed to operate it with only one left arm.

With some input from Kamenu Ward 2017 MCA Aspirant Mr. Sam Chege (MC Sam) and a resident friend Madam Caroline Mwangi, the friends were this week able to constitute an interim committee to oversee the whole exercise and see to it that Karis’ dream of going on with his life is not sabotaged by his inability to acquire a disability-friendly vehicle at the moment. They came up with a proposal to have 300 friends each raising Kshs.1,000 to Kariuki's LEASE OF LIFE FUND.

They have agreed to use the interim Organizing Committee Treasurer Caroline Mwangi’s Mpesa Number as the avenue towards reaching this goal. Those willing to be part of this mission can send their donations via 0728976712. It will read Caroline Mwangi , who will later update and forward all proceeds to the Committee for William Kariuki's Fund.

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