Internships – HEART Africa

Each intern accomplishes a project based on HEART’s current needs and the skills and interests of the intern. In the past, interns worked with the WEEP (Women’s Equality Empowerment Project) women to develop long-term business plans, made a presentation to be used for HEART fundraising for the Freedom for Girls Project, designed and authored newsletters for HEART’s three main projects (Women’s Equality Empowerment Project, Orphans and Vulnerable Children, and Freedom for Girls), and organized a large youth event.

Interns have interests ranging from intercultural studies to business and marketing. Whether your passion is medicine or photography, there is a place in the HEART internship program for you.

In addition to an individual project, interns are assigned a mentor staff member and work alongside HEART staff daily. This includes travel to upcountry locations in Kenya, various slums, and local events and presentations. Interns often help with health education seminars in schools, as well as help with basic office organization around the HEART Lodge in Nairobi.

HEART longs to see interns grow spiritually, emotionally, intellectually, through experiences and in character during his or her time in Kenya, so we provide various opportunities for growth in all areas. We keep our interns busy with work (and fun!), so join us and expect a memorable stay in Kenya!

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If you’re interested in interning at HEART, please contact teams@africaheart.com for more information.

COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement Policy for Trips to KENYA 2022

For entry into Kenya, all trip participants are required to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative PCR test result 72 hours before departure. There will be no paper verification of COVID-19 test results and vaccination certificates upon arrival into Kenya. Travelers should upload both documents into Global Haven before boarding their flight via www.globalhaven.org.

To view more information: https://ke.usembassy.gov/covid-19-information/

Interns

2021

Hi, my name is Chloe Powell and I am a freshman at Bellarmine University. I am majoring in Communications and minoring in International Studies. I hope to get my Masters in Business and pursue some sort of Christian nonprofit/mission work as a career. For several years now, I have felt a calling to overseas mission work and I am very excited for this opportunity to get my feet wet with international living and ministry in Kenya. I love HEART’s mission to empower the poor through self-sustainability and long-term development, as well as their mission to share the love of Jesus Christ. Some fun facts about me are that I am a quintuplet, I run cross country and track at my college, and I am a big dog lover.

My name is Lilly Penaloza, and I will be graduating from Elon University in May with a degree in Applied Math. For a long time, I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to do after college. But I have had an interest in missions ever since I was 10 and went on a family mission trip to Mexico. The bond I formed with the kids I met stuck with me, as did the greater understanding of suffering that I got to see firsthand. Since then, my heart was always drawn to anything mission related, in many different capacities. This passion was solidified when I spent a summer on my own working with missionaries in Peru.

That was where I realized that I wanted to become a doctor, and use that to do mission work one day. My dad went on a medical mission trip with HEART, and when he got back and told me about it, all I could think was that that was exactly what I wanted to do with my life. I cannot wait to go down to Kenya, meet the HEART team, meet the women they work with, and shadow a medical team. I think I can gain a deeper understanding for these women, this culture, while spreading love and the gospel to them.

My name is Jackson Powell, and I am a freshman at Bellarmine, majoring in nursing. A couple fun facts about me are that I am a quintuplet and I love rock climbing. My future plans are to hopefully graduate with flying colors and get a job as a nurse anesthetist. I am super excited for this opportunity to serve the people of Kenya in whatever way I can and show them the love of God.

2019

My name is Ashley Randolph and I am a graduate student studying criminal justice at Sacramento State University. For the longest time my heart has been drawn to being a part of positive impacts in not only my community and nation, but in the world. This passion is what led me to go on my first mission trip to Kenya with HEART. My two weeks there were unlike anything I had ever seen or experienced. I was completely drawn to HEART’s vision to encourage women to thrive and strive past their circumstances. HEART showed me the Kenyan culture which I found to be filled with abundant joy and beauty different than what I see in the United States. This became a part of my heart and spirit when I returned back to home. Before I even left Kenya last summer, God was prompting my heart that I would be back. I am so grateful and excited to be able to intern with this amazing organization and to be able to be a part of what God is doing through HEART.

2018

My name is Kendra Barnhard and I am currently in a Registered Nursing program with American River College. I had the joy of partnering with a local church for a two week missions trip to HEART and then stayed for an additional six week internship.

Medical missions have been a dream of mine for the past eight years now. I hope and dream to be able to share the gospel of Jesus Christ to families who have never heard it before, respond to and rebuild communities after natural disasters, and have a non-profit that can be a networking of several different Christian non-profits serving disadvantaged communities with holistic aid and the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The HEART team worked with me to find a way to match the skills and experience I was looking to grow with the mutual areas that they desired growth and development of. I got to meet many of the women of WEEP with my missions team, giving me a fuller picture of all the amazing work that HEART does in the Kenyan community. I then worked in the Kenyan HEART office for majority of the internship duration and was so encouraged to discover how impactful administrative work truly is. Working behind the scenes of HEART was a joy that I never could have imagined and it really helped open my eyes for how I too can build a non-profit that shares the redemptive love of Jesus Christ one day.

I will never forget what a joy it was to serve alongside HEART, and I greatly hope to be able to partner with them again someday.

2017

My name is Ruthie Painter and I am a sophomore in college at a community college in Colorado Springs, Colorado. I have yet to specify my degree, but I know that God will guide me. Part of the reason I came to intern with HEART was to get a better understanding of what God is leading me towards. God reveals to us slowly but surely what his calling is for our lives and I am thankful to be learning so much while I am here for 2 months. I still don’t know specifically all the details of what my college career will look like, but isn’t that all a part of the adventure God takes us on? Whatever degree I achieve I know it will somehow tie into mission work!

I have always had a huge heart for Africa and from a very little age God told me I would come to serve the people here, but I didn’t know where in Africa I would go. Now that I am here for the first time I know it was Kenya all along. I love missions and spreading Jesus’ love and freedom to the nations and I am so thankful to be here partnering with HEART. I absolutely love being out in the field, traveling to the slums to meet new women and many new smiling faces, playing with the precious babies and children, talking with the school girls and boys, discovering new characteristics of God (HEART Lodge helps with this) and all his unique ways of teaching us lessons, and becoming extremely close with the Kenyan culture. My heart and soul is so on fire when I am out there loving the beautiful people of Kenya. I feel so at home here and I know that is because God intended for me to here in this exact moment all along. Kenya and HEART has become my second home and I am so grateful to have been able to be a part of this remarkable organization. Despite my skin color and American spirit, my heart is Kenyan. I get along so well with the warm and inviting culture that I am surrounded by. The memories I made and the knowledge I have obtained is what I will always hold onto. I will be back for more!

2014

Max Brown – Intern Coordinator

Max Brown is a 20 year old student at Baylor University, currently studying International Business. He was born and raised in Houston, Texas, and enjoys running, reading, sports, the outdoors, and spending time with family and friends. Max spent a little over two weeks in Kenya with HEART last summer, and can’t wait to go back and serve.

Poppy Markou

My name is Poppy Markou and I’m a 24 year old graduate of Hofstra University with a Bachelors degree in Political Science from Long Island, New York. I will be attending law school this fall with the hopes of eventually practicing in the area of public service, concentrating on international human rights violations. Growing up my heart has always been passionate about helping people and standing up for those who have no voice. My good friend Benje told me about his experience at HEART and after visiting the HEART website, I immediately fell in love with their mission and vision. When my “old school” Greek father gave me permission to travel to Africa for the summer, I knew my internship with HEART was part of my heavenly fathers plan all along. I am absolutely thrilled at the opportunity to work with HEART and look forward to falling in love with the people of Kenya this summer.

Jordan Perkins

I started going to Kenya 2 years ago through a church in Sacramento, CA. The first trip was truly eye-opening and life changing. Upon returning to the States after that first trip, I knew I had to go back. It seemed like forever before the next summer came around, and I could return to Kenya. This year, I am so excited to be serving as an intern, and to have the opportunity to spend an extended amount of time in Kenya. Time spent in Kenya is a different kind of experience. Whether the day consists of working around the HEART compound, going to one of the WEEP centers and building relationships with the women there, traveling upcountry to build a house, or spending time at any of the other HEART projects, every day ends in exhaustion, but so fulfilling because of the activities of the day I find myself striving to hold onto the precious memories I never want to forget.

I am going into my sophomore year at Biola University in Los Angeles. I am a nursing major, and business and bible minor. Someday, I hope to use these skills on the mission field (or maybe in the States), working towards the completion of the Great Commission.

2013

Janet White – Intern Coordinator

I first traveled to Kenya in 2007 and have returned as often as possible ever since. I have been working with Christ Care Ministries in Migori, Kenya as their U.S. representative. My husband Wayne and I spent two months in Kenya in 2008 and helped arrange a HEART seminar on HIV/AIDS prevention for over 1,000 people in the Migori region. HEART has continued to play an important role in Christ Care Ministries as they reach out to the widows and orphans in their area.

I have been a teacher at Forest Lake Christian School for the past sixteen years. I have also been active in my church, Sierra Grace Fellowship, and was the chairman of the missions’ team for five years. My heart’s desire is to see the name of Jesus proclaimed in all nations, to share His love with all those He brings into my life, and to serve Him faithfully.

I have loved serving as the 2013 intern coordinator for HEART! It has been an amazing experience sharing life in Kenya with four delightful interns from various backgrounds and nationalities. God is clearly at work in and through HEART and it has been an honor to be a part of the HEART staff.

Tomoko Ichiyanagi

Meghan McKinney

My name is Meghan McKinney, and I am a 21 year old psychology major at Hollins University, from Northern Virginia. I first came to HEART in 2011 as a summer intern, not sure of what to expect. I left at the end of that summer with a heart full of love for the people of Kenya, a head full of unforgettable memories, and a passion for the work that HEART does. This summer I had the privilege of completing my third internship for HEART. Even after three internships, I still find myself loving every new experience, and learning new things every day. For the past two summers, my intern projects focused mainly on the HEART lodge, and the Kids For School project. This summer I have had the pleasure of working with WEEP, or Women Equality Empowerment Project, and a HEART Lodge project. At this point, HEART has become my second home, and my second family. I love the HEART staff dearly, and I have found amazing, lifelong friends through the internship program.

Phillip Magee

I am a physical therapist who graduated from the School of Physical Therapy at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in 2006. I currently practice at the University of Southern California Keck Hospital in Los Angeles, working primarily with patients who have had, or are awaiting for, heart procedures. I chose to intern with HEART because they are a Christian based organization that has a very broad reach throughout Kenya. I was able to travel throughout southwest Kenya and participate in multiple experiences from giving exercises to women weakened by HIV/AIDS, to feeding young children, to preaching at Bible studies and church, and much more. After interning with HEART, I have even more admiration for this great organization and would not hesitate recommending this to anyone interested.

Project: Providing progressive home exercise programs to the women in the WEEP program.

Heather Schmit

Heather Schmit is a 21 year old graduate of the University of Montana with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology. Born and raised in Sheridan, Wyoming, Heather loves the outdoors, running with her dogs, horseback riding, reading good books, and spending time in the Word. As an intern during the summer of 2013, Heather worked on a project called Hearts for Girls, designing a model to connect school girls in the United States to support school girls in Kenya with sanitary napkins through the Freedom for Girls Project at HEART. This was Heather’s first trip to Africa, and she is looking forward to returning!

2012

2011

2010

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