03/12/2024
WHO, HOW AND WHY GADY???
GADY is the abbreviation of GACHEGE DIASPORA YOUTH GROUP.
GACHEGE is a small city center in Githobokoni Ward, Gatundu North Constituency, Kiambu County. It’s the furthest center of the Northern west side of Gatundu North with a population of a medium density. It has an open swath of land that has strategically located homes.
From the Kikuyu dictionary, let’s understand this bucolic word called “ GACHEGE”
The word “chege” is from the word “njege”. And “njege” which is the kikuyu name for an Erethizon dorsatum i.e. a porcupine. Now a small “njege” is called “gachege” and thus the name “gachege”. Therefore through this philosophy we tend to think that this center was named after a person called “chege” which is a variant of a name of who hunted tu-chege. I.e. small porcupines. Therefore from this we tend to believe that back then, that’s the best man gachege could have produced, a hunter of porcupines. But of today, let’s know what Gachege is known for and why GADY choose to be identified by this very name.
Despite the fascinating nature of this name, this very center holds the dearest social amenities for the constituents around.
To start with, we have the renowned and famous St Teresa’s of Avilla Gachege Catholic Church Parish located here, just a few kilometers from the Gachege Tea Factory, one of the largest Tea processing industries in Gatundu North and Kiambu County, Gachege Health Care Dispensary a facility that is fully operational to provide health services to the neighboring residents, also not forgetting the centers for academic pursuance we have Gachege Primary and Gachege Secondary Schools that serve to provide knowledge of books and exposure to the residents, and as if that is not enough, we have the Gachege Sports Centre, one of the largest Sports Centers in Gatundu North where most events with large audiences are held especially church events, schools sports as well as Governments Events. The list for these is inexhaustible, but at least now we can visualize Gachege.
Most of the residents in Gachege are committed in Agriculture. They pro-actively engage in Tea Farming, pineapples farming, Avocado Farming, Poultry keeping, cattle rearing among other economic activities. This makes them self-reliant and sets the Human Development Index (HDI) at a verge of increasing rapidly if well taken care of, having looked into the economic & social aspects of development at Gachege.
Having said that, let’s get to know how this famous, celebrated, notable, Eminent, Popular, and well known GADY came to existence.
To begin with, GADY has its strong foundation and roots deeply interconnected to St Teresa’s of Avilla Gachege Catholic Church Parish. Back then , during our times as primary school pupils, all the way to high school life then as the church youths of those times, church not only served as our place to fetch spiritual nourishment, also it was our home of our social and moral welfare. We really enjoyed being together and taking part in the various activities the church could provide by then. Some of them including: Mass animation which happened every month, Mass serving which made some of us aspire to become priests and nuns, General Cleanings, sports and other activities. One notable activity that we can’t afford to forget was cleaning the Parish Beast i.e. the Parish Priest’s Car. I mean the cars all the priests used to drive back then used to always shine regardless of the day, either on a weekday or weekend. This was a must do. We even thought that one of us could have ended up as a carwash attendant but fortunately out of commitment and hard work all of us have clinched to bigger jobs and still climbing on the ladder.
Surprisingly, when we finished our high school education, most of us transitioned to further our studies in some of the best higher education institutions in our country including; KCA university, Zetech University, Kabarak University, NIBS Technical College and not forgetting the one and only JKUAT amongst other institutions.
Listen now, out of the bond that we had established and cultivated while at Gachege, learning to survive without one another then in the urban settings became like a nightmare to us. This was evident every time we met back at home during the festive seasons. From this very reason of missing one another, the need to extend our bonding outside Gachege arose and that’s how we came up with the idea of forming GADY to enhance our meetups and interactions.
This year 2024 as we celebrate our 4TH Anniversary, we have numerous milestones to really thank God for as we celebrate our success so far. Just to mention but a few;
1. Every one of us who went to further their studies has completed their first levels of degrees and diplomas. In this, GADY played the role of moral support to one another, motivation and enlightenment.
2. The social and quality network build through GADY is indomitable and more is expected as time goes by.
3. Financial literacy through GADY savings have been another milestone achievement for the GADY Members.
4. The successful events held to give back to the society that have been organized and executed by GADY Members at Gachege and its surroundings are countless, from awareness programs, mentorships in schools, church participation alongside other activities have been a big win for GADY.
5. Welfare support during times of need is another notable thing we really count on us GADY as we clearly fathom that No Man Is an Island.
With a vision of creating a better everyday lifestyle for ourselves and other youths, we believe and uphold on to our mission of enhancing our interactions, empowering ourselves, transforming ourselves to be self-reliant, independent and key to play up in our community development.
To achieve this, we are all in our day to day lives guided by a number of values including; deeper understanding of our faith, integrity, respect, empowerment, diversity, positivity and a strong believe to ourselves. We are well known for bringing hope around and living the ideal us in all aspects. For GADY members it’s either GADY OR THE LATTER.
In a nut shell, GADY members can be described as YOUNG MINDS WITH BRIGHT FUTURES.
ART BY
MURIITHI ALEX-FOUNDER & CHAIRPERSON GADY.
