JACK : AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN

Hi y'all!

So, earlier on in the year, Tofauti on the Move had the chance to host an aspiring soldier in its internship Program. 

Jack Bevan Hook is a 22 year old Law graduate from the University of Birmingham, UK. While in Kenya, he expressed his interests in sports, health and fitness, socializing, reading, films, politics and history. His favorite food was chapatti and couldn’t help but admit he loved our Tusker...

But what made him stand out were his proper British mannerisms: he was always kind and courteous, he knew how to make people feel valued and appreciated.

Not only did Jack volunteer to teach in class, he also helped organize and participate in a football tournament for children from underprivileged homes. Better still, he put his law degree into use by providing professional counsel in drafting the UNESCO Youth Forum Constitution. The entire second draft is credited to him, work which he did on pro bono basis.

Jack was awesome at the Tofauti residence, and the debates he got into with other interns  concerning language, in terms of the differences between British English and American ‘creole’, were just hilarious!!

(Im sure if he was  Kenyan, this talented guy would be aspiring for political office, but alas, the way he wants to serve his nation is as a marksman in the army… he is the real 007! )

Here is a sample of his views from his report:

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Jack Bevan Hook –May to July 2011

Experience in the field

I arrived in Kenya on the 21st of May 2011 very excited to be in Kenya, from the United Kingdom to do an Aiesec Development Internship with ‘Tofauti on the Move.’ 

My internship fell into two distinct parts, the first being in the education field with Magoso Primary School in Kibera and with Scream Africa/Vijito School in Embakasi.  The second part of my internship involved me working as an intern at the Kenya National Commission for UNESCO. 

During the education part of my internship I taught sports, worked in social work field and helped to teach English. In Magoso Primary School I was their Sports Coach and in charge of their football team. 

(Jack with His team)
 Tofauti organised an under 14s football tournament called the ‘Vision 20/20 Blessed Football Tournament’ which brought together teams from all over Nairobi and was a great success. 

(Jack with other Tofauti members at the awards table)
 I helped run the tournament on the day as well as managing my team to runner up spot in the tournament final.  My time spent in with the schools was incredibly rewarding and I found it an absolute pleasure to be there, in particular the close relationship I enjoyed with the staff at Magoso Primary School made things very easy.

The rest of the time I spent at the Kenya National Commission for UNESCO Youth Forum and again had a brilliant time. I was really involved in the running of the office and I drafted the organisation’s first constitution.  It was a nice change of direction from the education side and the way I was again able to have lots of independence within the organization made it enjoyable and the fact that they were able to utilize my strength in law was an added bonus.

What were your expectations of the Tofauti Internship Experience? Have met them?

I was expecting a very rigid internship program, however to my pleasant surprise the internship offered lots of flexibility to pursue my interests within the schools I was involved with.  I thought I would have to stay within the core curriculum for my entire time here, however I was able to help out in those subjects when required but I was allowed to focus on promoting sports in schools and the social work side of things.  The work in the schools had surpassed my expectations of what I would get to do in my internship, then the chance to work with the Kenya National Commission for UNESCO was a real added bonus. The variety of experiences that Tofauti was able to arrange was fantastic and the content of the work was varied and challenging.

What did you get from the Tofauti Internship Experience? What value did we add to your life?

The Tofauti experience enabled me to get a true picture of the life here in Kenya, we did this by eating Kenyan foods each and every day, using public transport within Nairobi and around the country and going to places that Kenyans go to rather than the pure tourist sites.  In regards to working qualities, Tofauti added enormous value as it required you to be independent, speak publicly on a daily basis, to be able to interact with lots of different people each day, have a sense of responsibility and leadership skills. 

Lessons learnt outside the internship

The experience I have enjoyed here outside the day to day work has been something very special indeed. Initially when I arrived I was the only intern so I spent a great deal of time with Ryan (the Tofauti internship Program Manager)and his Kenyan friends, this meant that I was able to get a real experience of true Kenyan life here in Nairobi and I found it very interesting. I was taken to watch the Bamburi Rugby Super Series, go and experience real nyama choma (beef barbecue) and I went to local bars and throughout I was able to experience the authentic Kenya.

Interaction with other interns:

At the house by the end of my stay I was joined by interns from many other countries and I learnt a great deal about other countries and cultures, both similarities and differences from my own. It was always lots of fun and everybody got on really well and I hope I have made some friends for life. My fellow interns definitely have made this experience what it was and as a result a lot of fun and I would happily do the same all over again.  As interns we managed to get out of Nairobi and stay in Konza and in Mombasa, the later being an experience that I was so much more incredible than I could have ever imagine.

Opportunities discovered through the experience

The internship experience in regard to working qualities, added enormous value as it required you to be independent, speak publicly on a daily basis, to be able to interact with lots of different people each day, have a sense of responsibility and leadership skills.  

The opportunity for independent travel in Kenya was something different which I had discovered whilst here and the relative ease and cheap buses should make this something any further intern at Tofauti should consider. Experiencing the night buses to Mombasa was something I will not forget in a hurry!

What are the challenges you have faced while in Kenya?

There were a few challenges faced here in Kenya, the major one being able to get around in the city and learning to navigate our way to the various places we had to get to. After a few weeks it started to make more sense but generally it is really chaotic when it comes to walking around the city on foot and when using the public transport. It was also a daily challenge to ensure just because I was a European that I did not get ripped off by the matatus or the shop vendors.  The language was also a challenge at times, not everybody was able always understand my accent and likewise with many Kenyans I struggled to understand what exactly they were saying in the first few weeks.

•             Have your say:

My experience here in Kenya on the whole has been a very positive one. I would not hesitate to recommend any of my friends or family to come out here on this internship and I wish Tofauti all the best success in the future...

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Jack was just awesome! We wish him all the best in his pursuit to serve his country.

(Compiled by:

George Stanley

Documentation Guy

Tofauti on the Move)