Action in Focus dancers perform during the launch of the 9th edition of Kisima Awards in Nairobi. Photo/DENNIS OKEYO
When Martin Mcnally met Celestine, he never thought their union would turn to be more than just a marriage.
Today, they are dance partners, using their talent in music to aid medical camps in poor areas.
Action in Focus is the name of the dance group comprising four members who are all related. Martin and Celestine are a married couple.
The other members are Joanna Richard, a sister to Celestine and Michael Mcnally, a twin brother to Martin.
“We are a family and share a common interest in music. We decided to use our talents to raise funds for free medical camps,” said Martin.
The group was formed in 1997 and they have been dancing in Kenya since 2000 after spending the previous years performing in Dubai, USA, Canada and the United Kingdom.
Dance moves
Theirs is a talent which has seen the showcase their mastery in dance moves in Kenya and international performances, get paid, buy medicines or assemble teams of volunteer doctors and nurses to hold free health care camps in poor regions.
Unlike Mrs Mcnally, who is a professional dancer, Joanna is a hairdresser, Michael is a social worker while Martin, who heads the group, studied community development and has just completed a course as an emergency medical technician at the Kenya Red Cross.
Though talented in dance, the group counts on Mrs Mcnally, their choreographer to polish their moves.
“Other than my wife who is a dance instructor, we all have our professional fields. Her lessons come in handy for our performances,” said Martin.
What lured them into dance philanthropy?
As a community development worker, Martin narrates numerous experiences with communities in Kenya who can hardly access medical care either because they live far from the health facilities or simply have no finances.
It is a situation he says is different from the USA where he hails from and Taiwan where he worked before coming to Kenya.
“I have worked in Taiwan where the lifestyle is middle level. This is unlike Kenya especially in the rural areas where people often do not receive the necessary medical attention,” he said.
They count on Michael, who is a social worker, to identify places where their services are most needed.
And for the sisters, living in Kenya has given them real lessons of what it takes to struggle with insufficient budgets to cater for medical care.
“My sister and I are Germans, but have been raised up in Kenya. We have interacted with both countries and although it is not a perfect situation in Germany, Kenya is more in need,” said Ms Richard.
When we caught up with the quartet at a ceremony to mark the relaunch of the Kisima Music Awards, they had just concluded a medical camp in Mwingi which was held in mid March and were anticipating another in Narok to be held this month.
On average, the group holds one camp every month. They say this is not enough, but given the limitation in income from the performances, it is the much they can achieve for now.
“The local shows do not bring in as much money as shows abroad,” said Ms Richard.
On average, at each medical camp, 700 people get different forms of medical assessments.
In the past, their focus was checkups for malaria, recurrent eye illnesses and lifestyle conditions such as hypertension and diabetes.
According to Ms Richard, last year was the most successful of their years in performance as the group managed to maintain the target of a single camp every month.
“We aided 12 camps last year in Machakos, Siaya, Mwingi and Tigania among other places. It was the most successful year,” she said.
The group performs for both company and private functions and is eyeing more international events especially now that there are plans to stretch their interest to food and water supply to the poor.
Kenya’s dire heath care system has lured many philanthropists.
Good medicare care has remained in the preserve of the rich, leaving the rest of the population to scramble for a chance at the public hospitals.
Mothers have no access to medical care; a situation that has put the country on the global charts of nations with high maternal and child mortality rates.
Currently, only 40 per cent of pregnant Kenyan women give birth in medical facilities an indication of the danger that 60 per cent of both mothers and the unborn babies are exposed.
Its is the need for medical care for pregnant mothers and their infants, those with diabetes, cancer, malaria and other illnesses than Mrs Mcnally and his family hope to dance through their sorrows and healing.
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