Fun Fact Friday

Welcome to the first Fun Fact Friday! Each week I’ll post some interesting bit of information about Rift Valley Academy, Africa Inland Mission, or Kenya. Some will be interesting, others humorous. But I hope many will be a cause of giving thanks to God for His gracious provision in the cause of proclaiming the gospel to all of Africa! By the way, much of my information comes from the book, School In The Clouds, by Phil Dow.

“Kenya Nerves”

The location of Kijabe for the mission station that would include RVA, was actually second choice. One evening in 1903 a verbal agreement was made with a colonial administrator for land along Lake Naivasha with plans to finalize it in the morning. However, later that night, after a few drinks, the administrator signed the property over to a new white settler, Lord Delamere, who believed that an excellent piece of farmland should not be wasted on missionaries.

Therefore Kijabe, at 7,200 ft. elevation, became the site for what would one day be the largest mission station in Africa. Interestingly enough, there was concern that the high elevation would affect missionaries with “Kenya nerves” – a mythical neurological disorder that led to acute anxiety and other psychologically linked ailments.

That explains a lot!