Kenyan Widow Who Boiled Stones for Her Starving Kids Moves into Sh1.4 Million House

A Kenyan woman from Mombasa who made headlines in May after she was found boiling stones for her starving children is the latest homeowner in town.

Over the weekend, Peninah Bahati Kitsao and her seven kids moved into the brand new house in Mishomoroni, Mombasa, which was built by well-wishers.

The family could not hide their joy after the modern Sh1.4 million six-roomed house was handed over to them with Peninah thanking Kenyans for coming to her aid.

“Wakenya nashukuru mumenisaidia sana mahali nilikuwa, nilikuwa mahali pa shida lakini saa hizi ukiingia kwangu unatamani ulale hapo. Nashukuru, mawe imebadilika nyumba. Nashukuru Mungu amenitoa kwa mawe sasa niko kwa raha. Watoto wangu sahii kula wanakula vizuri yaani wamekuwa kama watoto wengine,” she said.

Erick Musa Panga, a contractor from Muricks Enterprises, said it took him six months to build the house which consists of six rooms, a toilet, and a bathroom. It was also connected to electricity to enhance security. 

“We are in talks with the Mombasa water company to have the house get water services. Hopefully beginning of 2021 this should have been done,” he said.

Peninah’s husband Kaingu Charo was killed by thugs in Mariakani in June 2019, leaving her to fend for their eight children on her own. 

She was earning a living by washing clothes for other people but her clients stopped offering her the job following the outbreak of Covid-19 in Kenya in March.

“I have had nothing to feed my children on and so I decided to put the stones in the sufuria and boil them so that my children would think that I am cooking something for them,” she said in May.

Peninah added that she initially used to trick her children into going to bed on empty stomachs and was forced to invent a new way after the kids discovered the trick. 

“They started telling me that they know I am lying to them, but I could do nothing because I have nothing,” she says.

Peninah remained with seven children after she lost her four-month-old last-born daughter Mary Kaingu on May 7th.

After her story went viral, Peninah and her family received overwhelming support from well-wishers in Kenya and abroad.