Gillian La Prairie and husband Martin Krestow at Ol Pejeta wildlife reserve

Seated in front of the altar, her walker resting idle in front of her, primatologist Dr. Gillian La Prairie speaks to the parishioners of St. Andrew’s Langley as part of the “First Fruits First” Fall Stewardship program. She tells them about a man she knew in Burundi whose story changed her and whose family she will always remember.

As a young student in her 20s, Gillian worked with chimpanzees at the Jane Goodall Centre in Burundi. The man was hired to watch her house. Burundi was at war, and each night, while he watched her house and kept her safe, this man worried for his own family which had no protection.

One morning he returned from his work to find that his village had been brutally attacked. His six-year-old daughter had been severely wounded with a machete in front of his wife and children. He and his wife tried to run with her to safety, but they were unable to save her. An older daughter was also badly wounded, but survived. Gillian pauses, nearly overwhelmed by the memory, but she carries on.

The chimps were moved to live in safety on the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, a 92,000 hectare wildlife reserve on the equator in Kenya and she followed. She grew more and more aware of the great disparities and daily hardships of the people she got to know - first in Burundi and then in Kenya. She began to see everything differently, especially as she realized how steadfast people were in their friendliness and hope, despite everything. She spent six years in Kenya working with the chimpanzees and other wildlife to complete the research for her PhD.

Four years ago, everything changed again when she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) and had to return to Canada for treatment. She is now legally blind and walks with a walker, and while she can no longer live in Kenya, her work continues.

She is working to address the poverty and living conditions of nearly 50,000 people who live in eight different communities on the periphery of the wildlife reserve. She lives in Vancouver with her husband, Dr. Martin Krestow, and their two young sons, Owen and Bryn. While she can’t go back to Kenya to live, she still thinks of the people near Ol Pejeta as her community.

Elementary school students in Kenya have been helped by students at the Langley Fine Arts School with money for desks, uniforms, and bursaries for 72 children

“My passions are in Kenya. When I became ill, I redefined myself so...I changed my focus to work with the people in the community. After all, humans are primates,” jokes Gillian.

She speaks openly about her physical challenges saying that while she is legally considered blind, she does see the world as if through an impressionist painting. Far from taxing her, the work gives her strength.

“I don’t want to lose that attachment with the people there who are friendly and happy despite all the hardship... I continue to work with the wildlife because if you support the people you also support the wildlife,” explains Gillian.

St. Andrew’s parishioners Paulene Harris, along with Christine Joynes, are working with Gillian to send medical equipment, possibly from Langley Memorial Hospital and other lower mainland hospitals to Kenya with the help of the Rotary Club. Paulene, a nurse at Langley Memorial, along with the operating staff of the hospital, helped raise enough to support five young people to attend school.

In the eight communities near the reserve, there are 60 schools, of which 25 are kindergarten, 23 are elementary and only four, secondary. A few years ago, the school fees for elementary schools were abolished, so the populations of those schools doubled-but the infrastructure did not.

This means there aren’t enough classrooms or teachers at the elementary level. Very few families are able to pay the school fees to attend secondary school. One of Gilian’s goals is to make it possible for more children to go on to secondary school.

Langley Fine Arts School has twinned with a school in Kenya and is now working in partnership with Gillian to address these and many other issues.

Last year, through their Global Awareness Club, students and teachers at Langley Fine Arts School raised just over $17,000. After Christmas, Gillian and her family took the proceeds with them to Kenya and were able to put it toward a school classroom, desks, uniforms, a nursery class and some bursaries. They’ve started a bursary program for disadvantaged children and those orphaned by AIDS. The money from Langley Fine Arts paid for bursaries for 72 children.

For more information, contact Silvia Knittel at 604-888-3113.