June is Men’s Mental Health Month. A time to reflect, reimagine, and restore. And at PGIO, we believe that healing and restoration should extend to everyone. Not just to our girls, but to our boys and young men too—especially those quietly fading into the background of a society that forgot how much they matter.

This weekend, we lived out that belief in the most profound way.

Together with the compassionate and determined leadership of Irene Mutugi, 2027 aspiring MCA for Kangai Ward, we helped rescue a young man named Pius Bundi. A name once spoken with pride in Marura B Village; a name that had grown quiet in recent years, dimmed by hardship, addiction, and despair.

Pius is not your ordinary story. He was the first in his village to ever go to university. A bright young man, full of promise, who graduated with a Second Class Upper Division in Human Resource Management. That achievement didn’t come easy. It took the entire Marura B community—parents, elders, friends—rallying together to make it happen. They organized fundraisers, community meetings, and offered their limited resources to ensure that one of their own would rise. He was their hope.

But hope can be fragile in a country where job opportunities are scarce, and even brilliance goes unnoticed. After graduation, Pius tarmacked and tarmacked. But for how long can one soul wander with zero prospect and dimming hope?

Eventually, like so many others, Pius ended up taking what was available which was, distributing alcohol. Because as we say in Kenya, “kazi ni kazi.” And considering Pius has a Family; a wife and child, that depend on him. Not forgetting his parents who did everything they could including rallying community members so he could get through university. He really didn’t have much of an option but take the job, however much beneath him it was. But come on! Pius has a degree. A life that was meant for more. A community that depended on him to be a role model and inspiration to the rest of the children.

I remember at some point a parent told us that even when they advice their children to study hard in school, the answer they usually get is: “why waste all that time and energy when one of us who has even gone to university is nothing. Instead he is here sitting with us drinking illicit brew?” But you do realize this wasn’t what he wanted. Pius had higher aspirations for himself and his community. But in a cruel twist of irony, the only job that was supposedly available; the only job he was offered that was meant to be sort of a lifeline, was the very thing that exposed him to what would undo him—alcohol.

Addiction crept in quietly. What began as survival became dependency. With no job, no routine, and no opportunity, idleness filled his days—and alcohol filled the void. His light dimmed. The same young man whose community once danced for his graduation now moved through the days unnoticed. Forgotten.

But not by everyone.

For weeks, Irene Mutugi carried a burden for Pius. She remembered who he was. Who he still could be. She began to speak to those around her, rallying support, asking for help. And PGIO listened—this is exactly who we are: an organization that believes in second chances and community-led restoration.

Through the incredible partnership between PGIO and Irene, we were able to enroll Pius into our Boundless Hope Rehabilitation Centre—a safe place to heal, recover, and begin again.

And when we picked him up this past Saturday, the village stood still. People cried and others prayed. They smiled through tears as they watched the return of a son, a neighbor, a symbol of hope that had nearly slipped through their fingers.

Marura B is no stranger to this disease. Alcoholism has stolen too much—parents who drink away school fees, children who drop out due to peer pressure, dreams deferred, lives derailed, and even early marriage due to extreme hardships (read Mwitha’s story). But in the midst of this pain, Pius had pushed through. He had made it to the finish line. Now, it’s our turn to help him start again.

His story reminds us that the problem isn’t potential. It’s support!

There are many more Pius Bundis across Kenya—bright, brave, and burdened by circumstances beyond their control. At PGIO, we’re not just telling their stories—we’re doing something about it. Through rehabilitation, mentorship, mental health care, and job opportunity creation, we are working to restore dignity and rewrite narratives.

But we can’t do it alone.

💛 Let’s continue to believe in our sons the way we believe in our daughters.
💛 Let’s fight for futures that look impossible.
💛 Let’s keep choosing second chances.

For Pius. For Marura B. For many more like him.

Every morning, Mwitha leaves for school on an empty stomach.
No breakfast.
No packed lunch.
No idea what she’ll find when she returns home in the evening.

What she does know is this: she must find a way to feed her younger siblings before the day ends.

Mwitha is just 14 years old, still in primary school. But life has forced her into a role no child should ever have to take on—she is the parent, the provider, and the protector of her family.

A Home That Isn’t Safe

Mwitha’s parents struggle with alcoholism. They are barely able to care for themselves—let alone their children. The burden of responsibility has fallen entirely on her small shoulders.

Each evening after school, Mwitha goes from shop to shop, borrowing flour for ugali—even though the family is already deep in debt. With whatever she gets, she then heads to the shamba (farm) to pick kale, spinach, and wild greens.

This is the only meal she and her siblings will eat. If there’s enough firewood.

Because even cooking is a challenge.
They use a three-stone stove—the only form of cooking available to them. And before she can cook, Mwitha must first gather firewood, sometimes walking long distances just to find enough to light a fire.

Where She Sleeps Will Break Your Heart

At night, Mwitha and her siblings don’t sleep on a bed.
They don’t even have a mattress.
Their “bedroom” is a patch of muddy floor, covered with an old sack. The house has no cement, no tiles, no comfort. Just cold, dirt, and silence.

Yet somehow, she still wakes up and goes to school.

School—and the Struggle to Stay

Balancing school and survival is a daily war for Mwitha.
On weekends, instead of resting or catching up on studies, she works in the rice fields to try and repay shop debts—most of which weren’t even hers, but her parents’.

And she’s not alone.
Many girls in her situation are forced to drop out of school, choosing early marriage just to escape the pressure. They give up their education, their dreams, and sometimes—their safety.

A Small Victory, But a Start

Thanks to support from PGIO, our team on the ground was able to take a small but meaningful step:
We bought a bed and a mattress for Mwitha and her siblings.

For the first time in a long time, they didn’t have to sleep on the floor.
A single mattress brought back a sense of dignity and hope to a child who has lived too long without either.

But There’s a Bigger Problem We Must Face—Together

Last year’s floods destroyed our rescue home—the one safe space where children like Mwitha could find shelter, protection, education, and care.

And now?
They have nowhere else to turn.

We urgently need to renovate and restore the rescue home. Children like Mwitha are waiting—not just for a place to sleep, but for a chance to be children again.

💔 The Truth? Mwitha Is One of Many

Her story is real. Her pain is daily.
But she is just one of hundreds of children across Kenya living in extreme neglect and poverty.
Children who are raising themselves.
Children sleeping on the floor, cooking over open fires, skipping school, and shouldering debts that don’t belong to them.

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You Can Help Rewrite This Story

🛠️ We need funds to rebuild the rescue home.
🛏️ We need mattresses, bedding, and food.
📚 We need school supplies and dignity kits.
❤️ We need you.

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✅ How You Can Help Today:

• Donate – Every coin brings us closer to safety.

• Sponsor a child – Be the reason they stay in school.

• Share this story – Awareness saves lives too.

• Partner with us – Let’s build stronger communities together.

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🌱 Let’s not wait for another child to break. Let’s act now.

 

📢 Share Mwitha’s story – Be her voice

🤝 Partner with PGIO – Get involved

At just 10 years old, Evelyn Wambui had already endured more pain than most experience in a lifetime.

For three agonizing years, she suffered silently—her body growing weaker while the cause remained unknown. What started as general symptoms soon spiraled into a health crisis. Her parents, frantic and afraid, spent a full year going from one hospital to the next, searching desperately for answers.

But they were met with the same response everywhere: no diagnosis, no clarity, no relief.

Eventually, doctors gave a diagnosis. But tragically, it was wrong. Evelyn was placed on medication that treated the wrong illness. Her condition worsened. Time was lost. Her fragile body continued to decline, and her future slipped further out of reach.

Yet through all of this, her parents never gave up hope.

In desperation, they brought her to a local community church, seeking healing through prayer. That’s where we met Evelyn—during one of Protect a Girl’s Image Organization’s (PGIO) regular community outreach fellowships.

We listened to her story with heavy hearts. Her parents, worn down by worry, shared their journey through tears. Something about the story didn’t sit right. We knew—deeply—that something critical had been missed.

So we stepped in.

With their consent, PGIO took Evelyn to Kenyatta National Hospital—one of Kenya’s leading Level 6 referral hospitals and the apex of the national healthcare system. There, doctors finally uncovered the truth:

Evelyn was battling Hodgkin lymphoma — a serious cancer that affects the lymphatic system, part of the immune system.

For years, she had unknowingly been fighting a deadly disease—without proper treatment, without a name for her suffering.

Hope Restored: A Journey of Healing

With urgency and compassion, PGIO facilitated Evelyn’s full treatment—including several months of chemotherapy, followed by radiation therapy. The treatment lasted approximately 18 months.

It wasn’t easy. There were moments of fear and setbacks along the way. But Evelyn fought with everything she had, and we stood by her side every step of the way.

Today, Evelyn is thriving.
She’s back in school. She’s strong. She’s smiling. And most importantly—she’s dreaming again.

This Is the Power of Community, Compassion, and Action

Evelyn’s story is not just about survival. It’s a powerful reminder of what happens when we listen, when we act, and when we work together to uplift the most vulnerable among us.

At Protect a Girl’s Image Organization (PGIO), we don’t wait for systems to fix themselves. We act—with integrity, urgency, and faith. We stand in the gap for girls like Evelyn—girls who would otherwise be forgotten.

But Evelyn is not alone.
There are many more girls out there—silently suffering, misdiagnosed, or left behind by a broken system.

Let’s Stand Together.

Let’s turn compassion into action.
Let’s build a culture where no child suffers in silence and every girl has the right to health, hope, and a future.

When we come together with faith, empathy, and purpose, we don’t just change one life—we change the world.

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🌍 Join Us. Support PGIO.

Be the reason another Evelyn finds healing.

Netflix’s drama Adolescence has sparked global discussions about the hidden dangers young boys face online. From social media bullying to the influence of incel ideation, this powerful series sheds light on how digital spaces shape adolescent behavior-and what happens when those influences turn toxic.

At Protect a Girl’s Image Organization, we recognize the urgent need to protect boys from harmful online content, equip parents with knowledge and create safe spaces for emotional growth. As the show highlights, boys are often drawn into negative digital spaces that distort their views on relationships, self-worth and masculinity. But with proactive parenting, education and community support, we can change this narrative.

The Rise of Online Toxicity: What Adolescence Teaches Us

The show follows Jamie, a 13-year-old boy accused of a violent crime. As the story unfolds, we see how:

✔️Social media bullying crushes his self-esteem.

✔️Toxic masculinity and incel culture distort his perception of women.

✔️A lack of emotional support leads him to seek validation in dangerous online communities.

Jack Thorne, the show’s creator, reveals that these toxic influences are often subtle and widespread, lurking in video games, social media and forums where boys feel unheard. This mirrors real-life struggles that many parents may not even be aware of.

Why Are Young Boys at Risk? The Role of Social Media & Incel Ideology

Former England football manager Sir Gareth Southgate recently warned about “callous, manipulative and toxic influencers” shaping young men’s worldviews. But the problem extends beyond famous figures like Andrew Tate-it’s embedded in everyday digital interactions.

⚫Incel culture encourages men/boys to blame women for their struggles.

⚫Gaming and social media algorithms expose them to harmful content.

⚫Lack of emotional guidance makes them vulnerable to radical ideas.

This is a crisis-and it’s happening in our schools, homes and communities. If we don’t act, we risk raising a generation of boys who feel isolated, angry and misunderstood.

Radical Solutions: How Parents, Schools & Communities Can Step in

Governments worldwide are discussing drastic measures, such as:

✔️Banning smartphones in schools to limit exposure to harmful content.

✔️Implementing a digital age of consent (like Australia’s under-16 social media ban).

✔️Stronger online regulations to filter out toxic influences.

But policies alone won’t fix this. We need grassroots solutions. Here’s how:

1. Digital Literacy for Youth

⚫Teach children how to critically asses online content.

⚫Encourage healthy discussions about relationships and self-worth.

⚫Introduce social media safety programs in schools.

2. Parental Awareness & Guidance

⚫Stay informed about what your child is consuming online.

⚫Foster open conversations without judgement.

⚫Set screen-time boundaries and monitor digital interactions.

3. Community Mentorship & Safe Spaces

⚫Encourage positive role models and mentors for young boys/men.

⚫Create support groups where boys can express emotions safely.

⚫Provide early intervention for at-risk youth.

Building Digital Resilience: How We Can Protect Our Children

At Protect a Girl’s Image Organization, we are committed to:

✅Raising awareness about the impact of digital toxicity.

✅Providing counselling and mentorship for young boys.

✅Advocating for policies that protect children from online harm.

But we need collective action. Schools, families and communities must work together to equip young people with the emotional tools they need to navigate today’s digital world safely.

👉What do you think? Should social media be restricted for children? Should schools ban smartphones? Let’s discuss in the comments!

If you’re a parent, teacher or concerned citizen, join us in creating safer spaces for the next generation. Visit our website to learn more about our programs and how you can help.