Family of Hellen Kemunto who drowned in Canada pleads for help to bring body home

The family of Hellen Kemunto, the young Kenyan woman who drowned on Thursday while swimming in Canada, is appealing to well-wishers to help them bring her body home for burial.

According to 55-year-old John Nyabuto Kiyondi, Hellen’s father, the family doesn’t know anyone in Canada and neither does it have the financial means to bring her body home.

“We do not know how to get there. All we can do is ask our government and friends to help us bring the body here. We will forever be indebted to them should the body arrive here for we have already accepted how she died,” Mr Nyabuto said yesterday.

It was a sad sight at the homestead when the Sunday Nation team visited a few minutes past 4pm yesterday. The home is located in Getare village, Bomachoge Chache constituency in Kisii County.

A group of people had gathered outside Mzee Nyabuto’s brick-walled house. They were watching the video  in which Hellen tragically drowned. She had been live on Facebook.

“Our lamp has been put off,” said Mr Nyabuto, who was with his wife Ms Alice Oanda and the only remaining daughter Ms Riziki Monyenye. Four of Hellen’s siblings were not at home.

“It was on Friday morning. I had left for the shamba but I felt the urge to check on my WhatsApp. I came across a chat informing me that my daughter was no more. I replied to ask what was happening but there was no response. As I struggled to come to terms with what I had been told, I received a call from someone who claimed to be her friend. She told me about Hellen’s death then hung up,” said Mr Nyabuto.

He rushed home to break the sad news to his wife but before he could get there, another call came in from someone who claimed to be Hellen’s workmate.

The colleague told the father that Hellen had drowned while swimming in one of the hotels and that her body had been collected from the pool by the Canadian authorities.

According to Mr Nyabuto, Hellen left home five years ago and had not returned since. He added that she had applied for and won a chance to live in Canada — the equivalent of the US Green Card.

“While in high school, she used to tell me that she harboured the dream of going overseas. One evening, she came home and told me she had won herself a ‘Green Card’ to go to Canada. She asked me to help her raise her airfare. I went to a local chama, borrowed some money and together with what I had saved, we saw her off,” Mr Nyabuto said.

While in Canada, according to the father, Hellen was determined to see their family back in Kenya prosper since she knew they were struggling.

“From the time she set foot in Canada, she has been communicating quite often with us here. She has been very supportive. She is the one who has been paying fees for her other siblings since I am only a peasant farmer who used to rely on sugarcane farming. When sugarcane farming ceased being lucrative, I remained dependent on her,” Hellen’s mother said.

Hellen’s only sister, Ms Riziki Monyenye, 20, completed Form Four last year. She was to join university this month and her sister had promised to pay her fees and does not know what she will do now

“I used to communicate so much with my sister online. When I heard the news about her passing away, I was truly shaken,” Riziki said.

The family says they are unable to make calls to Canada. They only rely on Hellen’s friend to call back home and that is how they communicate.

“We do not have any relative there. We only get to communicate with her friends once they call us. We have not planned her burial but as time goes on, we will be able to know what next,” said Mr Nyabuto, adding that Hellen had earlier told him she was working to upgrade her education and professional qualifications.

During her free time, she would take up extra jobs and the little she could get, she could budget it well for her upkeep and the remaining could be sent home to support her family.

Through Hellen’s efforts, her family has two dairy cattle and a brick-walled house.

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