A GoFundMe fundraiser set up to support a Kenyan family based in Waterloo, Iowa, who lost their three children in a tragic road crash in Kenya has raised about Sh8 million ($66,000), weeks after the devastating incident.
The fundraiser was launched to help the family with funeral arrangements and other costs following the January 4 accident that claimed the lives of siblings Emmanuel DeLeon, 13, Kairu Winkelpleck, 6, and Njeri DeLeon, 16.
The three children were involved in a fatal car crash on a highway near Nairobi while on a family holiday in Kenya, a trip that was meant to reconnect them with their roots and celebrate the festive season.
Emmanuel, an eighth grader at Hoover Middle School, and his younger brother Kairu, a first-grade pupil at Royal Legacy Christian Academy, died on the spot.
Their older sister Njeri, a junior at West High School, suffered critical injuries and was rushed to Nairobi Hospital, where she was placed in a medically induced coma.
After several days in intensive care, the family confirmed that Njeri succumbed to her injuries on January 4, bringing the total number of lives lost to three.
Just months before the tragedy, Njeri had been celebrated by her school community after being featured in The Wahawk Insider, West High School’s online publication, for her dedication and leadership as a cheerleader — a memory that has since become painfully cherished.
The deaths sent shockwaves through the Waterloo community and among Kenyans in the diaspora.
Hoover Middle School broke the news in a Facebook post that drew hundreds of condolence messages.
“On January 4, while on a dream family trip to Kenya, the family was involved in a tragic accident. We are heartbroken to share that Emmanuel, one of our 8th graders at Hoover Middle School, and his younger brother Kairo, passed away at the scene,” the school said at the time.
The statement added that Njeri had been admitted to the ICU in critical condition, before her eventual passing.
Following her death, tributes poured in from teachers, classmates, church members and Kenyan families abroad, many of whom said the tragedy resonated deeply with the pain of losing loved ones far from home.
The children’s parents, Wambui Ndirangu and her husband, had travelled to Kenya hoping to give their children a meaningful Christmas holiday. Instead, they were left grappling with unimaginable loss and the burden of arranging burials across two continents.
Messages of condolence flooded social media.
“Oops! They died too young. Pole sana to the parents,” one user wrote.
“It hurts a lot,” another added.
“This kind of loss changes the entire map of your life forever. RIP,” read another message.