A Word of Gratitude from the Founders
We are proud to celebrate Rainbow Room Foundation being awarded the prize for Philanthropy and Social Impact at the 15th African Achievers Awards.
The celebration, which was held on July 10 and 11, 2025, at the historic Houses of Parliament in London, United Kingdom, brought together some of the most influential voices from Africa and the Diaspora. Rt. Hon. Diane Abbott, MP—the UK’s first Black female Member of Parliament—and Baroness Sandip Verma, Member of the House of Lords and Chancellor of the University of Roehampton, hosted this year’s event.
We are incredibly honoured – and still in disbelief – to have received the African Achievers Awards. If someone had told us years ago that our childhood dream would bring us here, we probably would’ve just smiled politely and gone back to doodling logos for Rainbow Room Foundation in our school notebooks.
This recognition isn’t just ours. It belongs to the fearless, big-dreaming young people of Bungoma County. It belongs to the Kukhus and Kukas, who have held families and communities together with grit and grace. It also belongs to every volunteer, mentor, and friend who’s helped us turn our dream into something real.
The Rainbow Room Foundation started as a “what if”. What if our friends had more books? What if there were safe spaces to talk, learn, and just be kids? What if we didn’t wait for someone else to fix it? We didn’t wait. But we also didn’t do it alone.
Our parents have been our biggest cheerleaders and accountability partners. Mum, thank you for mentoring us with wisdom, patience, and just the right amount of tough love. Dad, thank you for being our rock, our sounding board, and the person who taught us that “just start” is better than “wait until it’s perfect.” You both helped us believe that our ideas weren’t too young, or too soft, or too small.
To our younger brother, Sylvanus, thank you for always listening to our frustrations as we go through this journey and laughing with us through it all. Thank you also for your wisdom and knowledge. You continue to challenge us to do better.
Rainbow Room Foundation has grown into something so much bigger than the two of us. It’s a space where children can read, dream, and lead. It’s where teenage voices matter. It’s where our elders find connection and dignity. And it’s where community is more than a word – it’s the actual fuel that keeps this thing going.
This award isn’t a finish line. It’s a spark. A sign that grassroots action works; that small ideas, when nurtured in community, can grow into movements.
To the African Achievers Awards committee, thank you for seeing us, for believing that two girls with a big dream could make waves. To our family, donors, sponsors, partners, and our fantastic team, you are the heartbeat of this mission. We share this award with you.
We would also like to celebrate our board of directors, including our corporate secretary, as their exemplary guidance has led RRF to a place where it is not only a beacon of hope for community transformation in Bungoma County, but can also be recognised on an international stage.
In a special way, we’d like to shout out our board chair (and mother), Mrs Electina Wasike Wanyonyi, who also received individual recognition as an honoree of the Philanthropy & Social Impact and the Outstanding Contribution to Community Empowerment awards.
To anyone out there wondering if your idea is “too small” to matter – trust us, it’s not. Start where you are. Use what you have. Believe in the magic of showing up.
Let’s keep building communities not just as projects, but as promises, because when we uplift young people, we unlock futures. When we honour our elders, we preserve truth. And when we do it all with love, dignity, and joy, we don’t just shift narratives. We shift Africa’s future.
Thank you.
(And yes – we promise to keep dreaming. The work’s just getting started.)
With immense gratitude,
Paulyne and Sophia Wanyonyi
Photo Credits: John Durojaye, Cameraboss
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