“I miss my girls. When they’re not around, I feel lonely. Right now, I could be in my office handling dozens of cases,” says Ms Phanice Favour, the senior principal of Moi Girls’ Kadzonzo in Kaloleni, Kilifi County, as she steps out of her office and into the garden for an interview with the Nation.In September 2016, Ms Favour transferred from Kombeni Girls Secondary School, where she was deputy principal, to Moi Kadzonzo High School as principal. She reveals that her birth name was Phanice Achieng’ Oduor but she legally changed it in 2007.“While teaching at Malindi High School, the Holy Spirit directed me to fast for 40 days. On the last day, as I rested on a couch, I fell into a trance, and a voice told me to call myself Favour,” she recalls.Read: 'I refused to give up': Evelyn turns disability into a mission of hope and changeNow 47, Ms Favour was born with clubbed feet and underwent corrective surgery at Nyabondo Hospital in Sondu, Kisumu County, in 1991. At the time, she was supposed to join Standard Seven at Webuye AC Primary School. “I was bedridden for three years and couldn’t walk, forcing me to drop out of school,” she says.She is the third-born of nine children to Mr Fredrick and Ms Joan Anyango, a former employee at Webuye Paper Mills in Bungoma County. After three years away from school, she lost hope of ever completing her education. But following her recovery, she returned to Standard Seven, scored 525 out of 700 marks in KCPE exam, and joined Bunyonyi Girls High School. She earned a B in KCSE exam in 1998 before joining the University of Nairobi for a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature.While narrating her journey, Ms Favour reflects on the painful stigma she faced because of her disability. The mother of three credits her success to her parents, who stood by her despite societal mockery. “People told my parents to hide me because I was bringing shame to the family. They said I had no value as a disabled girl,” she recalls.Read: You don’t have to be a beggar just because you are disabledHer family and even her home became synonymous with her disability. However, support came from the Webuye Parish Catholic Church, which sponsored her corrective surgery. Driven to despair by constant rejection, Ms Favour attempted suicide three times. “The first time, I placed stones on my chest hoping to suffocate. The second, I tried lying on the railway tracks to be hit by a train. I felt God didn’t love me,” she says.After surgery, her physical challenges persisted. She still experienced complications that made walking difficult. At times, she stayed bedridden at home, and teachers brought exam papers for her to complete in the sitting room. “In Standard Seven, I attended school only five times. I wrote my exams lying on the couch with my legs raised,” she explains.Despite everything, Ms Favour blossomed academically and creatively. She is a gospel singer with 30 albums, some recorded with her students and teachers. She plans to collaborate with renowned gospel minister Florence Adenyi. She also hosts two shows on Fix TV: The Blissful Woman and The Conqueror.Read: The students whose disabilities became the foundation for extraordinary achievementsA passionate writer, she has authored over 12 books, including her memoir, With God No Disability, which narrates her struggles and triumphs. Her other works include Poetry Simplified for Students and Over a Thousand and One Wisdom, which retells Bible verses as stories. She is working on two more books awaiting Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development approval: Poetry Made Easy and Memoir for Junior School and Grade 10.Her memoir reflects on her childhood struggles, the stigma, the pain of being bedridden for years, and her determination to overcome all odds—academically, socially, and spiritually. “Maybe God created me this way to show the world that disability is not inability. Every challenge has a lesson and we must embrace each moment because God has a purpose,” she says.Her love for education inspired her to help the vulnerable. She uses earnings from her books and songs to fund charity work. Though she once dreamed of becoming a lawyer, she now considers her calling greater. During the Covid-19 pandemic, she composed songs, read the Bible, prayed, and began supporting widows and young mothers in her church. She counsels students and women on overcoming stress, self-acceptance, and self-care. “The stigma I faced taught me humility and the importance of helping the vulnerable,” she says.Heart for the needyShe uses her salary and allowances to pay school fees for 33 needy girls at Moi Kadzonzo Girls High and supports orphans in other schools. Initially, she helped 50 students, but well-wishers inspired by her work now sponsor some of them. She recalls a girl arriving at school empty-handed in 2017; Ms Favour allowed her to stay and later supported her through university, where she graduated with first class honours and is now a teacher at Moi Kadzonzo.Through the guidance and counselling department, students donate extra supplies like soap, sanitary towels, and toilet paper to share with needy peers. Ms Favour also supports widows and young mothers, including interfaith charity drives among her Christian and Muslim students.Her journey hasn’t been without pain. When she transferred to Moi Kadzonzo, locals dismissed her as incompetent. “People said I would achieve nothing, but God has provedShe also endured heartbreak in university when her boyfriend’s family rejected her because of her disability. “His mother told him there were other women he could marry instead of me. He ended the relationship, and I attempted suicide for the third time,” she recalls.Read: Of the new disability law and Kenya’s new dawnShe faced bullying in school, including threats from peers and rejection from her dorm mother. Still, she pushed forward, even waking at 2.30am to struggle to the bathroom before others woke up.Ms Favour holds multiple qualifications: a diploma in education, a higher diploma in human resource management, a theology certificate, and a Master’s in Education (Guidance and Counselling) from Kenyatta University. She is pursuing a PhD at Methodist University. Her leadership has transformed Moi Kadzonzo. Student enrolment has grown from 649 in 2016 to 1,200. KCSE mean scores improved from 3.75 in 2016 to 5.4 in 2023.She has received numerous awards, including Kilifi County’s third-best teacher (2015), the Kibali Awards (2023), Coast Region Gospel Artist of the Year, Fix TV’s 2024 Dynamic Woman Award, and Kenya Campus Awards for Humanitarian of the Year and All-Round Teacher.Besides mentoring girls, she hopes to launch programmes supporting boys. She is married to a supportive husband whose family fully embraces her. She is currently working on obtaining a second pair of specialised shoes costing Sh11,000 at Port Reitz Hospital, Mombasa. “I only have one pair of brown shoes. I’d love another colour for a change,” she says with a smile.mongala@ke.nationmedia.com
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