For generations, the people of Ndalani have faced dangerous, days‑long journeys to reach the nearest hospital. Divine Mercy Hospital is bringing accessible, quality health care and, with it, hope for a healthier community.
Ndalani, Kenya, lies 150 miles east of Nairobi, in the bush. Its inhabitants are poor farmers and hunters. Into that unlikely place, God reached down his hand and inspired a young woman to consecrate her life to him. Her name is Sr. Stephen Kiluu, a member of the Little Sisters of the Poor.
In 2020, as COVID swept across the world, she was sent to the Holy Family Residence of the Little Sisters in St. Paul, Minnesota. Here she met Fr. Walter Schu, LC, while caring for his mother, Anna. At the age of 91, Fr. Walter’s mother was in the final years of her life, and entering what he calls “that dark and lonely tunnel of Alzheimer’s disease.”
“Sr. Stephen, with her lighthearted sense of humor, forged by long years of suffering and dedication, knew how to treat Mom. She had the right touch and the right heart. Soon they became best of friends.”
Fr. Walter’s mother died on the eve of All Saints’ Day in 2023, surrounded by her family of seven children and their spouses, seven grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. Close by, accompanying her and her family in prayer, were Sr. Stephen and her fellow sisters.
From Tragedy to Hope for Ndalani
A short time after the passing of Fr. Walter’s mother, Sr. Stephen revealed to him that she had lost her own mother on the 90-mile journey to the nearest hospital from Ndalani. A few years later, her older brother died on the same journey.
These two deaths ignited in Sr. Stephen’s heart a burning desire to build a hospital for her community, so that no one else from Ndalani would die from lack of accessible, timely, and quality care.
Sr. Stephen’s mother had already left her a property in her will on which to build such a hospital, and she turned to Fr. Walter for help. With the aid of a generous initial donation from some close friends of Fr. Walter and his mother, all the necessary permissions for the hospital were obtained, the architectural plans drawn up, and the foundations laid.
“Sr. Stephen wanted it to be called Divine Mercy Hospital, after the movement started by St. Faustina Kowalska of Poland, and given to the universal Church by St. John Paul II,”
says Fr. Walter.
“This also happens to be the name of the graduate school in psychology where I teach: Divine Mercy University!”
A Place of Healing and Hope
Many of the people in sub-Saharan Africa face overwhelming challenges in accessing even the most basic medical care:
- The majority of the population lives on less than a dollar a day, making health services unaffordable.
- Many roads are poor or inaccessible; people have to travel long distances on foot to access care. Emergencies often end in tragedy.
- 1 in 13 children will die before their 15th birthday (16 times more than children in countries like the US).
- Many people have no access to health education or preventive services, leading to major problems that could be avoided or easily cared for at earlier stages.
The groundbreaking of the Divine Mercy Hospital in August of 2025, and the laying of the foundations in February of 2026, usher in a new chapter in healthcare in Ndalani. Once completed, the hospital will provide:
- Maternal and child healthcare (with a maternity ward and infant nursery)
- Family medicine and pediatric care
- Emergency and trauma care
- Inpatient and outpatient services
- Preventive health programs
- Community health education
- Laboratory and pharmacy services
In rural communities where access to quality health services is a major challenge, particularly for women and children, Divine Mercy Hospital will provide accessible and affordable care, serving vulnerable populations and significantly reducing preventable deaths. With construction already underway, the hospital brings long-awaited hope and will have a long-term impact on the Ndalani and surrounding communities.
How You Can Help
The success of Divine Mercy Hospital relies on collaboration between communities, partners, and supporters in order to bring hope and create real, lasting change in Ndalani. For this reason, they’ve partnered with Catholic World Mission, a registered Catholic nonprofit and a Regnum Christi apostolate that strives to extend the Church’s missionary outreach by serving people living in spiritual and material poverty worldwide. They do this through faith-centered service that focuses on the dignity of the individuals they serve, forming partnerships rooted in Catholic values, and working toward long-term transformation rather than short-term fixes.
To help Sr. Stephen realize her dream for her people, and to leave a legacy for the poorest of the poor in Kenya, please support Catholic World Mission’s giving campaign to bring healthcare to Ndalani.
“With God, all things are possible.”
Fr. Walter Schu, LC, grew up on a small farm in southwestern Minnesota, the second of seven children. He entered the Legionaries of Christ in 1982 and was ordained a priest in 1994. For most of his priesthood, he has been involved in the ministry of formation and education, serving as a teacher and director of studies at schools, seminaries, and universities in the United States and in Rome. He is currently an assistant professor and chaplain at Divine Mercy University.
