Bungoma Pastor Showers Praises On Destitute Boy He Raised From Streets Who's Become Soccer Sensation

• Bungoma pastor Joseph Mukolwe has posted nostalgic pictures of Joseph Omuse, a former street child whom he rescued and who has now risen to prominence as a football star
• Omuse's life took a drastic turn when his parents died and he found himself living on the streets as an orphan
• Thanks to Mukolwe's intervention which saw him enrolled into a children's home, the youngster was able to hone his footballing skills
• In a remarkable turn of events, the once-disadvantaged boy captained his team, St Anthony Boys' High School, to victory in the recently concluded national high school games

Pastor Joseph Mukolwe from Bungoma has shared the inspiring journey of football sensation Joseph Omuse whom he picked from the streets 12 years ago.

He took a trip down memory lane to when Omuse was forced to start living on the streets of Bungoma after his parents died.

For many weeks, the youngster struggled to eke a living and spent countless nights in culverts braving biting cold.

That was until the man of God bumped into Omuse and his friends and decided to rescue them.

Mukolwe got Omuse into children's home

Mukolwe indicated that being a pastor called by God to reach out to street kids, he became very close to him and the rest of the boys.

The pastor managed to get him into their children's home after which he was admitted at Sikata RC Primary school.

"One thing that I noticed during our first days of interacting was that Omuse had a God-given talent in football," Mukolwe said.

He shared before and after photos of him and Mukolwe when he was picked in the early days and juxtaposed with recent video clips of the day they won the national championship.

God given Guardian

Mukolwe reiterated that as Omuse's God given Guardian, he has watched him grow since he met him on the streets.

His football star started shining when he joined St Anthony Boys' High School in Kitale and became a kingpin and engine in the team's midfield.

Mukolwe has since built a reputation and is currently the assistant captain at the school known affably as the Solidarity Boys.

"I have always encouraged him never to dwell on his background but instead trust in God, work hard in his studies and at the same time, work on his great talent in soccer," he wrote.

Omuse's exponential rise

Omuse became a national phenomenon during the recently concluded Kenya Secondary Schools Association games held at Bukhungu Stadium.

"I'm glad and I bless God that I was his first coach in soccer and now he has a number of great coaches in soccer eg Jeff, Baraza and Coach Mafuta,"

With his team winning the championship, the young talent was touted as one of the best young soccer players in the country.

Reached for comment, the pastor told TUKO.co.ke that he was grateful to God because it is by His grace that he does what he's involved in, adding that he prays the boy's dreams come to pass.

Mukolwe added that he is not only glad and proud of Omuse but also can't wait to see him play international soccer abroad given that his dream is to play for Manchester City in England.

Solidarity Boys won 2023 national championship

The much-hyped secondary schools' games hosted at Kakamega's Bukhungu Stadium ended on Saturday with Solidarity Boys being crowned the male champions.

They faced off with their opponents from Dagoretti High School whose hopes to take the win were deflated by two goals from the other side.

Fast-rising goal-poacher Aldrine Kibet netted a brace that propelled his team to Rwanda for the East and Central Africa schools' regional competition.