A Prayer Day Nobody Will Forget
Sunday, 26th July 2026, started as an ordinary Prayer Day at Moi Kapsowar Girls’ School in Kapsowar, Elgeyo-Marakwet County. Parents had made the trip to spend the day with their daughters, many of whom are Form Four candidates preparing for this year’s KCSE examinations. By the time the day ended, it had turned into something the school and much of the country would not soon forget.
Among the parents in attendance was Mr. Richard Nyamunyamu, an evangelist and preacher who had travelled all the way from Itibo Ward in Nyamira North to be with his daughter, Elizabeth, a candidate at the school. Richard lives with a physical disability, and by his own account, there were people along the way who doubted he would ever manage to raise and educate a daughter on his own.
When the floor was opened for parents to address the gathering, Richard did not simply speak. He called Elizabeth to the front, and together, father and daughter broke into a gospel song. It was a simple moment, but an unmistakably powerful one, a public declaration that the doubts he had once faced had not stopped him from getting his daughter this far.
A Video That Moved a Nation
The event was streamed live, and clips of the performance quickly made their way onto social media. Within hours, the video of a father, undeterred by his disability, standing beside his daughter and singing with pride, had gone viral across Kenyan platforms. Kenyans online described it as one of the purest expressions of fatherly love they had seen in a long time, a reminder that presence and commitment matter far more than physical ability.
The response was immediate and overwhelming. Well-wishers began sending contributions through M-PESA and other channels, moved simply by the story of a man who had refused to let his circumstances define what he could give his child.
The Wheelchair That Changed Everything
The most visible gesture of support came a few days later, when a group of well-wishers under the Wareng’ community welfare group organised a handover ceremony on a grassy field in Eldoret town. There, they presented Richard with a brand-new motorized wheelchair, purchased through contributions from members of the public who had been touched by his story.
Speaking at the ceremony, the group’s spokesperson said the gift was meant to help Richard move around with ease as he continues his ministry, his singing, and his daily life. Those in attendance included Dan Meli, Dr. Musa Kiptanui, and Winnie Ndalut, all residents of Eldoret who came to honour Richard as a present father and a role model. Dan Meli, in particular, spoke about how Richard’s story carries a lesson for every parent: that showing up for your children, regardless of your circumstances, is what truly matters, and that the fatherly love Richard showed his daughter on that stage would carry her well into her exams.
Richard was visibly emotional as he tried out the wheelchair for the first time, moving across the field as the crowd cheered him on. He thanked the well-wishers for changing his life, saying the gift had lifted him from moving on the ground to sitting comfortably, and that it would help him continue spreading the gospel and doing what he loves most: singing.
The wheelchair was not the only gift promised. More support has continued to be pledged for Richard even after the handover, a sign of just how deeply his story resonated with people across the country.
A Daughter Carried by a Nation’s Goodwill
For Elizabeth, the attention has meant something different but equally powerful. As she prepares to sit her national examinations this year, she has received an outpouring of messages of encouragement and prayers from strangers who watched her father’s performance and were moved to root for her success. What began as a single Prayer Day moment has become a wellspring of support following her into the most important academic season of her life so far.
Those who knew Richard growing up in Nyaramba District say music has always been part of who he is; he was known for helping establish a male choir in his younger years, performing songs that were popular in his community at the time. His performance with Elizabeth was, in many ways, the culmination of years of quiet sacrifice, only this time, the whole country was watching.
A Community’s Gratitude
Moi Kapsowar Girls’ School, where the moment first unfolded, has since expressed its own appreciation for everyone who contributed to Richard’s story, whether by attending the Prayer Day, sharing the video, sending an M-PESA contribution, or simply offering a word of encouragement to Elizabeth as she prepares for her exams. The school described the response as a true demonstration of compassion, love, and the power of community, and extended its gratitude to everyone involved, including BishMedia, credited for photography from the event.
Richard Nyamunyamu’s story is, at its heart, a simple one: a father who refused to let anyone tell him he could not raise and educate his daughter, and a nation that, once it saw him, refused to let his effort go unrecognised. As Elizabeth heads into her KCSE examinations, she carries with her not just her father’s song, but the goodwill of thousands of Kenyans who have been rooting for them both ever since.
