Joan Wamaitha Obama's flower girl still overwhelmed by celebrity status as end of term exam approaches

For all those who saw how President Obama was welcomed to Kenyan soil you can bear me witness that 8 year Old Joan Wamaitha was the first Kenyan to welcome US president with a banquet of flowers. She was embraced by president Obama as a way of appreciation of the warm welcome.

That incident has made Little Wamaitha to gain a celebrity status when she returned to school earlier this week. 8 year old wamaitha is an orphan who lives in mama Ngina Kenyatta Children Home in south C and schools at a government school Mariakani Primary which is in the nearby south B area, Nairobi.

Little Wamaitha is being referred as a bright and disciplined girl. It is almost end of term examinations and the girl is having a hard time with her studies as she is still overwhelmed by all the fuss.

Mariakani primary school pupils

Wamaitha reported to school this week wearing a badge with a photo of Obama and a slogan about the “American Dream”, according to an Associated Press (AP) report appearing on Yahoo News.

Many pupils crowded around Wamaitha and followed her about in school.

“She’s a bit confused because she doesn’t want so many questions,” said Wamaitha’s teacher, Pauline Musyoka, who said the girl is smart and hardworking.

Wamaitha was selected to welcome the US president from the children’s home where she stays. Her teachers were surprised to see her on TV presenting a welcoming bouquet of flowers to Obama when he arrived in Kenya on Friday, after which Obama gave her a warm embrace.

All major local TV stations aired Obama’s arrival and most of his activities during the 43-hour stay in the country live.

Majority of the kids in Mariakani Primary come from the near by Mukuru slum and other middle to low-income areas in Nairobi.

At the Monday morning assembly following Wamaitha’s moment of glory, head teacher Lucy Obonyo talked about the proud moment of one of their own, inspiring the rest of the children by telling them that they were “very important” even if they came from “slums.