As a young boy, abandoned by harsh and unkind siblings (Solomon never knew his father and his mother died when he was 8 years old), he sought some sort of peace in the forest around him. He took refuge in an abandoned, decrepit house in Wanjohi valley at the foot of the Aberdare Hills, the Nyandarua region. (The “real” name for the Aberdares is Nyandarua, meaning ‘drying skin hide’; a reference to their silhouette.) One day a Colobus monkey appeared and perched on the house’s glassless window.
This Colobus wore a beautiful white gown over its pure black beautiful body with a shroud of white hair around its inquisitive face, resembling an old man with a beard.
“The animal looked into my eyes, and I looked into his. Somehow this exchange, this wordless interaction, lifted my sadness,” says Solomon.
This initial encounter sparked the flame of Solomon’s deep passion and future work – his raison d’être.
Destruction of the indigenous forests along the river and even along those steep slopes (leading to heavy soil erosion).
In those days, Colobus monkeys were a common sight in the area. Already they had started to come down from their fast-retreating habitat to sneak maize and other crops, their loot, back into the forest. This infuriated the landowners who tried to chase the monkeys away. Seeing that had no effect, they started to set crude traps to hunt and kill them.
The situation has only accentuated over the years with the growing population and greed. But yes, the people need to eat and there won’t be a solution sitting back doing nothing. A win-win must be reached between the people and the wildlife. Solomon continues to devote much time to teaching and showing the people to respect the Colobus – to cherish and live with wildlife. He has promised to remove the Colobus to other places to free the people of their “plight”. He has shown he has been singlehandedly successful and in turn he is very much respected by local communities.
Solomon has helped rescue just over 500 monkeys. Although his work is solely voluntary, he works hand in hand with the KWS (Kenya Wildlife Serve) to help in the translocation of the Colobus to safer forests. He started his work in 1998 and has dedicated his life to saving this most beautiful and elusive of the arboreal primates.
However, these translocations need funding. The latest relocation project has fallen through. The reality today is that Solomon is alone protecting the Colobus from being killed. It is his voluntary work to be there guarding the monkeys and speaking to the people, urging them not to kill the Colobus for they will soon be relocated elsewhere. But Solomon alone cannot wait indefinitely. He is ready to relocate the Colobus to safe places but that needs funding.