Kiambaa man who survived church fire during post-election chaos builds media empire in US

• Anthony Njoroge was just 10 years old when Kenya was plunged into turmoil over the disputed presidential election results
• His family took cover in the infamous Kenya Assemblies of God church at Kiambaa, which was set ablaze with people trapped inside
• With third-degree burns covering more than 40% of his body, he was granted political asylum in the US, where he has built a thriving media empire

A Kenyan boy who survived one of the darkest episodes of the country’s post-election violence has rebuilt his life thousands of miles away, turning a painful past into a platform for creativity, entrepreneurship, and hope.

Anthony Njoroge Mbuthia, now 27, runs a thriving media business in the US and travels across the country producing content for clients through his company, Picha Fine Productions.

He is a photographer, videographer, and entrepreneur whose work has taken him from personal survival to professional success.

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But behind the polished images and growing brand lies a story rooted in tragedy that started on January 1, 2008, during the turmoil that followed Kenya’s disputed presidential election results.

In Kiambaa Village near Eldoret, a mob attacked the Kenya Assemblies of God church where families had taken refuge. The building was set ablaze with people trapped inside.

Seventeen people, most of them women and children from the Rift Valley, lost their lives in the fire. Anthony was just 10 years old.

He was pulled from the burning church with third-degree burns covering more than 40 per cent of his body. In the chaos of that day, survival itself was uncertain, and what followed would become a long and painful journey of recovery.

Anthony spent a year receiving treatment in Kenya before being transferred to Shriners Hospital for Children in Sacramento, California.

There, his childhood was reshaped not by school routines or playgrounds, but by hospital corridors, surgeries, and rehabilitation sessions.

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Over the years that followed, he underwent nearly 70 operations as doctors worked to repair and rebuild what the fire had destroyed.

Each procedure marked another step in a long process that tested his physical strength and emotional endurance.

After approximately five years of medical care, Anthony and his family were granted political asylum in the US, giving them a chance to begin again in a new country far from the memories of that night.

For many survivors of trauma, the instinct is often to retreat from the past. Anthony, however, has taken a different path.

He has chosen to confront his story directly and weave it into his identity rather than allow it to define him solely through pain.

Through interviews, podcasts, and public speaking, he speaks openly about survival, trauma, forgiveness, and healing.

His message is not polished in a way that distances it from reality; instead, it is grounded in lived experience. He often emphasises that recovery is not a single moment but a gradual process that requires patience.

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Through Picha Fine Productions, he captures stories, people, and moments, using visual storytelling as a tool to connect, document, and inspire.

What began as a personal journey of survival has evolved into a professional mission centred on expression and impact.

Anthony’s life today is far removed from the church in Kiambaa Village, where everything changed. Yet he does not separate the two chapters.

Instead, he acknowledges both the child who endured unimaginable trauma and the adult who is building a future shaped by purpose.

The boy who was pulled from the burning church in 2008 is now a man creating, building, and telling stories of others. And in his own words and work, he is still only just getting started.

Source: NgGossips