James Thompson with child in Tanzania
Raising money for children in Tanzania has taken on a deeper meaning for a group of teenagers who spent nearly four weeks of their summer volunteering in the country.
Derby Grammar School has taken a group of sixth formers on the life-changing 3,500-mile journey to the country for 10 years.
The visit, which sees students volunteering in a school and orphanage as well as challenging themselves with a gruelling ascent of Mt Kilimanjaro, has had a lasting impact on the teenagers who went.
Leo Silverwood and James Thompson were among the group of seven students who made the journey to Mwanza in north-west Tanzania.
As they take part in activities for the school’s Charities Week – the biggest fundraising event of the year for its Tanzania Appeal – the boys say their experiences have led them to act, and think, differently.
“It 100% stays with you,” said James. “I was even thinking about it last night. I just appreciate things more.”
Leo agreed: “You do little things differently too. Like not leaving a tap running or wasting things,” he said.
For James, it was the Hisani Orphanage which left a lasting impression.
“Going to the Hisani Orphanage at the start when we saw all the kids, that will stay with me,” said James. “We went into their bedroom and all they owned was their bed and a little shelf on the end of it, they had nothing else.”
The students took out toys for the children, aged 1 to 16, which they handed out.
Leo said: “Giving the kids a toy car so they had something of their own, that will really stay with me. Up until then they had shared everything they had. They had nothing just for themselves. It’s just so hard to imagine that.”
As well as handing out toys, the students also redecorated external walls at the orphanage and played with the children, blowing bubbles which they said always mesmerised them.
This year, was the first time students have supported a new school, the Amani school, instead of the Gedeli B school which they have been visiting since the appeal started.
At the new school, students helped teach maths, English and sport and delivered essential books and equipment. Derby Grammar School’s Tanzania Appeal had also paid for a field full of boulders to be cleared to make space for a sports area.
James said: “At Amani school, we were literally swarmed by hundreds of kids. The teachers had to take the kids off us. They were so excited to see us, it meant so much to them.”
The students had pre-prepared lessons, appreciating the difficulty in teaching when they didn’t speak the language.
“It was hard at first but when you could see they understood something it was really rewarding,” said Leo. “Sport really brought people together, and the children’s faces when they had proper footballs to play with, rather than just one they’d made themselves, they were so shocked.”
The boys fundraised and worked holiday jobs to earn the money which covered their costs of travelling to and staying in Tanzania. Each year the school puts on events to raise the money which is then spent on the equipment and work carried out when they are in the country.
That money has paid for new school buildings, toilet blocks, computers, sports equipment, toys and more over the years, as well as clearing the sports area at Amani school this year.
A large portion of that money is raised during Derby Grammar School’s Charities Week, which this year runs from November 13.
In previous years, it has just been Year 13 students who have experienced the trip before leaving the school following their A Levels. But this year the opportunity was also open to Year 12 students, like Leo and James, meaning they have a fresh perspective on this autumn’s Charities Week events.
James said: “Being here for Charities Week having gone to Tanzania, we now know how much that money means and with every bit someone does, every little bit raised, you think, ‘that’s a textbook or new clothing’, you appreciate it more.”
Kate Stockton is director of post-16 education at Derby Grammar School and has been helping to organise the trips and accompany students for three years.
She said: “It is fantastic to see the impact and benefit of these visits on students from both countries. We see the difference we are able to make to the children and staff in Tanzania, but I also know the lasting impact it has on our students. I am proud of how they go out of their comfort zones, challenge themselves and pull together, particularly on the Mt Kilimanjaro climb, as a team. It is one of the most life-changing trips we organise as a school, for everyone involved.”
