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What's been going on in Wales Maggie Beecher recently wrote to local MP Julie Morgan with the following after reading an account of Ms Morgan's evening discussion regarding Africa: Dear Julie As a Llanishen resident I read about your recent evening discussing Africa. I only wish I had known about it before! Three years ago I sent a 40 ton container of school equipment to Zambia. I saw this School while on holiday, run for orphans and under-privileged children who cannot afford the fees of a state school. When I saw the conditions I promised to help, which I did and for which they are eternally grateful. I fundraised to pay for the container to be shipped over there and now they have (the 500 or so children) the following...... Desks and chairs, a library, a chicken run to help raise an income for the school, a vegetable patch, a small pig farming concern, electricity to connect the water pump, toys, clothes, computers and even an electric organ for assembly. The support from Wales was enormous and most of the equipment came from schools which had closed or had had their furniture replaced. The books were obsolete text books but still perfectly good for their needs and the rest were things people here were not using. I'm not writing this for congratulations, but to outline the fact that it is relatively easy to collect unused items here to go to needy schools in Africa. If the government were to put a scheme in place whereby they would find and fund warehouses to hold goods then pay for the shipping, children's education in 3rd world countries would be enhanced. I also formed a charity called "Teacher Aid" hoping that schools, churches, societies and individuals would fund the salaries of African volunteer teachers of this school, but this was a struggle and proved difficult to get off the ground. Unfortunately this seems to have died a death in spite of the trustees giving presentations etc. Any thought on this would be welcome! I have kept this email simple and ask you take matters further regarding surplus/obsolete school items in UK being used in Africa instead of public money being used to destroy them in landfill sites. I do hope this "strikes a chord!" Yours sincerely, Maggie Beecher - Volunteer for "Hope and Aid Direct" Registered charity. The Epic Voyage of the Sea Scamp Alan Beckwith and Maggie Beecher from the Wales and West Team recently joined John (Coxy) Cox and Charles Storer to take some time out for a well deserved break - sailing off the south coast. Although the trip didn't take place in Wales - it did involve some of our team!! For an account of their adventures, read on. When: 24-28 October 2005 The Crew were all associated with the charity “Hope and Aid Direct”, which was founded in 1999 to deliver Humanitarian Aid to the Balkan countries, (Chas Storer is one of the founders). The charity works with all religions and factions in the countries visited, and is operated totally on a voluntary basis. Volunteers finance their own trucks, and source their own aid. Hope and Aid Direct undertake two convoys per year, at Easter and in the Autumn, and we are always on the lookout for keen volunteers and sources of aid. Please contact John Cox for contact details.
The Crew: John Cox (Skipper), Hilary Webb (Mate), Alan Beckwith, Maggie Beecher, John Harries, Chas Storer. This auspicious event started on the morning of 24 October, when the crew gathered together at Shamrock Quay in Southampton. The weather was already preparing itself for the week with rain, and a forecast of heavy winds. The rain eventually cleared up, but we continued to have a problem with wind all through the week, particularly overnight when it became difficult to determine the source of the wind. Hilary and Coxy carried out a safety briefing, emergency exits over the wings, oxygen masks etc, etc, and Hilary proved to be fully qualified in the operation of a marine loo, knowledge which she passed on to all! I bet Maggie wished she had paid more attention to this, her attempt at filling the boat with water in the very early hours of Thursday morning would then have been avoided!!!
The original plan was to sail over to Cowes for the first night, but the weather threw up several challenges in the form of a Force 8 gale and rough seas, so plans were changed half way across and we retraced our steps up the Hamble to the Jolly Sailors pub. (The weather may not have been the only thing to throw up had we continued!) At the second attempt we moored on a pontoon that allowed shore access, provided that you were used to punts, and walking on a very unstable pontoon! After a wonderful meal on board, prepared by Hilary, we decided to visit the Jolly Sailor, where we were greeted by a very cheerful barmaid, who kindly informed us that the forecast was “crap” for the rest of the week! She then said that they could not light the fire to dry us out, nor would they do breakfast in the morning. Oh for customer service!!!!
Sleeping were at best cramped, everybody rapidly becoming almost intimate!! Chas and John were on the “shelf” all week, but I think they soon came to enjoy it. Maggie succumbed to my snoring, and also the threat of Chas’s semi-naked form descending on her, and she took to the cockpit on the first night, and then the forepeak from then on! I remember having to stay still all night, the berth being so narrow, but finally on Thursday fell out on to the cabin floor, I am still not sure whether I was helped along! Tuesday was a little better, and we eventually sorted out the boat, made the trek to the “facilities”, and cast off. We successfully reached Cowes late afternoon, and made use of a local launderette to dry out some clothes. A brief tour was made of the shops, and a visit to the pub, followed by another superb on-board meal. By this time it had become apparent that Maggie could sleep anywhere and at any time, even at an angle on the deck in high winds and rough seas!! Wednesday was further improved, and we sailed west to Yarmouth, but made a detour via the Needles on the way. Our entry to the harbour at Yarmouth was accompanied by the resident dolphin, who had been in the area for 2 weeks and was becoming a tourist attraction, providing extra income for the water taxi! We ate in a pub in the evening, and spent 4 hours playing a game involving naming items of food and drink beginning with selected letters of the alphabet. We had other customers and staff members helping on this, using the library of catering books in the kitchen. It is an indication of the depths of despair that were reached when e-coli and enteritis were accepted for the letter “e” -------- Well go on then, you try!!
Thursday was Paradise!!!!! Blue sky, sunshine, and good sea state all combined to lift the spirits, (there were still some left!), and we sailed up to Cowes, on up the Medina river to the Folly Inn for lunch. On the way, Coxy issued a challenge that if we achieved 8.5 knots, he would buy a round of drinks! With all of our efforts, we managed to achieve a very satisfying 8.4 knots, I guess the log is incorrect! While at the Folly Inn, Coxy and Chas decided to go for a trip in the rubber dinghy, and after a very energetic blow job, and Chas’ immortal phrase, “I don’t think it will be very wet in there!” they took off, to return in 35 minutes quite wet!! Coxy was actually heard to issue another edict, being “No booze tonight, we have to leave early in the morning!” (Yea right!). Later in the afternoon we made the trip across to the Beaulieu River and Bucklers Hard for the night.
This was the night of the great “Ready Steady Cook, Sea Scamp style” competition, under the watchful eye of Chas, (who else??), and we were all given the limit of £1.50 to buy three items of food, one for a starter, one for a main, and one for dessert. Bear in mind that Tesco etc have not yet reached the Isle of Wight, (electricity only got there last year!) so choice was limited to the one and only Costcutter shop in Yarmouth. Nevertheless, purchases made, teams picked, and meal choice made, off we started at 7.00 pm. (Congratulations to John H, who would have confounded Gordon Ramsey with his choice of Dumpling Mix, still there was some caulking to do on the hull!!) While the selected pairs were performing in the galley, the other pairs were able to enjoy a few drinks on the deck, which added to the fun of the evening, which came to an end sometime about midnight, all of us having prepared and eaten all of the courses, and it was fair to say that it was a truly memorable occasion, (I don’t remember having dessert, but I am told that I had seconds!), and in the morning the stern of the boat looked like a new Bucklers Hard bottle bank! (So much for the skipper’s instruction!)
Friday was the day for returning home, we left at 10.00 am and set course for Southampton Water and Shamrock Quay. Once we had left the Beaulieu River, the wind came up, and the sea became disturbed. Chas took up residence on the pulpit, dressed in his wet weather gear of yellow and dark blue. He did, of course, closely resemble a cardinal buoy without the two cones, perhaps this is a new CB call sign for “Cardinal” Chas? (He had no problems with choice of fuel on this trip!). We moored for lunch to a buoy at the end of Southampton Water, Hilary expertly carrying out the mooring in difficult conditions of wind and sea. Maggie once again produced a wonderful meal from the remains of the food, and a revitalised crew continued up Southampton Water towards the destination. We reached the pontoon at 3.30 pm, and carried out the unloading, cleaning, paying, record completion etc, but without any doubt, this had been a fantastic experience, and all thanks go to Coxy and Hilary for making it possible. I have sailed for many years, on several boats, but can honestly say that “Sea Scamp” was a memorable experience. She handled wind and rough sea with ease, and instilled confidence in the crew. The trip from Yarmouth to Cowes on the Thursday was an experience not to be missed, the combination of wind, sun and sea state making for a fast passage that was exciting and absorbing. Roll on the next trip! Alan Beckwith
You can see what Tina has been up to by going to the press room and reading the cuttings and her diary in Previous Convoys:
The following is a poster for just one of the many events organised by Hope and Aid Direct volunteers. This will give you some idea of the activities that take place.
Kosovo 2005 - John's questions and Answers: When Did We Go? From Dover 18 March 2005 Arrived back at Dover 1 April 2005. Where Did We Go? Kosava/Kosovo depending on which ethnic group you belong too. Currently administered by the United Nations and bordered by Albania, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia. How did we get there? By driving through 10 countries : Wales, England, France, Belgium, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakian Republic, Hungary, Serbia and Kosovo. The journey took four days of hard driving, late nights and early mornings with a Driver change-over every 2.5 hours. The Drivers slept in the lorries and experienced many delays at Ex-Communist Border Crossings and Road Toll Booths. How many Trucks/Vehicles? Eight Trucks, two Articulated Vehicles and one Ambulance. The two articulated vehicles were sponsored by Fords of Dagenham. These trucks went on ahead to later rendezvous with us at the Serbian border. How many people were involved? Twenty-five individuals: two drivers per truck, plus three people who travelled over separately from England to help out at the Warehouse and to enable the aid to be delivered more efficiently. Why did we go? To help bring some short term and long term relief to the very poor and needy of the various ethnic and religious groups within Kosovo. What did we do and how did we do it? After waiting for clearance for approximately 24 hours at Kosovo Customs we drove in Convoy to a purpose built modern empty Warehouse approximately 50,000 sq ft in size in the Capital City of Pristina. This was owned by the highly respected Mother Theresa Organisation who have about 4,000 volunteer workers in Kosovo. The Warehouse was so big we could drive all of the trucks inside to unload. All ten trucks were unloaded and the aid put into designated areas, i., food, blankets and bedding, ladies clothes, men’s clothes, children’s clothes, baby clothes, toiletries, household goods, toys, medical supplies, tools, stationery, computers and special projects. Each truck was given assignments each day that had been pre-arranged by the Mother Theresa Organisation. Our first Project was to take aid to two separate villages for distribution to 53 families. Village number one housed ten families with Village number two sheltering 32 families. When we arrived at each Village we met with the Head of the Village who was to be our contact. In Village number one and through the combined efforts of our interpreter and the Head of the Village we established the needs of the families. For instance, families with large numbers of children were allocated extra children’s clothes, food, etc. When the allocation of aid was complete, (46 bundles in total) the head of each family is called forward to collect their aid. For onlookers from Britain, the sight of a 70 year old widow having nothing but a wheelbarrow to place her allocation of aid in, can prove quite emotional. We always take extra supplies of aid, as we are always asked whether or not we can help others in the village. We then moved on to Village number two and repeated the exercise before returning to the Warehouse to load for the next days assignment. We were indeed fortunate this year as we had the luxury of Warehouse volunteers to make up aid packages ready to be loaded onto our vehicles in readiness for the next day. Loading was done quickly while electricity was available as it is a way of life to endure several electricity power cuts at the Warehouse, not knowing when or if the electricity supply would be turned on again. A normal day consists of waking at 6.30 am and working through until 9.30 pm before returning to our hotel to eat and shower, if hot water is available, then off to bed, and start all over again for our next days' assignment. Achievements How many people received help over a five day period? 1,912 families. This included: 9,527 people across an ethnic breakdown of Albanians, Serbs, Roma, Ashkalia, Croats, Gorani, Turkish and Islamic. Altogether, a total in excess of 80 tons of Aid was distributed. The motto of Hope and Aid Direct is “We take Aid not Sides Distributions were also made to Hospitals, Handicapped Centres (Handikos) Podgorc School, the charity of Balkan Sunflowers, Hope and Homes, SOS Kinderdorf, Magura Mining Village, and a last minute day of distribution in Mitrovica as well as an Ambulance to its proud new owners Babin Most. Also, a sink wash basin and water heater which was plumbed-in at a Collective Centre. Since its inception in 1999 Hope and Aid Direct have distributed Aid to date of, 101 x 7.5 ton trucks, one cattle truck, two transit vans, 15 x 38 ton trucks, one x 17.5 tonner, two ambulances plus a container load to Sri Lanka and Africa with an estimated total of 704 tons of aid which has helped 8,664 families made up of 41,693 individuals. Hope and Aid Direct is an organisation run by volunteers who pay their own hotel and food expenses whilst on Convoy and whilst at pre-Convoy briefings. Why not Convoy with Hope and Aid Direct? I can guarantee it will be physically exhausting and psychologically draining but very rewarding, enriching, satisfying and most of all, very very worthwhile. My special thanks go to Sue Healan Diz and Tim Percival, Jacquie and Mathew Curtis, Lee, Gaynor, and Ellie Percival, Alicia Grundy, Clive Cox, Pat Williams, Cymru Self Drive, Johnsons Apparelmaster of Treforest and Delia and husband of Ely. What else have the Welsh Team been up to? Abseiling in Cardiff of course - to read more about who took part and to see our gallery follow this link. Our other contact pages
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