Another traveller on his way ….

Happy traveller to be, Moses Tholley. Founder pupil, Moses Tholley, in his penultimate year of engineering studies at the Fourah Bay College, is on his way to Poland for a 6 month work experience placement. Having come close on several occasions, but not being willing to participate in the required corruption, it was looking as…

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Rolal construction – amazing feat!

The human conveyor belt and concrete mixers went into action once again and Rolal’s new Senior Secondary School has a new ceiling / first floor. An enormous team of water carriers, cooks, cement fetchers, concrete mixers, concrete shovelers, concrete passers, concrete squashers and flatteners were mobilised by Dunia and the Rolal staff. Parents, students, staff…

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What a team!

Great planning session with a transformed leadership team. From a group of self-constraining self-doubters the leadership team has metamorphosised into a dynamic team of people who are genuinely proud to be making a difference to their country through their work with EducAid. They are proud of the changes in their own professional status and capacity…

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Engineering : ) Engineering : ( Engineering : )

A very happy Musa ready for his adventure and a complete transformation of his life. Engineering : ) Fantastic news – Musa Koroma is now our fourth EducAid student to be selected for an international scholarship. He is due to go to Russia for the new academic year to study engineering. We greatly appreciate the…

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I must be back in Sierra Leone

Grim skin lurgy 1. Grim skin lurgy 1 again. Grim skin lurgy 2. Grim skin lurgy 2 again. Days shared in almost equal parts between hope, despair, delight, beauty, sweat, dust, anger, sadness, frustration and awe. I must be back in Sierra Leone. 10 months ago tomorrow we lost Alhassan. I still can’t believe I…

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Successful UK fundraising trip

We are just back from a very successful month of fund-raising in the UK. Successful because many new liaisons were made. Successful because many long-standing relationships have stood not only the test of time but also the test of the recession. Successful because much generosity has been shown. Successful because Anne [who organises my timetable…

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Congratulations to the winners!

”Hi Miriam, I have the honour of writing to inform you that Educaid are the winners of the Rafiki Photo Contest! Congratulations! The whole team loved that the students drew the Rafiki logo. It was a wonderful touch. Your prize is up to £150 of technological gear for your classroom. Congratulations again! Best,Renee” Always good…

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Ezekiel graduates

Graduation Day – Congratulations on the wonderful achievement! He’s usually a lot smilier than this – must have been the awe of the occasion!When EducAid first started its own school on 18th September, 2000 with 20 assorted youngsters, on the back veranda of a house I rented, Ezekiel was one of the founding pupils. He…

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Interactive International lessons on the tube

Jimiyke has now returned to base after his 6 month tour of the UK where he caused quite a stir as he spoke to young people across the country about his experiences of the war and his rehabilitation through education since. He took part on many occasions in interactive lessons between schools in the UK…

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Amazon Queen

Shortly after Alhassan died I discovered the joys of online shopping. [I might despise the theory of retail therapy but the reality is that it still works!] Since then, I have become one of Amazon’s most active customers. It is quite a performance getting stuff here still but I generally abuse the offices of any…

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Bad timing on the Icelandic Ash!

So tempting to ask, ‘Why me?!!!!’ but it is me + how many thousand [million??? not sure] others. The teacher training materials for the 2nd module are finished today and I should be on a plane out of the heat and the very confused dry / rainy season that has started here! but No!!! Icelandic…

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Rafi.ki

Rafi.ki is an intra schools online learning community platform [or something like that!] Rafi.ki and EducAid have become good friends over the last 12 months or so as they have linked us in with a variety of projects and as we became the face [ok Jimiyke became the face] of some of their conflict diamonds…

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Helping EducAid Help

A few months ago, we started being contacted by those who had visited the excellent ‘stuff your rucksack’ website, where our link is: http://www.stuffyourrucksack.com/find/Recipient.aspx?RecipientId=253 A variety of people coming into Sierra Leone visiting friends or on work missions have brought all sorts of invaluable books, clothes, stationery etc. Today, I was contacted by Frangle who…

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Running water in the compound – big day!

The gutters along the roads here are home to a spagetti of blue plastic water pipes. Some even have water in them but when things get difficult people wait until it is quiet and cut pipes at will in order to get the water they need. The result: however legal your connection to the mains…

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AdvocAid EducAid partnership goes from strength to strength

The team: Sabrina and Alison [left to right behind], Esther, Lilian and Mealo [left to right front]AdvocAid has contracted EducAid to run literacy classes in the Pademba Road [Freetown] and Kenema prisons for female prisoners for some time now but we had our first get together and real training session this week. Sabrina and Alison…

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Getting into the swing of things!

Adrian and Swithun spent their last afternoon seeing the kids at their best: receiving certificates and prizes for community service done, top exam scores achieved, merit certificates earned, being talked through numerous presentations from the various clubs: Science, Girl Power Group, Peer Mediators, Believers in Action, Life Skills Group, Library Society, ICT club and more.…

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Ho down for EducAid

Ho down for EducAid!Mike Ruse [my long-suffering best friend from Uni days] has been do-si-do ing and swinging his partners with the congregation from a nearby church in Southampton on EducAid’s behalf. Much hard work went into the arrangements and we are very appreciative. We promise to spend the proceeds well! Amazing what people will…

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The Big Boss is in Town

So….Jimiyke is back with a clean bill of health and very happy to see his friends again here. They were very excited to welcome him home! It has been an amazing experience but at times some serious homesickness. He is back, now, teaching in the IT room while working out his own next steps. Swithun…

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