Town centre sit-out helps make school dream reality in Uganda
Noel Gibson on his 24 hour sit out in Portadown Town Centre in aid of Fields of Life receives support from Hazel McFadden, Jeanette Gibson and George Jackson. INPT0113-102gc
fBUILDING work has started on a school work in Uganda thanks to the generosity of the Portadown public who dug deep into their pockets to support a New Year sit-out.
The 24 hour sit-out, which was undertaken by husband and wife Noel and Jeanette Gibson and friend George Jackson, raised £3,005.18 for the Fields of Life charity.
The trio braved the cold over New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day for the charity challenge in front of St Mark’s Church, and were delighted with the number of people who stopped to lend their support.
Said Jeanette, “The full funding is complete and the builders are now on site at Ongoromo Primary School and have commenced the building work there.
“This will be very exciting for the children as they will no longer need to have classes under a mango tree or in a thatched hut.”
She added, “We would also like to sincerely thank all the people from Portadown and indeed further afield who supported this event.
“Not only was the sit-out successful in raising money for the charity but it was also an opportunity to tell people about the work of Fields of Life, a locally based charity with offices at 25 Carn Road, Portadown.
“Fields of Life bring about positive change in East Africa through the provision of quality education, clean water, health promotion and other community based projects. To date, 106 new schools have been completed by the charity.”
It was a trip to Uganda in October with 14 other volunteers which spurred the three on to organise the sit-out. Although it was Jeanette’s fifth visit to the country, it was Noel’s first time visiting a Fields of Life project.
She said, “It affected him very much and when one of the group from Ballymoney told us about the sit-out they had done up there, we thought it would be a good idea to do one in Portadown.
“The poverty is so great, it’s honestly unbelievable... Many of the children there cannot go to school because the families can’t afford it and that’s why we’re trying to sponsor schools and help improve things.”
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Weather for Portadown
Thursday 23 May 2013
Today
Light showers
Temperature: 5 C to 9 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: North west
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