County Down Outlook - News - Big hearted three on mercy mission

News

Big hearted three on mercy mission

Wednesday, 18 January 2012

THIS week important final preparations are busily being made as three men from Rathfriland head off on a special trip on Thursday.
Their destination is Nakansongola in Uganda and this will be their home for two weeks as they help to improve the daily lives of the native people.
Joe Moorhead, Leonard Graham and Alister Gracey are going as members of the Hope Builders team, which is part of the Fields of Life Campaign, and make up part of the 48-strong group travelling over from Northern Ireland.
This year will be Joe's 12th time going and he told The Outlook that he is looking forward to getting back over.
“We are going back to the same place as last year to do more work to the secondary school, which we started in 2010," explained Joe.
Construction on the secondary school in Nakansongola began in 2010 when two large buildings were completed, at about 6,000 square feet. Last year the Hope Builders team added science laboratories onto the school.
“This year we are going to build two dormitories for the children," he said.
“We are also hopefully going to build up two aluminium stores which will hold their grain and crops."
Joe was part of the group which built the primary school in the area back in 2000 and it sits about two miles away from the secondary school and between the two schools over 1000 pupils are receiving education.
“There's roughly 900 pupils in the primary school and over 220 in the secondary school," said Joe.
“The children would have received some teaching before but nothing to what they would have now.
“For the primary pupils before there was a building for them they would have been taught outside, which was fine until it rained, and then they would have had to sit under a tree. At least now they have a building to go to."
Joe said the Fields of Life Campaign, particularly the Hope Builders team, have received a great response for their work and always feel welcome when they arrive in Uganda.
As well as those carrying out the construction work, there is usually a doctor and nurses who travel with them.
“In that local area the nurses will treat someone who is not well. The doctor is a safeguard for the team but they will also treat people out there too.
“Last year 1000 patients were treated. There were always large numbers queued up every day."
Joe explained that this trip is voluntary and each person has to raise £1800 before they go out. This money covers travel expenses and the cost of food while the team is in Uganda.
“The money also goes on supplies for the building of the school. We have our tools over there in containers so we can use them and don't have to worry about that before we go over. We have our full gear over there.
“For preparation at this stage all we can do is make sure we have the proper clothes packed and make sure we have the funds raised to go.
“Another thing is making sure we can get the time off work to go."
The school in Nakansongola sits among 80 acres and Joe said if there is any money left over from the project they are hoping to buy more ground for them.
“The school farms their own ground and they are about 80 per cent self-sufficient and they feed the children from this ground.
“In a few years we hope they will be 100 per cent self-sufficient. Both the primary and secondary schools have wells and they have been given clean water, as supplied by Fields of Life."