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Matt's Canoeing Challenge

My canoeing challenge was to raise funds to complete the building of my nursery project in Sri Lanka. In early 2011 I began to think of something I could do that would really challenge myself and raise the necessary funds at the same time. After discussion with family and friends I decided upon canoeing the length of the Basingstoke Canal - 36 miles from Weybridge to Odiham. I had been an avid kayaker when younger but had not trained or been in a canoe for a number of years - my fitness levels were also questionable at the start of training!

Nevertheless in May I bought the equipment and began training both on the canal and also on occasion in the sea, all with the help and support of my parents.

I set a target to complete the challenge before the group trip to Sri Lanka at the end of October and over the next few months worked to increase the distance covered during each training session. During my training I set up a just giving page and invited friends, colleagues and family to sponsor me.

The day of the challenge arrived and I had lots of support from friends and family cycling and walking alongside en route. The challenge began in the cold and dark at 7am at Weybridge and finally at about 4pm I completed the challenge, arriving at North Warnborough.

£1160 had been pledged for the nursery by this stage, which was more than the original fundraising target. My franchisee from Domino's Pizza has always taken an interest in my trips to Sri Lanka and the work of Ocean Stars - he generously agreed to match the amount I had raised making a total of £2320 and on 24th October 2011 we opened Little Stars nursery during the group trip. The excitement of the local people during our visit and knowing the essential part the nursery will play in community life made it all worthwhile, I hope to revisit Little Stars on upcoming group trips.

By Chris Booth - Published: 2012-02-02 09:36
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Fund-raising at Comrie Croft, Scotland

‘You’ve come all that way for this?’ the guest at the lodge kindly remarked on hearing we had travelled all the way from Brighton via a combination of cars, planes and bendy bus, to arrive 12 hours later at the beautiful setting of Comrie Croft. It really brought home that unique Scottish welcome I had heard so much about! ‘Well Yes’, feeling exhausted but trying to sound enthusiastic. ‘We wouldn’t have missed it for the world’.  I lamely replied. And, just when I thought the beautiful setting Calum had kindly driven me through and too couldn’t get any better it soon did; enhanced by the first of several welcome drinks offered me by Carole, Helen’s sister. However, having left my notes in Scotland, specific details of the Saturday at Comrie are impressionistic rather than precise. (Particularly the latter part of the evening which ended for me at 3.30 am in a haze of songs by Bob Dylan and, strangely, Paper Lace, I think). But let's face it; most weekends spent in Scotland turn out, in one way or another, to be hazy...

But this one was going to be different. We were there to raise funds for Ocean Stars Trust and so the weekend took on an extra meaning and significance in different ways for all of us there.

So....here I am, back home in Brighton, a week after having returned from our Scottish weekend, preparing to write a summary of the wonderful weekend we all shared. And the photos of the weekend serve as a valuable reminder of how fortunate we were to have met and made so many new friends over the weekend. Of course though, the connection which brought us to Comrie in the first place, namely the shared wish to improve the lives of children and families living in tsunami struck Sri Lanka so many miles away, was strong and yet it is still the strength of Janaki and Helen’s friendship which simply meant the weekend was bound to happen.

Anyway, you will be pleased to learn that despite Saturday’s poor weather, our joint companionship overrode the rain, mist, cold and damp to take to us all to a shared interest in helping those so far away and less fortunate than ourselves.  Many things stand out from the weekend but a few key ones are.....

Drive to Comrie and arriving in haven of peace

Halfway through chatting with Calum en route to Comrie by car I looked up  to see that the landscape of grey motorway and traffic had been replaced by a wonderfully green and peaceful view leading towards the foothills of Perth. On arrival at Comrie we continued to be welcomed by tranquillity and separation from the busy life that had led up to arriving at our destination. It felt, I guess, like a retreat. Not away from the world, but deeper into the real world; a place where people were connected by a shared humanity and the music, energy, love and food they could bring to it.  We all knew that the next 48 hours of music, food, friendship and dancing would be very special indeed.

Sitting outside in the evening dusk, I watched the sun go down over the hills surrounding me. The landscape was framed by the varying shades of blue and purple skies above. The only sound around (apart from Sheila and Carole laughing loudly in the background!) was that of lost sheep bleating and I finally felt we had arrived. Interestingly this inner peace brought on by arrival was reminiscent of travelling all day by river, bus and 4 x 4 to the borders of Thailand and Burma during the mid 90’s. The chaos of the modern world became reassuringly detached from me as we all became increasingly attached to the ‘lost world’ of people, nature and reality.

Curries, food and drink... (What, no haggis?)

From entering the kitchen area of Comrie, the generosity, warmth and creativity of everyone there was all around and early chat with the Geordie cousins, Helen’s sister Carol eand Calm’s great friend Mike soon put me at ease. It also enabled me to mentally match the puzzle pieces of friends and family described by Helen together. Meeting so many of H and C’s and Sheila’s friends in one place was a real treat and helped me understand so much more about their lives.

Top marks to us all but A star plus perhaps to Grant for his lamb curry!

OST presentation

The sincerity of all the Ocean Stars team to the cause shone through here. All of their efforts towards the weekend ensured that everyone knew that, whether they had opted to cycle, walk, jog or a combination of all three, were genuinely benefiting children and families in Sri Lanka. It also saw a new skill of Calum’s come to the fore; that of health and safety executive for the weekend thus ensuring that no-one could talk to their lawyers if they had an accident during the challenge!  As Helen and Sheila and lastly Janaki spoke I wondered what our children, Samina and Jehan, sitting there, looking at and seemingly absorbed by the words and images they were seeing and hearing, made of it all. Why, I wondered if they asked themselves, were other children’s lives so poor compared to their own? As John Lennon wrote, ‘nobody told me there would be days like these’

Sheila in one of her more serious moments

WALK!  What is it good for?  Absolutely everything!

Despite the rain, play was not stopped at all, and to varying extents, we all greatly enjoyed and appreciated the challenge events planned by Helen and Calum.

The morning began though with much milling about in the kitchen as people busied themselves making breakfasts and packing lunches. Soon it was time to set off and following after a windy, windy (as in bendy) yet scenic drive, we arrived at a point in the hills from where the challenges began. The rain continued to fall – not unpleasantly, as though our faces were being gently sprayed by an expensive shower at a health spa. A choice of routes, lengths and ways were provided but given the weather and the children we planned to do the 8 KM walk. We all set off on a brisk pace and felt pleased with our start, yet we did, we noticed Graham’s figure disappearing in the distance as ran the 18 km walk. 

The walk itself was many things at different times; part exhilarating - beautiful views greeted us from all around - but also fun as we tramped along the path keeping our heads down from the rain whilst avoiding puddles and potholes along the way. Joined by Grant’s wife, Fran, Samina and I chatted about her back ground in South Africa and Ghana to my experiences with UNICEF visiting Ghana and working in Thailand. To cut a long and rainy story short, everyone completed the 8 km walk/stroll and returned to base sodden though safe. The route was isolated and green with ferns yet higher up, where the 18km had gone, thick clouds and a drop in temperature made the trek seem less enjoyable in part than it may have been on a clearer day.

We all arrived back at Comrie in a heightened state of awareness of the beauty of the nature but also relief at being back at the croft. The subsequent afternoon was spent in a haze of rest and refreshments as we prepared ourselves for an evening’s entertainment of music and dancing...

Family and friends of Helen, Calum and Sheila!

Just spending a weekend together with Helen, Calum and Sheila’s friends and family made me realise what good and kind people they all were. I wished the world could have been as lucky as us to be together in this safe and warm environment in which everyone got on and the children played together. What a lively group of characters they were and, without being stereotypical (or wishing to curry favour from H and C!), there is something naturally warm and giving about the Scots!

Hanging out at Comrie Croft

This image suggests the layout of the downstairs kitchen and sitting room.  What a great idea these large hostels are for enabling a ‘gathering’ of friends and family to mix and meet together on neutral territory, sharing and connecting in a way that usually, given the size and location of people’s houses, would hot have otherwise happen.

Ceilidh! The evening proceeded with a great session of Scottish dancing in which lots of mistakes were made and people ended going the wrong way. However, not having fun in Scottish dancing is impossible. It takes place at a breakneck speed which seems to increase as the evening goes on. The music in all encompassing as one literally is swept away by the atmosphere. Following the dancing the evening wore on with the auction of a beautiful painting by  one of Calum and Helen’s best buddies,Pauline, in aid of OST and also the very thoughtful presentation to the children there of special Comrie I was there 2011 t – shirts. How thoughtful!

Samina and Helen demonstrating how lots of linking, swirling and Scottish jigging takes place in Scottish dancing 

Events thereafter become a little sketchy. Although no photographic evidence survives it is generally agreed that around midnight the final event of the night/morning was what is formally known as a ‘right old sing-song’. This was where various named (me, Mike and Ian) and unnamed guests sang, played and drummed the evening away to a wide collection of classic songs and melodies primarily from the renaissance period of the early 1970’s. Rumour has it that Graham even performed his legendary number on the buckaroo (child’s too) At any event, Knocking on Heavens Door, Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree, Sailing and California Dreaming were some of the numbers enjoyed by all until the wee hours...

Nearly over – the weekend not lost but found.

Well, that is a general but certainly not comprehensive summary of the weekend – particularly the Saturday, at Comrie Croft 2011. Top marks to the Scottish Stars gang for organising a very special weekend in aid of wells and toilets for children in Sri Lanka.

By Chris Booth - Published: 2011-09-28 10:39
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Matt's kayak challenge

Please support Matt who is planning to paddle a kayak the length of the Basingstoke canal, in support of Ocean Stars.

Matt says "Somehow I came across the idea of this challenge, armed myself with the necessary equipment and began training. About 6 weeks into my training, and with a month to go, I think the challenge (which consists of 26 miles of kayaking along with about 4 miles carrying my canoe around locks) is going to take me roughly 8 hours.

"It's a massive challenge for me and it's all for an extremely worthy cause, so I'd like to take this opportunity  to ask you donate whatever you can afford, and 'like' this page on facebook so that word spreads. The smallest amounts of money can make the most incredible changes to people in Sri Lanka's lives."

Thank you Matt and good luck.

Why not support Matt now?  You can visit Matt's Kayak Challenge page on Just Giving.

By Chris Booth - Published: 2011-09-28 10:23
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Trip to Sri Lanka - April 2011

Dilanee and Shona distribute t-shirts to playgroup teachers. These t-shirts were bought through donations received from the gift catalogue.

I was so please to be able to take Shona to the East of Sri Lanka and show her all the projects we talk about regularly at our meetings in the UK. Being able to put names to faces makes it that more personal and real. One of the highlights was the distribution of our Gift Catalogue donations. People had come from afar to receive their gifts. The smiles on the children’s faces as they received their first pair of shoes will stay with me for a long time. Trying to get a sewing machine and boxes of chickens into a tuk- tuk was no easy task.

It is hear warming to see how much part of the community Ocean Stars is. Playgroups are on a waiting list to come under Ocean Stars so that teachers can be paid and children benefit from all the resources provided by Ocean Stars.

People in Vavuniya, Trincomalee and Batticaloa all said how much they valued our team visits and the personal nature of the work we do.

It was a pleasure to share the magic of Ocean Stars with Shona. It was great to be able to show her first hand all the places, people and projects we always talk about.

Dilanee

By Chris Booth - Published: 2011-06-29 21:18
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Trip to Sri Lanka - April 2011

In April this year, I had the privilege of accompanying Dilanee on a return visit to Sri Lanka, five and half years after my initial visit which took place several months after the tsunami.  A lot has happened in those five years; notably the civil war, flooding, the establishment of EOSL and a tenfold increase in the number of Ocean Stars Projects! 

As somebody who has been involved with Ocean Stars since its inception, this trip gave me a chance to see not only how the initial projects which OST had been involved have developed but also to see how the new projects were meeting the needs of the beneficiaries.

We had a lot to pack into our eight days, so after our 11.5 hour flight we got straight to work and set off on our 6 hour journey to Grace Children’s Home in Vavuniya which is in the north of Sri Lanka.  This home has been supported by OST through Heatherside Infant School in Fleet for five years now.

 I was struck by how warm and welcoming it was. To be honest, I was not expecting the home to be quite so homely, given that until recently, the home was located in the heart of the conflict area .  I believe that this is down to two main reasons; firstly Mrs Nahardajah, the founder and matron mother to the boys and also to Ocean Stars, who as a charity has been fairly unique in my opinion in that it has partnered Grace for the long term and helped it to grow and develop.  OST has not been like many other charities which give & than walk away.  Not only does OST continually support the home financially but it also gives emotional and social support through regular visits and continued contact.

Our second stop was Trinco. Personally, this was quite an emotional day as I finally got to meet the children that both myself and my parents sponsor. It was simply wonderful to meet the children and their families in their home environment. Both families welcomed me into their homes and valued the time we had together.  We then spent time with Janabdeen and his family.  Janabdeen is the person who looks after all the sponsor families locally in Trinco on behalf of OST. Given the low level of awareness of English amongst these very poor families, he is a key link and tries to keep the communication flow going between the Trinco families and their sponsor families in the UK.

Our next stop was Batti and to finally meet the EOSL team.  EOSL is a not for profit organisation established in Sri Lanka and it is through this body, that OST runs many of its key projects.  EOSL is managed by Ranchan and his team of five people who look after all the projects in the Batti area.  Their primary focus is on pre-school education although its remit is broadening around this area.  The day we arrived was the start of the Tamil and Singhalese New Year but I was amazed that most of the teachers wanted to come to the EOSL offices and meet us in person.  As a result, we were able to distribute all the new uniforms for the playgroups for the year and meet the new teachers which OST has now agreed to sponsor.

Later on, we began the mammoth task of distributing the Xmas Catalogue gifts.  Words cannot express how grateful the recipients of the gifts were. All the gifts presented will undoubtedly make a huge change to their lives & this shone through by their wide beaming smiles!

It was also during our time in Batti that we were able to visit and lay the foundation stone of the first ever OST nursery, which we call “Matt’s nursery” after OST trustee, Matt Marshall who has been fundraising for the construction of this nursery.  It was located in a very remote area.  Although it was only 30 kilometres away from Batti, it took us two hours to get there including the ferry!  The area is probably the poorest area in Sri Lanka that we visited.  The roads are mere dust tracks, there is no industry and the children have to walk an hour to get to school each day.  The nearby villages have been badly bombed as this area was in the heart of the Tamil Tiger territory. The wildlife is immense with water buffalo and peacocks roaming freely!  Dilanee laid the foundation stone and construction is now well under way & we hope to have the official opening ceremony in October 2011 when Team 11 visits.

Next door to Matt’s nursery is the site of the Green Project and it was pleasing to meet the family who is going to provide the land and support the development of this project.  Fundraising for this project continues and we hope to begin work shortly.  As there is low level of employment in this area, it will provide a real economic boost to the local community.

Our final stop was in the South. For me this was a really special day as I was able to go back and see how the first beneficiaries of OST were getting on & how our initial help had impacted their lives.  The first stop was to the home of Chandra and Swarna.  Chandra is an elderly lady who gave up space in her house to the Thoten Project which was a project that promoted health awareness and monitored sanitation in the aftermath of the tsunami.

Many of the young people involved in running the project received further educational sponsorship from OST to enable them to obtain jobs once the project came to an end. Sangeeth had a desire to enter the catering industry and OST funded a catering management course for him.  After the Thoten project ended, Sangeeth went into partnership with another of the Thoten students and now they have developed their skills such that they are now working in the 5 star hotel s in Dubai earning a very good wage to support their families back in Sri Lanka.  Indeed Sangeeth married one of the other Thoten students, Dinesha, and it was lovely to meet up with her and their beautiful young son.

Our last stop of the day was to see an after school project outside Galle which OST has been supporting for the past two years. The project is located in a new hilly post tsunami village a good 30 minutes from Galle. The residents were all displaced in the aftermath of the tsunami and many lost immediate family members. They were rehoused in this post tsunami village and many of the residents told us about how many of them found it hard to cope not being able to live near the sea. sea.

This project provides extra tuition and support after school, something that most parents consider vital but few are able to financially provide.  Dilanee and I were treated to a truly sensational performance by the children keen to show us what they had learnt in the classes. Most of the children were fascinated by us and keen to learn all about the way we lived in the UK.

 So after a week and many hundreds of kilometres of travelling, our trip round Sri Lanka sadly came to an end. It was wonderful being back & already I am planning my next trip back in 2012.  I am definitely not going to be leaving it so long before I return to this truly wonderful country.

Shona Holroyd

By Chris Booth - Published: 2011-06-29 21:18
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Sri Lanka flooding forces more than 300,000 to flee homes

Ocean Stars has had several appeals from Sri Lanka for help with the recent flooding that has devastated homes in Batticaloa eastern Sri Lanka. 30 of the families sponsored by Ocean Stars are now living in temporary refugee camps. Some of the children who attend our playgroups have lost everything. Ocean Stars has been asked to provide funds for bedding, clothes and dry food such as rice, sugar, powdered milk and dhal. Please donate through Just Giving on our website or send cheques made payable to “Ocean Stars Trust” to

Dilanee Bunter
2, Netherhouse Moor
Church Crookham
Fleet
Hants
GU51 5TY

Many Thanks from The Ocean Stars Trust Trustees.

By Dilanee Bunter - Published: 2011-01-14 08:51
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