Kilimanjaro - School Bus Project

Martin Bovingdon is raising money for Church Army

Story

UPDATE 24 MAY: Thanks to the combined efforts of the UK climbing team, only 3,000 GBP is now required to secure the purchase of the school bus. PLEASE, PLEASE continue to donate towards this important project. We are on the home stretch for sure, so keep up the good work and make the dream for the Nairobi children a reality! My sincere thanks to the Association of Chief Estates Surveyors & Property Managers in Local Government for the very generous £250 donation towards the fund and for publishing my article about the trek in The Terrier, the journal of ACES.

UPDATE 6 MARCH: - I DID IT !!!!! :-)

We have just returned 5.3.06, and yes I did reach Uhuru Peak - the roof of Africa (at 08:00hrs on 1 March)! It was very touch and go and the climbing team required extreme focus to achieve it, but it is great to have succeeded. However we are still raising money for the School Bus so please do continue to support our worthy cause, for the children of Nairobi. We met all the children in the school and it was such a delight - they were so pleased to see us and each class gave us cards, and sang songs and danced for us. A very moving experience, and a powerful encouragement to us. Climbing with the school teachers was especially good, enabling us to get to know them and understand the difficult issues they and the children face. Images and stories will follow as soon as we can get them sorted. KEEP GIVING ! Thank you.

Funding Update 20 February:

I am delighted that sponsorship now exceeds my target amount. However, the UK climbing team collectively still needs a further 8,000GBP to secure the school bus, so please continue to sponsor me. My sincere thanks to everyone who has most generously donated to this cause. I have been very touched by the magnificanet response from family, friends, work collegues and the corporate sector alike. Of particular note, I must mention the superb 300GBP donation from Metropolitan Police Chigwell Sports Club.

Thanks for visiting this page, and I do hope you will consider supporting this project. The objective is to directly help many of the Kenyan children in the outskirts of Nairobi slums who cannot get safely to school and allow them an opportunity of securing an education. This can be achieved by providing a new school bus together with building additional classrooms for a school in Nairobi set up by Church Army Africa some 10 years ago.

My challenge is formidable: along with four other British climbers to reach the highest point of the African continent, Uhuru Peak on Mount Kilimanjaro at 5,895m (19,340ft) above sea level: and in doing so contribute to a collective fund raising target of GBP40,000. The trek involves several energy sapping days of walking in increasingly thin air with a distinct lack of oxygen. To succeed in reaching the summit will be no mean feat as we endure the heat of the African sun and the sub zero temperatures at the peak. The 8 day challenge begins on Feb 22nd 2006. Our approach trail to the summit will follow the less frequented Rongai (Nalemoru) Route that starts on the Kenyan side at the Outward Bound Mountain School (OBMS) Loitoktok.We will then descend via the better known Marangu Route on the Tanzanian side.

Those that have known me any length of time will know that I have a passion for climbing mountains. I hope this expedition will be the pinnacle of my achievements before I reach a half century.

The cost of the whole trip including the trek itself will be paid for entirely by the British climbing team and no part of this fund raising campaign will be used for anything other than for the purchase of a school bus and additional school facilities.

This fundraising challenge is jointly carried out between Africans in Nairobi from Church Army Africa and St Joseph's in Kabete, Nairobi and friends of Christ Church, Herne Bay (www.christchurch-hernebay.info), led by Nigel Panter. We are particularly pleased to be trekking alongside 8 of our African brothers and sisters including Steve Maina, Head of Church Army Africa and Youth Minister of St Josephs.

Please support us in purchasing this bus and helping the children in the city of Nairobi get the education they so badly need.

If you have read enough, click on SPONSOR ME NOW [note you can do this anonymously so don't worry], or for more info and background, read on.

THANK YOU for your support :-)
Martin Bovingdon

====> The school (called the Church Army Academy ) is set in a densely populated, generally low-income neighbourhood characterised by slum settlement. It aims to provide an excellent nursery and primary school education. It now has about 250 students.

In 2003 the Kenyan Government introduced free primary education in all public schools. While this gives an opportunity to needy children to get an education, it suffers from crowded classrooms and teachers find that they do not have the capacity to cope with the rapid growth. A typical class in the public school has an average of 60 students per teacher. The quality of education is therefore compromised and the specific needs of the children are not addressed.

Church Army Academy offers the same system of education and is privately run. The Academy is privately run and therefore does not receive Government funding. However, the Academy is able to meet much of its total running costs through the school fees paid in by parents. It is committed to serve low income and poor families and so the rest of the money is raised through generous donations from churches, organisations and individuals. Though the pupils are supposed to pay fees, this is not always the case because some parents are too poor. A benevolence fund named "Kitty for the needy" assists those who need it. Just GBP225 covers education for one pupil for a year.

But more than just education, the Academy provides nutritious meals and drinks for every child. For many children, this may be the only nutritious meal they get in a day. Due its position, most children either take public transport or walk to the school. Because of the dense population, the roads are very busy making it dangerous for children to cross the roads along their way. The unemployment rate is steadily on the rise resulting in increased crime and the area is recorded to have one of the highest crime rates in Nairobi. If the Academy were to provide a school bus for transport these challenges would be addressed. The parents would be assured of their children's safety on the roads, safety from crime and drugs and cheaper transport. The bus would obviously make the school accessible to all students. School transport would be open to students at a discounted rate or at no cost for those supported by the bursary fund.

We propose to get a new 29-seater bus that is fitted with safety belts and a speed governor at a cost of GBP25,000. In addition the remaining funds raised will go towards building additional classrooms to help meet the increasing demands for school places.

Please support us in purchasing this bus and helping the children in the city of Nairobi get the education they so badly want.

Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure and can be completely anonymous too. It is also the most efficient way to sponsor me: Church Army Africa will receive your money faster and, if you are a UK taxpayer, an extra 28% in tax will be added to your gift at no cost to you. So please sponsor me now!

Many thanks for your support.

Martin Bovingdon

Thank you for visiting my fundraising page. Please dig deep and sponsor me online.

Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to sponsor me: