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Now for a bit of background:

It was in June 1988 that Neil, our boys and I set off from South Africa to Mkushi, Zambia in our little blue Toyota –pulling a trailer containing all our worldly goods, and sporting a Canadian canoe strapped to the roof-rack.  We had felt called by God to become intimately involved in the founding of Chengelo School – and what a wonderful experience it was for the four of us.  Those early days were full of promise, excitement and God’s amazing grace and provision.  I have been privileged over the years to keep returning to Chengelo, first to open the Neil Solomon Memorial Library in 1998, and then to attend the 20 and 25 anniversary celebrations.  My husband Axel and I also volunteered at the school for seven weeks in 2009 and it was wonderful to be part of the life of Chengelo once again.

 

Outdoor adventure and physical challenge played an important role in Neil’s own life and in his teaching, which is what inspired him to start the outdoor centre at Ndubaluba.  His enthusiasm has overflowed to me, and to celebrate my 50 birthday in 2009, I trekked for 15 days to Everest Base Camp.  In 2010, Catherine Hitchcock (a Chengelo staff member) and I did a five day canoeing trip down the Orange River; in 2011 I volunteered with a group in the Israeli army for three weeks;  and in 2012 I hiked the Inca trail to Machu Picchu, Peru.

 

This year I want to walk the Camino Frances pilgrimage route in Spain, in order to raise money for the CET bursary fund.  It’s a trip of 500km from Burgos, to Santiago where tradition has it the apostle Saint James was buried. Beginning 16 September 2014, and ending 28 days later, this will be a pilgrimage for me and hopefully, the chance of an education at Chengelo for someone who would otherwise not be in a position to afford it.