25/04/2008 - Gifts for South Africa.  I am hoping to take some gifts out to South Africa, if you would like to donate any items from the following list, please feel free to contribute:

Balloons, colouring pens, pencils and/or felt tips, colouring books, English/Maths primary and secondary work books, pencil sharpeners, inflatable footballs, friendship bracelet kits, frisbees.

A gift of a very small value could cause jealousy or upset, therefore I will ensure any gifts  will be given to the team leaders for them to pass on to the community leaders for fair distribution.   

24/04/2008 -  Target exceeded.  Thank you to everyone for all their support and donations too.  A miilion thanks to you all !!  I will update my progress in South Africa on this page/blog.  Be sure to revisit this page soon. 

21/04/2008 - 

             Under 30 days to go until I leave for

                                 South Africa

In the developing world, the average cost of all the materials and labour needed to build a typical Habitat house is only                                 £1,235

     Remembering Sri Lanka.   I visited Sri Lanka in 2005 and I thought I would share some of my thoughts and experiences.  I remember arriving with a massive backpack stuffed with pencils and soaps etc - leaving room for just a few t-shirts for me.  I even wore my steel toe cap boots to try to keep the weight down but still peaked over 25kg.  In my mind I still hear sounds of children's laughter when we showed  them a comical dance of the Scottish Dance 'The Gay Gordon'.  Expression on the children's faces were curious and fascination.  Yet their lives encounter harshness by deviod of the most basic amenities. They are not pessimistic, gloomy or sad.  Happy and content to play with a stick and a stone.  During my time in Sri Lanka, we personally handed donations to the local school such as stationary and a football.  We handed toiletries and baby milk powder to the Orphanages. 'Please come again' the children begged as they grabbed hold of my hand.  I hoped the kids didn't sense the falseness of my smile as deep down I felt sad towards their unfortunate situation. 

     Looking at the devastation caused by the Tsunami ... a lot of empty buildings needed repaired on the waterfront, people lived in tents or newly built wooden huts and grave stones peppered amongst the palm trees - that's when I remember reality set home.  I saw, too, the empty Queen of Sea train where around 1,500 people or more perished when waves swept the carriages off the track making it the world's worst railway accident. I listened to locals tell me how they survived the wave by clinging on trees and afterwards how they tried to find their lost relatives.  I also looked at many of their photos they took of the wreckages probably not suitable for publication.  

    I met another local, a father of 9 who earned money by climbing coconut trees to cut down coconuts.  It was a low paid job and they lived a small hut which didn't keep the rain out.  I listened to locals talking about their experiences,  a fisherman whose boat was wrecked and unemployed with no money.  I helped as much as I could in Sri Lanka, it really did open my eyes and I came away understanding another way of life.  I saw the money  I previously raised £1214.15 (not included gift aid, around £1,500 with gift aid) being spent wisely on items such as bricks and cement.  I am looking forward to going to South Africa and I will help as much as I can as I did in Sri Lanka.   

I've been preparing myself for running the Great Edinburgh 10k Run on 4th May for HBOS Million £ Challenge.  Raising monies for CLIC Sargent, Age Concern and Diabetes UK.  HBOS will match everything I raise for these charities £ 1 for £1 pound, which is a really good incentive.  This will ensure I have the right level of fitness for South Africa too.  I've also been putting in a few sessions at the gym.  

End of March I held the "Night at the Races" at the Civil Service Club in Rosyth.  The night was a success and it consisted of 7 races, an auction race as well as stand up bingo and a raffle.  Stand up bingo during the interval proved really popular (a really wacky way to play bingo).  Freshly made stovies, sausage rolls and sandwiches went down a treat including the free bar.  Thanks to the race card sponsors Tea Tree Tea, Fossoway Private Hire, Morrison & Mathie Contracts, Senga Black's Team & Paul McDade's Team.

Target amended to £1235. Aim to reach this by end of this week!

02/04/2008 - Having received a lovely letter, I am happy to share some of the contents.  The person I will name as 'X' as I am unable to tell you who exactly it was from and how much was donated.  I am also unable to amend donation figure to reflect amount.   What I will say, the letter was received from a member of the Royal Family.  I promise I will not tell you exactly who .... my lips are sealed.     

'X has asked me to thank you for your letter dated ***** 2008 in which you inform X of your forthcoming volunteering expedition to South Africa in May on behalf of Habitat for Humanity.  You may be interested to know ********************* you will enjoy the experience of this most excellent and practical form of volunteering help to Africa.

X has agreed to send a cheque to Habitat for Humanity in support of your expedition, but has asked me to make this clear this is a personal contribution and not for general publication.  This is a personal arrangement between X and yourself and this particular well is now "dry".

X has asked me to convey X best wishes and luck, for your expedition in May.' 

22/02/2008 - Race Night organised for end of March, please contact me for details.

16/02/2008 - 13 weeks to go until I travel to South Africa.  A fundraising 'Race Night' will be announced shortly.

Click on the link below to see interesting pictures.  Some of these include traditional facepaint on a schoolgirl in South Africa and a village of corrugated iron homes.  

http://uk.msnusers.com/someinterestingpics

If sufficient attention, commitment and resources are invested, change in South Africa will happen.  You can help make it happen by making a donation.  Thank you. 

For information regarding Habitat for Humanity South Africa, click on the link below:

http://www.habitat.org/eca/build/ame/187.aspx  

06/02/2008 - I'm happy that I have reached the £500 target within 4 weeks.  Amended the target to £1k, am I barmy?! 

11/01/2008 -  Team Code 08VGC00A

Thank you for visiting my fundraising page.

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

Many thanks for your support.

More about this fundraising challenge

In May I will be going to South Africa as a volunteer to help build homes for some of the country's lowest income families.  Vast informal settlements or townships have sprung up around cities in South Africa, with almost 10m living in poverty housing.  Families live without adequate services such as proper sanitation or electricity in overcrowded shacks made from cardboard, corrugated iron and scrap wood.  I need to raise at least £500, as this money will go towards the building costs of the home I will be working on.  Halifax Bank of Scotland will cover all other costs.

I am very clear in my own mind that the South Africa opportunity will present challenges both physical and emotional, however I am enthusiastic and I know I am up for the task. I have witnessed the reality of a cultural disaster in Sri Lanka which enabled me to develop a genuine sense of perspective from this experience of helping others.  It's all too easy to live in the UK and be unaware of the hardship faced by others elsewhere. I am looking forward to making a valuable contribution by helping families overcome an extreme housing poverty crisis.  Building houses will help their community make rickety shacks a thing of the past.

Apart from fundraising favourites such as tombola, cake & candy stall, a new way of fundraising for me would be to embrace the challenge of arranging a successful ticketed party evening.  If you have any fundraising suggestions, please share your ideas with me.  Any fundraising help is also valued.

More about me 

Over the last few years I have helped raise monies for charities on a national and local level such as BBC Children in Need and Children's Hospice Association Scotland CHAS.  Last 12 months, I sky dived for a homeless charity Crisis, ran 10k for British Heart Foundation and arranged a donation to Dunfermline Women's Aid.  I also became a Special Constable to make positive impact at developing and improving my local community.  Local communities need not just financial help, but also the time, energy and enthusiasm of volunteers.  In return for dealing with these challenges, I experience a huge amount of satisfaction.  I also managed to squeeze in a house move too!  Looking ahead, I will help raise monies for Diabetes UK later this year.  In the meantime, please help to make fundraising a success for South Africa.

Any help is appreciated, thanks. 

Sharon