A year after Kate Doherty retired from her post as Principal of the Collegiate School in August 2004 she travelled to Ethiopia for her first visit in 2005.
It was there that she came across a project working with HIV/Aids orphans and street children in Mekelle in the northern province of Tigray.
This project called ‘Operation Rescue’ which operates three day centres in different areas, cares for almost 500 vulnerable children and their carers.
Now Kate and a number of her friends from the Presbyterian Church in Enniskillen have formed a ‘Mission Team to Ethiopia’ to raise funds for the project.
After 12 visits there she has seen how the project has transformed the lives of children there.
“On all visits, bar two, I have travelled out to the project alone and it was always my idea that someday others from my church would join me. That desire was very strong at the turn of this year and I decided to take the initiative and email anyone who had ever expressed any degree of interest in going to Ethiopia. A meeting took place and I had no idea what would be the result but by the end of the evening it was clear that the question was not ‘Will we go?’ but ‘When will we go?’ and within two weeks, to my amazement, I found myself co-leading a group of 16 planning a trip in August this year,” she explained.
For most of the team this is their first experience of travelling to Africa.
“As a team, we will come alongside the staff at the project, delivering bible lessons, running classes in art/craft as well as teaching English, playing a variety of games and sports and teaching some children to play simple tunes on the recorder. We see our role, not so much in terms of attaining educational goals but as an opportunity to support and encourage the staff and to build relationships with them and the children,” said Kate.
Some of the team will also visit the Kate Community Centre for the elderly which is a unique day centre for elderly women. The centre was built largely through money raised by Northern Ireland Soroptimists, with the Enniskillen Club taking the lead.
The team is funding its own travel costs as well as other expenses like visas, insurance and the many injections required for travel to Ethiopia.
They are engaging in fundraising activities to raise funds and have already organised a ‘Stew Sunday’ and a bag pack in Tesco and now plan an art exhibition in the Bridge Centre where artist Yvonne Wilson will display her work on Saturday May 21.
Some team members hope to run/walk the 10K in June. Any donations can be left on Fridays in the Church Mouse Shop on East Bridge Street.
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