Following two years of fundraising, a group of Cheshire Fire Cadets are heading to Nepal this weekend to help finish off a much needed school for village children.
The group fly from Manchester to Kathmandu on Saturday, 24th October, before trekking through the Himalayas to get to the village of Thulodhunga, where the school has now been built by local people.
Amongst the group of 15 cadets and nine leaders is Robyn Taylor, the former volunteer Cadet Leader at Wilmslow, who is now a cadet leader at Macclesfield. They have raised £3,250 each to pay for their flights, accommodation and any equipment needed to finish off the school before it's handed over to the village during a celebratory ceremony.
Robyn Taylor said: "I am excited to be able to help the local children with their education. They are currently learning in tents so this new school will serve the village for many generations to come and I am very proud to be part of the build. I am also looking forward to seeing all the different scenery and how people live in Nepal.
"I've taken part in all kinds of fund raising for the trip including a sponsored head shave where I was completely bald for a while. I also helped my twin brother Tony, who is also going on the trip, with a chilli eating event, although I didn't eat any myself. I know that all the money the group has raised will be put to good use in Nepal so it was all worth it."
Head of Prevention Nick Evans will be accompanying the group. He said: "So many people have helped us reach this point and without their generosity we wouldn't be able to help these school children in Nepal. We would like to thank family, relatives, friends, as well as all the partner agencies and colleagues who have supported all the fundraising activities to enable us to raise the money for this trip.
"We will be writing a daily blog while out in Nepal, which will be on our website so please take a look and see for yourself some of the photos and experiences that we will have along the journey."
