A fire service employee in Ellesmere Port jets out of Manchester Airport at 8pm on Saturday bound for a Nepalese village in sight of Everest.
Trisha Healy, Prince’s Trust assistant programme manager at the Wellington Road fire station, is one of nine leaders accompanying 15 Cheshire Fire Cadets heading off for a trip of a lifetime to help finish a much needed, safe school for children in the Himalayan village of Thulodhunga.
The party will land in Kathmandu before embarking on a journey on foot through the Himalayas to reach the village west of Kathmandu at an altitude of 752m to help with the school project.
Working with the charity Classrooms in the Clouds the 24 strong group will help children in the Basa region who often take care of younger siblings or elderly relatives so generally have no education.
The charity’s mission is to provide affordable, accessible and sustainable education to all the children of Nepal.
A plot of land above the village has been secured and villagers have now built the school ready for the arrival of the Cheshire group who will trek for a day and a half in order to get to the settlement, which is in sight of Everest, carrying all the equipment needed for the project.
The aim of the trip, apart from building a school for the village, is to give each cadet a challenge as part of their personal development.
The trip will raise awareness of cultural diversity and enhance their knowledge about Third World poverty. The cadets will also get to compare their lifestyle with that of a young person from a Third World country
Each cadet needed to raise £3,250 for the trip which they have all done. This has paid for their flights, accommodation and materials such as paint and equipment needed for the school.
The cadets will be accompanied throughout the two week trip by the nine leaders who include youth engagement staff from the fire and rescue service who have also had to raise money for flights and accommodation.
Commenting on Trisha’s role, the fire service said: “Trisha has a natural ability to motivate young people and support them in order for them to feel empowered to try new things.
“She has experience of volunteering in a teaching role in Malawi which allowed her to further develop on the skills required to work with a different culture in what is often a very challenging environment.”
