Who can forget the devastating effect of the two earthquakes that struck Nepal in April and May 2015? Millions of people were evacuated from their homes, many lives were lost, children orphaned and hundreds of refugee camps set up. Here’s how some BMF instructors and volunteers dug in to help rebuild classrooms there:
After the first earthquake, British Military Fitness Instructor Graeme Howell was compelled to do something about it. As a former serviceman and former fire-fighter in the Essex Fire and Rescue Service, he felt that he had a skill set which could help the people of Nepal in some way and decided to undertake an adventure which would change many lives.
He used social media to ask for donations to buy medical supplies, sanitary products, children’s clothes and nappies, water purification equipment and anything else that he could supply. He travelled to the disaster area, planning to live out of whatever he could carry on his back and on basic rations.
Upon arrival, he had a wake-up call. The devastation and the need of the people was clear. Nepal is a poor country. Their only large industries are farming and tourism and the likelihood of people other than charities and support agencies helping them would be small.
The day after he arrived, Graeme was in a coffee house in the Thamel district of Kathmandu when the second earthquake happened. This, in Graeme’s own words, was: “the most terrified I have ever been”.
The absolute desperation and devastation drove Graeme on to continue with his efforts to help. He provided the items he had purchased and paid for a woman to get her broken leg treated, as there is no Health Service in Nepal. If you can’t pay, you don’t get treatment.
This whole event, made Graeme even more determined to make a difference. In October of 2015, he and Jeremy (Jel) Bearder, Park Manager at Admirals Park, Alexandra Palace, Finsbury Park and Shoreditch Park, and some volunteers went to Nepal to build classrooms for a school in Pakchol a remote district in the mountainous region of Dhadung.
Over the 14 days they were there, they gathered supplies and arranged for semi-skilled local labourers to come and learn the ‘earth bag’ building technique that Graeme had researched which would be safer and more earthquake proof than traditional methods. Once on site, they managed to construct a building in five days, almost to completion (it just needed a coat of paint to finish), while one more classroom was being built by locals at the same time.
Jel said: “The sense of the community coming together on this build was amazing. Children and families all supporting the volunteers and getting the job done in a short time frame just proved what you can do if you have a target and a willing team.”
As a result of this DIYSOS-style success, Graeme set up a registered charity called Worldwide Action to support children’s futures by providing classrooms, equipment and any other resources which would help them make the best of their futures. The charity’s motto is: “Survive and Thrive.”
Now 11 volunteers from the UK and Hong Kong will join Graeme and Jeremy in the Bungamati Region of Nepal in the Kathmandu valley from 6 to 20 May to help on a two-classroom, single storey build using the earth-bag construction method.
One of those volunteers is BMF Finsbury Park member Caroline Knott who’s a Children's Advanced Nurse Practitioner and a registered nurse from University College Hospital in London. Caroline’s aim is to set up a sustainable child health project to help the region.
Jel continued: “This project would not happen without the support of families, friends, organisations like the Rotary Club of Shouson Hill in Hong Kong who were a key sponsor of the last build, and BMF members who have so kindly donated to the cause.
“Thank you to all who have helped so far and if you’d like to donate, don’t forget to tick the gift aid box so that the charity can get a further 25% of your donation from the government:
https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/jeremybearder1
https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/carolineknott1
Please contact hello@worldwideaction.org if you’d like to volunteer for future projects.”