Early March sees the end of their six month assignment for Michelle Webb and Neil Davidson, GSK PULSE volunteers with Project HOPE UK. The last few weeks have been very hectic as they tie up loose ends and make sure that all the initiatives started during their time in Munsieville are left in good hands to continue after their departure. Neil shares a few of his thoughts here (and a report from Michelle will follow soon).
'In all my other jobs I've always been fortunate enough to be able to step back a bit before the end so that the handover runs smoothly. Not so in Munsieville! The last few weeks have probably been the busiest and most exciting yet.'
'The Munsieville's Got Talent Final took place on the 18th Feb. It was supposed to start at 4pm but with no judges, no sound system, and no performers in sight, African time was in full force. The event finally got going around 5.30pm and given the tensions in the build-up to the final, all the acts showed up bar one, and performed brilliantly, raising their performances another notch. The winners, BCC, a teenage dance group dressed as geeks, were worthy champions. All in all, despite the hiccoughs, it was a fantastic event, the children enjoyed it thoroughly, and bizarrely may be one of the most significant events yet in terms of cementing Project HOPE UK's place in the community.'
'The students from the Youth Voice Journalism Academy have now started their first assignment in film, and we had the first visit from a professional mentor, who came in to teach them about working in the medium. It's been great to see the enthusiasm and energy from the 50 or so participants, and some great quotes emerged around "I'm going to change my career now based on what I've heard today". It has also been great to see the project leads Zeblon, Paul and Elaine, really blossoming into their leadership roles. Quite a change from the shy and retiring kids I met back in September! My biggest challenge now is letting go but I feel confident that the project's foundation is really strong and can only build from here. Likewise with the Connecting Continents programme, the website is looking really nice now and I am hoping to do a link up between two of the schools this week. Paul, one the journalism leads, is going to take it on as a side project, to make sure that the content is refreshed regularly, with the help of three representatives from each school.'
'As if these projects weren't enough, this weekend was our second Community Clean Up. This was going to be a real test to see if the community can ever run some of the Thoughtful Path events by themselves. Handing over this event to the community meant again letting go of the control, and just making small interventions on the periphery to keep it on track. It was a different event as we teamed up with the Community Works Programme (CWP), which is a paid employment scheme for community members to keep the township clean. The support from all levels of the council is also now in place for the future, and I think this can now be a community event, which can builder larger participation next month.'
'After the clean up, to give five of the journalists a bit of a treat for all the effort and commitment they have put in, I took them ten-pin bowling. For all of them it was their first time in a bowling alley and I was pleased to be able to give the guys a brief moment of respite from the daily challenges of their lives.'
'During all of our work here, both Michelle and I have been really lucky to have had such a welcome from everybody, and now when we drive around it's rare for us not to get a smile and a wave from many of the passers-by. Thanks again for reading over the last few months!
Neil Davidson, GSK PULSE volunteer with Project HOPE UK
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