Martine's story

Martine is a school teacher from Geneva. She used to live in Sierra
Leone for many years before the war. On a brief return trip to the
country after the war, she visited a school just outside waterloo (the
town where the Equiano Centre will be built). To call it a school is
slightly over optimistic - it was a collection of sticks supporting a
makeshift roof where a few teachers taught a few hundred students of
all ages. This was an official government funded school - funded in as
much as a few of the teachers were paid (a good teacher can earn
$40/month). A few more nonexistant teachers were still being paid,
even though some of them died several years ago.

Martine was shocked at what she saw, but was keen to help in some way.
She took a few photographs and returned to Switzerland, determined to
help. She was equally shocked by the overwhelming enthusiasm and
support from her students at home.

A few years later and I meet Martine on one of her regular return
trips (all self funded, in her holidays). With money raised by her
school at home, she has just finished building a new school: 4
classrooms, with 3 more under construction soon to be finished. She
spent a frantic week kitting out the school, hiring teachers, buying
furniture, sewing machines, books, equipment, even uniforms and pens
for the students.

This is one woman's story of one school in one town helping 250
children. Can one person make a difference? I'm absolutly 100% sure
she can. In fact she already has.