A video made by the young people who went on the Mara Youth Visit last month has just been shared, showing some of the group’s fondest and moving memories from the trip.
[video: https://youtu.be/t1eExVHupwY]
The group of nine young people from across the diocese returned from Mara last month where they were joined by the Revd Canon Bob Cooper, Vicar and Area Dean of Pontefract, on a ten day trip visiting a variety of projects that have been established since the two dioceses linked together 27 years ago.
The nine young people on the trip were: Beth Grady, 16, from St Edmunds’ Roundhay; Isaac Cooper, 16, and Elannah Griffiths, 20, from St Giles’ Pontefract; Brandon Johnson, 17, from St Helen’s Hemsworth; Harriet Beaumont, 16, Millie Gibson, 18, and Bethany Stephenson, 18, all from St Matthew’s Lightcliffe; and Sophie Smith, 18, and Beatrice Mills, 17, both from St John’s Rastrick.
Before the trip, Fr Bob Cooper said, “This trip will strengthen and benefit our links in Tanzania and here in West Yorkshire and the Dales but more than that, it will be a life changing trip for these young people. It will change them forever; they will bring a piece of Africa back in their hearts.”
This certainly seems true as Millie Gibson, from St Matthew’s, Lightcliffe, outlined her highlights of the visit, saying “There are so many things I could tell you about the trip!”
“On one of the first days, we visited a place called B.R.A.C (Buhemba Rural Agricultural College) where we met about 50 children aged 11-18 who, up until about a year or two ago, were working in goldmines around Mara.”
She explains, “These children have been saved from terrible conditions and have now been taught important life skills, for example one girl has been taught how to tailor clothes.
“She was telling us about how she needed to raise £30 for a sewing machine.”
Millie also mentions, “We visited three linked parishes around Mara; Nyakiswa which is linked with St Johns, Rastrick, Nyamatare which is linked with St Matthews, Lightcliffe, and Majengo which is linked with St Giles, Pontefract.
“When we visited Nyakiswa we met three families who were very happy to see us and welcomed us into their homes.
“A man who was the head of one of these families invited us into his house and we were asking him questions about his life.
“He introduced us to his wife and then we found out that he had five wives and 31 children!
“It was fascinating to see how their way of life compared to ours.”
Millie says, “When we visited Nyamatare it was the first mass with Bishop Hilkia after he had stepped down as Bishop.
“As a gift, the parish gave him a goat which he said would come in handy as he had all of his family at his house.
“Then he went on to say that he was going to cook it for dinner, which again made us think about how different our lives are compared to theirs.”
She adds, “The final Parish we visited was Majengo where we helped build a nursery school in the centre of the village.
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“Two years previous to this the youth visit in 2013 started to build this school, but because of issues like a lack of money and resources it couldn't be completed, which is why we were able to build a part of it when we were there.
“It was great to have a link with the previous youth trip!”
Millie finally mentions, “We visited an orphanage where the lady who has built it over many years takes care of children aged new-born up to 5 years old.
“We met some of the children who were there and it was very emotional to see these children so happy, even though they were orphans, because they were being so well looked after by this lady who had put so much effort into that amazing place.”
For more information, please visit the Mara Youth Visit 2015 facebook group.