Using soldiers’ skills to help children in a distant land (From The Northern Echo)

Using soldiers’ skills to help children in a distant land

12:30pm Wednesday 24th December 2008

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After 30 years’ service, a soldier from the North-East is determined to leave behind a lasting legacy when he retires. Working with the local community, Major Pete Hill and his colleagues have been able to improve facilities at schools and orphanages in Kenya, while also boosting the image of the British Armed Forces. Matt Westcott travelled to Africa to speak to him about the projects they have undertaken.

AT the bottom of a dirt track about a mile outside the town of Nanyuki, in Kenya, lies an orphanage that offers a ray of hope in an otherwise dark existence for about 50 children.

Some lost their parents to the scourge of Aids or to the violence that recently blighted the country, others are the products of a broken home.

For the children, aged from only a few years to teenagers, the Laikipia Rehabilitation Centre, about three hours from Nairobi, offers them an escape from their predicament.

They are given a roof over their heads, an education and the friendship of others – things they would not otherwise have if they had not been offered shelter at the orphanage.

However, what the orphanage cannot provide without outside assistance are the finances to keep the facility up and running.

Despite the best efforts of the administrators, the infrastructure is basic – and that is where the British Army comes in.

The UK has a permanent force in Kenya, which is used as a training base, enabling troops to develop skills in a testing environment, on occasions ahead of deployment to countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

Conveniently for the orphanage, which is the latest in a long line of projects, the British Army Training Unit Kenya – Batuk for short – is based just down the road.

Major Pete Hill, quartermaster for 3 Battalion the Rifles, who comes from Carlin How, east Cleveland, and who will retire next year, has developed a close relationship with those who run the centre.

He explained how the linkup first came about.

“When I first got here, a school in Meru, a few miles away, which was run by nuns, got in touch with me and asked if there was anything we could do for their school,”

said the former instructor at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

“It was for orphans who were blind and partially handicapped.

They gave us a list of things to do. Unfortunately, a lot of the work was far too big for what we could do.

“I fed the information to the engineers and, hopefully, in the future, they can go back and have a look at it.

“What we did do, however, was go back with 20 of us, including our Band of Bugles, and held a children’s party for them. We had ice cream and jelly, took loads of stationery and the band played. We had a great afternoon and it was very humbling to see a school like that.

“I took four female soldiers with us and all four were in bits within minutes. Every one of us came away with something we will never forget.”

Major Hill said he felt that, relatively speaking, that particular school was well-off and he believed there were facilities on the Army’s doorstep in greater need of assistance.

“We got in touch with some teachers and asked where was the best place to go to and they took us to an orphanage that we had worked on seven years ago when we helped with the general infrastructure,”

he said.

“We did a similar kind of thing for them, took stationery, ice creams and jelly – and the response we got was amazing.

“We had a look around and decided we could do something more for them.

“They had a lot chickens and geese running wild around the school. They wanted to build chicken coops and a run – and that is something within our remit, that we can do at the end of the exercise.

“It is amazing what that will do for them – a simple thing like a chicken coop and a pen.”

The orphanage’s administrator, Pauline Mbugua, agreed and said she was extremely grateful for the work the Army had carried out.

“We have about 48 children here,” she said.

“They are from the Nanyuki streets. Some of them are orphans of HIV and Aids, children from difficult circumstances and some who are from broken families.

“The British Army, since we started this project, has been assisting us with the construction of the infrastructure, like the dormitories, the dining halls, and have even brought food and clothes.

They have been of great help to the orphanage.

“It has been very helpful to us and we look forward to continuing to collaborate with them.”

Major Hill said more projects, including a football match involving soldiers and residents, were in the pipeline, all aimed at building on the burgeoning friendship between the British and the local population.

“Next year we expect there to be a lot more soldiers coming through here and I think it’s important we have a good relationship with the town,”

said Major Hill.

“It’s best for both sides; one, for us to be able to use this area and two, for the locals and for the economy of this town.”

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