AS A REGULAR visitor to Sri Lanka with husband Barry, Lyn Kempen is dismayed that charities are winding down their appeals for the tsunami disaster.

"I can't believe they are having difficulty in spending the enormous amount of donations," said Mrs Kempen, who lives in Hutton Magna, between Richmond and Barnard Castle. "I can take them to where it's needed."

She speaks first-hand because the couple, who fell in love with the island while holidaying five years ago, were packed and the airport taxi ordered for their latest visit when news of the Boxing Day tragedy emerged.

"We were horrified as we watched events unfurl, and feared for our friends out there." she said. "We tried desperately to reach our regular hotel, and private numbers of friends, but to no avail."

Helpless, they could only watch with mounting horror, imagining the worst for the people they had come to know and love, their holiday cancelled.

"Eventually, we were contacted by our close friend Siggy," said Mrs Kempen. "He was devastated because he had taken some tourists to Kandy in the interior of the country, loaning his car to his friend to take some British tourists to Galle.

"The car was later discovered floating in Galle, his friend dead, and no trace of the tourists," she added. "His car was his life savings and only earning power, but he was grateful for his life."

Although they love Sri Lanka, Mr and Mrs Kempen have never shut their eyes to the poverty of the country and in recent years have done their bit to help alleviate it. They own a plant nursery at Rushyford, where they run regular raffles and sponsored runs to raise money for the Wijesingha orphanage for girls in Bentota.

"Girls are treated as second class, and are not allowed out of the orphanage, so we had to draw around 52 pairs of feet to go and buy shoes for them," said Mrs Kempen.

Determined to do what they could following the tsunami, the couple returned to Sri Lanka on January 26, but the television images had done nothing to ease the shock of seeing scenes of utter devastation.

On the way to their destination of Beruwela on the south coast, the couple passed sites of whole communities that had disappeared.

One such, previously bisected by the busiest railway line in the country - the fateful Columbo to Galle route - was wiped out. Beruwela itself, usually a busy fishing community, had lost its harbour.

The couple later came upon the train, which yielded fewer than 20 survivors from 1,200 passengers.

"The familiar sights and sounds along the beach had gone; the beggars, beach boys, wood carvers, hat sellers, bead makers. The fellow who sold three-day-old European newspapers with pages missing, the trader who collected half bottles of suntan lotion and mixed them all together for resale - all gone," said Mrs Kempen.

"We decided then that money raised for the orphanage would be better put to direct relief," she added. "Friends had given further financial support, and we ended up with £1,800; a small fortune in Sri Lanka, where a person can live on 60p a day."

Their usual hotel was closed to foreigners, but desperate to resume trading and win back tourists, the manager insisted they stay. The grounds were devastated, as were the ground floor rooms, and all the bungalows were completely destroyed. But staff had cleared several feet of sand from the restaurant and kitchen, so they had no hesitation in using it as their base.

"We had no idea at that time what we would spend the money on, but felt we could not turn away from a country that had given us so much pleasure and so many friends," said Mrs Kempen. "There is no state welfare system and they have to leave work at 55, that's why they have large families to help look after them in old age."

It was left to Siggy to point them in the right direction. In translating for CNN News shortly after the tsunami struck, he had visited many areas on the coast and knew where aid was needed.

A few kilometres from the train wreck they found a refugee camp known to Siggy, who thought the couple might be able to help with some essentials.

"It was overseen by naval officers who seemed to be decent guys with the welfare of the people in mind," said Mrs Kempen.

Asking the displaced directly what they needed, they set off to barter for mattresses, clothes, hold-alls, sanitary towels, water flasks, baby food, hosepipes, soap and a food blender to puree vegetables to make soup for the babies.

"This was an experience in itself as the streets were thronged with people hell-bent on striking a bargain," she added. "As the only Westerners around, all and sundry wanted us to buy, proclaiming they were the cheapest. But fortunately, Siggy knew where to get the best deals.

"The phrase shop-till-you-drop has a new meaning for us now," said Mrs Kempen.

Back at the camp, officers called each family to choose from laden tables after waiting their turn without complaint in 40 degree heat. "They just accepted that someone was there to help them and they queued patiently," she added. "We wish that somehow the bosses of the charities could see first-hand what we saw, because we witnessed a distinct lack of aid to these areas."

Recent phone calls to Siggy have revealed there has been no additional aid to the community they helped since they left, and many others have had none at all.

Mrs Kempen said the Sri Lankan Government appeared to have a long-term plan, but that wasn't helping people now. "It's also imperative that tourists return, because without them these people will be out of work," she added.

She challenged charity bosses to visit the areas she had been to and still say they were struggling to spend donations.

"Many are still lacking the basic needs of temporary housing with a toilet hole at a cost of around £200, and foldaway mattresses," she said. "People will now stop donating, thinking that all is well with the world, when in fact it's the opposite."

Mrs Kempen is keen to point out that she is not a registered charity, and is not asking for donations to be sent to her.

"If tourists want to take money with them they can contact me and I will give them some idea of how to go on; there are whole communities that need rebuilding," she said.

In the meantime, she will continue collecting for the orphanage through her raffles at the nursery, in preparation for her next trip. Mrs Kempen can be contacted on 01833 627307.