Hard times and tight money

The international shortage of money hits us all. GOES has suffered a severe loss of income and we're trying hard to avoid hurting the people who need help. So far we've managed to salvage most of the loss by send the money to a number of Gambian friends who act as our agents; the economy comes from us not going out there ourselves. We normally pay all our own travel expenses out of our own pockets. This time we added that money to the charity and sent it out in our place! We're saving (!) hard so that we can go out in the Autumn - we would love to see water coming out the the tap in the clinic or sit in the Bantabar and tell stories to the children - but it's not about us.

Gladstone's Library

Gladstone's Library (1809 - 1898) features in quite a large part of my life. It was given by William Ewart Gladstone to the nation, shortly before his death in1894. His wish was to 'bring together readers who had no books and books who had no readers'. To this end he bought land near his home in the village of Hawarden, in Flint. He provided a corrugated iron building to house his personal collection of 32,000 books - and it is said that he transported then, in a wheelbarrow, from his home to the new library assisted by one of his staff and one of his daughters. The project cost him £40,000 (about £3million in today's money). The corrugated building was replaced by an elegant sandstone edifice in 1902, funded by public subscription of £9,000 and in 1906 a residential wing was added, which the Gladstone family paid for. 
It is the only residential  Prime Ministerial  library in the country. Dinner, bed and breakfast is available at very reasonable cost. The dining room, 'Food for Thought' provides excellent meals, using as far as possible local produce. Many of the local people dine there - you're not forced to read a book if you don't want to! You can register as a day reader, without charge, and use the library (which now houses quarter of a million books0 free of charge. 
 The library relies on donations from the public. It costs about £1000 a day to run. There are about 20 staff, and the heating bill must be enormous. It's also a Grade One Listed building, so repairs and updating are expensive. 
 It is a priviledge and a delight to work there. A large part of my three books* has been composed at one of the desks in the upstairs gallery of the library building. WiFi is available freely but I avoid using it  - I'm there to work not doodle about on Facebook ... 
 I must admit to the distraction of trying to work when surrounded by books. Perhaps that old volume on the shelf there - the small book in the leather binding - perhaps it's last reader was the grand old man himself? 
 Maybe I'll see you there one day?




* Available on Kindle: 'Empty Bananas', 'Mussukunda' and, very shortly, 'The Mechanical Girl' - about life in The Gambia and how Europeans can either exploit or benefit the Third World. 
All monies from the sale of these books is passed to the charity Gambian Occasional Emergency Support - G.O.E.S.

Newsletter 2012/2

What happens when we're back in England? Well, first of all we stop to get our breath back! There's a house to look after, friends and relations to be visited, books to be written and work started to provide things needed for our next trip. We're supposed to be a couple of retired old-age pensioners but we've never been so busy in our lives. The aches and pains of old age slow us down a bit but GOES keeps us on our toes. We're often asked 'What do you get out of it?' Well, apart from the joy of being able to help people the main benefit to us is that GOES brings us into contact with all manner of good people. Look at a newspaper or watch the TV news and you might think that the world is peopled with evil, narrow minded folk who only rejoice in the misfortunes of others. We know that the world is not like that. We meet a constant stream of people who are good, tolerant and kind. From the couple who emptied their wallets for us at the airport on our way home last time to the people who have supported us, with funding or goods, ever since we started GOES, we can say that most people are good. Yes, of course there area few rogues - but they are in a tiny minority, both north and south of the Sahara! A very special ‘thank you’ to all the good people at ‘SNIPS’! - the collection box by the till has, over the years, sent children to school,  managed hospital treatment for young and old, provided mosquito nets, helped to supply clean water to Mandinari  village clinic— well done, and thank you again!

Newsletter 2012

How we raise money. Collection boxes! These provide an important, steady income. Sponsored events—Joyce raised over £200 last year by completing a 40km cycle ride. Hopes to repeat in 2012! Sale of poetry and prose anthologies by Vale Royal Writers Group.  VRWG has loyally supported GOES since its inception. Tom has written three books—travel romances—based on the typical but imaginary village of Malinding.  The books, Empty Bananas, Mussukunda and Stories for Gambian Children, are available on Amazon’s Kindle eBook site. Hopefully another book about Fatou Manneh, a village girl, will be added later in the year. All proceeds go direct to The Gambia without deduction for any sort of ‘expenses’. Regular donations from family and friends, some by standing orders from the donor’s bank accounts. Visiting our web site  - www. gambiagoes.org.uk  -gives access to the information needed to contribute this way.  Our blog - gambiagoes.blogspot.com  - is updated regularly.

EMPTY BANANAS?

Read on!

Progress

GOES aims to ease problems caused by poverty and ill-health. We believe in equality of access to education and health care. We help with grants towards the costs of school and college, medical treatment and provision of clean water supplies. We have provided mosquito nets, house repairs and grants towards setting up small businesses.
Helping people in The Gambia can be very rewarding. It's good to see a youngster, especially a girl, progressing through school and college towards a career which will help her, her family and local society.
We pay grants directly to the person, school or clinic. Any donation made to GOES does indeed go directly to where it is needed - we deduct nothing by way of 'expenses' or 'charges' or 'running costs' of any sort. If you give a pound or a penny it goes to a Gambian in need. We pay all the expenses of the charity, and when we visit the country we pay all our own expenses. 
We are in our seventies and running a charity is a full-time, exhausting, wonderful occupation! We're slowing down and we haven't changed the world. We haven't ended poverty or disease or discrimination, but, with your help, we've made a few steps on the way.
Thanks, from Joyce & Tom.

Success! Well done, Amieo!

I was delighted to receive a copy of a Diploma (with credit) certificate from a bright young lady we've been helping during the course of the last few years. We are so pleased to have been able to help (with considerable input from our friend Joan) in the education of this hard-working girl. She also seems to be on the brink of an exciting modelling career. Any firm which employs her will know they have a dedicated, talented and educated person on their staff. Go, girl, go!
(And thanks again, Joan!)

Coffee & Clay!

We stopped for a coffee at a small, friendly cafe in Stockton Heath. We often stop for a rest while we're out cycling! The charming couple who run the place had time for a chat and we talked about bikes and tents and caravans and children for a while. Then, as our conversations tend to do, we talked about The Gambia. We were offered a bag of children's clothes which had been on its way to a charity shop. We'll have to have a trip to The Gambia now! People are so very kind. You may be wondering about the title to this post - as well as selling a very good cup of coffee this place offers an unusual gift service - bring your baby and you can have a cast made of his or her hands and feet! The clay is fired and glazed and you have a very tangible reminder of how small your child was before she/he grew to full size!