Sam Hampson, from Ashton-on-Mersey , near Sale, first bought essential equipment and food for the Eden school and its 60 pupils after visiting the centre while travelling across East Africa in 2014.
But after visiting Eden, based in the mountainous south-western part of the country, the 24-year-old decided he wanted to do more to help. And so after raising £5,000 in 2015 Sam, who works full-time at Manchester Airport , took a month off work to travel back to Uganda and alongside parents, guardians and workmen managed to build a new five-classroom school in just three weeks.
Sam said: “On my second visit to Eden I was completely taken in by the huge smiles and warm hearts of all the children at the school so stayed for a few days. Before I left I bought them some basic supplies such as food and pencils but also a few other items such as footballs for the children to play with.
“I posted on Facebook to share my experiences at the school and before I knew it people were sending money to help. After returning to England the money kept coming in so I started the Eden School Project with the aim of raising money for food and supplies for the school.
“But after raising more than £5,000 I knew I had to do something big – that’s when I decided to build a new school at Eden.”
Today the school teaches more than 300 pupils who otherwise might not have had access to basic education.
During his time in Uganda Sam also paid for treatment for a five-year-old pupil called Promise who had an infected burn on her leg. Sam took her to the local medical centre and paid for her treatment which potentially saved Promise from having to have it amputated.
Sam added: “The majority of children who attend Eden School will not go onto any sort of secondary education, so we aim to teach the children practical life skills along with their normal education.
“These skills are aimed at helping children earn money and gain employment after they have completed their primary education.”
He is currently in Uganda for two weeks to build a new playground, buy food, supplies and educational materials and to help get medical treatment for children who desperately need it. Sam said:
“Most of the children attending Eden School live in dire poverty, where proper meals are few and far between. Far too often the children bring rotten out of date food to school as they simply have nothing else to eat.
“And so funds donated can help provide a basic but nutritious meal for the children who need it.
“I am also now hoping to build a new orphanage building which will house the 9 boys and 16 girls we have at the school with no famil - currently the nine boys share three beds and the 16 girls share six beds.”
To make a donation visit https:// www.gofundme.com/edenschool
Thank you, Sam!
Culled from the Manchester Evening News - http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/sam-hampson-uganda-school-video-12206814#ICID=Android_MENNewsApp_AppShare
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