Sports coaches boost education project on marathon day

Md Ismael

As Geoffrey Kirui of Kenya and Rose Chelimo of Bahrain came from behind to win London 2017 World Championship marathon gold medals on Tower Bridge, a group of volunteers who are helping build a school and sports academy in Ghana took part in a day of charity car cleaning at Xcelsus car wash in Hallsville Road, Canning Town. 

A group of three sports coaches including Abu Nasir, Abdal Ahmed and Emdad Rahman have joined up with Human Relief Foundation to build a school in Ghana.

The Gilead International School is situated in a remote area located about 90km outside Accra, the capital city of Ghana. There are one hundred students studying at the school, 56 girls and 44 boys, ranging in age from two to 14 years.

The majority of the students live in small villages up to seven miles away from the school. Many of those attending the school are from deprived areas – a situation which will limit the opportunities they have in the future, and many will need to leave education early in order to provide some sort of income for the family.

The school will give the children an opportunity to study a a full syllabus including mathematics, science, ICT, English, physical education, environmental studies, creative arts and other languages. They will also be trained at a professional level in sport, which will enhance their passion and talent in the game.

Currently the school is at maximum capacity and there is a list of children waiting to join. However, there are no funds to complete the expansion, so they have had to be turned away.

Khoyrul Shaheed from the Human Relief Foundation (HRF) said, “We at HRF are very grateful for the volunteers and their efforts today. It was a really nice summer’s day and they sacrificed time with their families to wash cars non stop for this important humanitarian project. This is the beauty of our community and the generosity of our supporters and the selfless contributions of our small volunteer team will be significant in raising awareness of what we are trying to achieve here.”

Local resident Forhad Hussain was a satisfied customer. The Newham councillor bought his car along to be washed and shined. He said, “It’s great to see money raised for a good cause – plus my car looked clean and shiny.  Well done to everyone involved.”

Xcelsus car wash owner Sam Islam concluded, “Education is close to my heart and we all agree that this is a basic human right for everyone. I’m pleased to have been supportive towards this great cause. The coaches are well known for their grassroots works and will do an amazing job. The team at Xcelsus are very pleased to back them all for this noble cause.”

The car wash volunteers were:
Khoyrul Shaheed – Mohsin Ahmed – Abdal Ahmed – Emdad Rahman

•For their endeavours and thanks to the generosity of friends and family the team raised just over £300. Construction of the school has begun and readers can donate via the team’s Justgiving page on:
www.justgiving.com/hrfghanaeducationproject

•Read more about it:
Xcelsus charity car wash raises money for needy children
Human Relief Foundation announces Co-op partnership

[Adverts]