Gráinne Phelan, a swim teacher and water safety instructor with Seal Swimming Club for the last 10 years and a Secondary school teacher is off to Uganda with Lámha Suas in July, to live and teach in the small, rural village of Madudu. Lámha Suas is a small education based charity that was set up in 2010, by a teacher from Dublin called Deborah Sheeran. Lámha Suas have no paid employees in Ireland and their office is a corner of Deborah’s sitting room. Their administration costs are therefore kept to a minimum. They work in Uganda to support the education of young women and girls. This is done through a number of programmes including a Building Programme for primary schools, a Scholarship Programme to enable girls to finish their A-Levels and to attend university or Teacher Training College and a Safe Motherhood Programme. They also have a Volunteer Programme whereby they bring volunteers to Uganda, every summer, for a 5 week placement which Grainne will be a part of this in July.
The Building Programme for July 2016 will involve the construction a new classroom for Kawuula Primary School. Their 5th class pupils are taught under a mango tree at the front of the school. According to their teacher, Joseph, it’s dreadful in the rainy season but it’s worse in the sunshine.
So far, Grainne has completed an Olympic distance triathlon in order to raise funds for the work she will be doing with the organisation this summer. We at Seal are proud to sponsor Grainne as she heads to Uganda in July.
