Webster’s High School, Kirriemuir – Kenyan Exchange 2013

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During 2013 AFC in the Community was approached on a number of occasions, by different groups, to see if a contribution could be made to support trips to Africa.One of those groups came from Webster’s High School, Kirriemuir.Head of Community Ally Prockter was in a position to provide this group with some AFC tops and children’s strips, and the following is a summary of how the school trip went.

For a number of years Webster’s High School have had a link with Litein High School in the Rift Valley district of Kenya. Initially, the funding was done through the British Council, but this has since ceased and staff and pupils at Webster’s now organise fund raising to maintain the cultural link.

During the summer of 2013, after six months in the planning, a colleague Alan Taylor and I, completed a sponsored cycle called, “Round the grounds for a pound!” The event took us to 60 senior football clubs in Scotland, covering a total distance of 1100 miles, in 16 days. We raised £1,700 from family, friends and colleagues. Each club we visited was invited to donate a youth strip. These strips would subsequently be sent out to the boys of Litein H.S.

Two clubs went out of their way to give a far more generous offer; one of them was Aberdeen Football Club.AFC in the Community provided 24 mini-kits and a further selection of AFC tops.

I have recently returned from Kenya where I spent 19 days visiting Litein H.S. and its feeder primary schools. A female PE teacher, Jade Sinton and two S6 pupils, Ailsa Peters and Emily Baillie journeyed out with me. As part of our luggage we carried four kit bags containing assorted football strips donated by Scottish clubs.

The 1000 strong boy boarding school has a strict regime. Their educational day starts at 4am and finishes at 11pm. An hour each day is given over to sports activity. The boys share their playing field with a herd of cows and play all sports in their bare feet.

We did not have enough strips to give each individual pupil so it was decided the larger strips, provided by AFC should be presented to members of staff, who gratefully received them. Although many of them follow the Premier league in England they are now a small, committed Aberdeen Football Club enclave in rural Kenyan.

Included in our link is Nyahera orphanage, situated some 5 hours drive from Litein H.S. in the area of Kisumu, near Lake Victoria. The school caters for young children orphaned as a result of HIV related causes. The children have few possessions so they were delighted to accept the 24 mini-strips, to be used for PE.

The link team from Webster’s High can vouch that the donation of strips from Aberdeen FC will make a tremendous difference to the lives of the recipients.

Thanks again to AFC in the Community for your support,

Anthony Smith, Webster’s High School