The countdown has begun for the Kilimanjaro Half Marathon on the 26th of February. I am training away-my guide to running marathons and half marathons suggests that three weeks before the event one tapers one training down-I seem to be doing the opposite in a bid to do my longest run of 15 km on Saturday and next week one run of 17/18km! I don't think my wonderful trainer understands that I am running to COMPLETE the race, I think he wants me to compete-he has obviously never run against Kenyans and Tanzanians! Apparently our next stop is the Olympics.
I am running for a great cause and when the burn and exhaustion sets in I just have to keep reminding myself that I am running for a solar system for the Usevya community center that Nomad Trust is building in partnership with Rotary International , The Besom Foundation and Professors from UC Davis, California. Usevya, in Western Tanzania, has a population of about 14,000 people. It is a very poor area, with one primary school and one secondary school. There are no books in the secondary school, only chalk black boards. Teachers are often not paid for three months at a time, and when they are they have to travel to the distant district capital to collect their wages. Students often study in shifts (either 7am-11am or 11am-3pm); after classes are finished they have little if any incentive to study further-they just don't have the facilities. This youth center will assist in serving a critical need for recreational and educational support to this Tanzanian community.
There is currently no power in the village and solar is our only option for the Environmental Education Center in the Youth Center. Initially we are hoping for a system to run a few evening light, DVD showings and funding permitting a set of laptops with internet connections. Our quotations so far for a basic stand alone system without laptops start at $4,000 and with laptops goes up to $11,000. It goes against what one reads about solar becoming increasingly available to people in the developing world. So I am running for light.
To contribute go to: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/LaliHeath.
Many thanks for all your help
Lali