In early July I and 25 others travelled to Kenya in an attempt to improve the standard of living in the town of Nakuru through community engagement and charitable donations. SUBC helped this become a reality with a generous donation which I am very thankful for! As a member of SUBC I know the club are very supportive even on an individual level and are always up for lending a hand. The club definitely helped my cause in making a change for those where struggle is a part of daily life.

For the first two weeks I helped construct a volleyball shelter for the disabled team of Nakuru with the charity Projects Abroad. This is an organisation that allows volunteers to immerse themselves within a country through community based construction and adventure activities. The work was labour intensive as the construction equipment is very basic, but it provided us with a thorough idea of what the locals need to achieve in order to survive. Throughout the construction phase we had the opportunity to interact with the locals. As the only ‘white people’ in the town the group was a bit of an attraction and a crowd of locals would watch us work daily.

It was a bit of a culture shock at first, seeing many homeless and very poor people who struggled to earn enough to clothe themselves properly. Through playing sports with them we found out about their backgrounds which were heartwarming.

Basketball kit donated by the club was given to a sports project which runs sport for homeless people, giving them a sense of family and union. They were very grateful for the donations and play in the kit regularly which is good to know!

Half of the fundraised amount was donated to The Nakuru Children’s project. We visited the state school where this project was up and running to see first hand where the money was going. As part of the project each pupil is provided one meal a day to prevent malnourishment and help their performance at school. This is a blessing for the kids as prior to this many wouldn’t have eaten for days.

The other fundraised amount was donated to the Ol Pejeta reserve, this is one of the largest conservancies in Kenya! The main focus here is the Rhino, thankfully numbers have been increasing in this reserve but across Kenya they are decreasing due to poaching for the horn.

We were lucky enough to see four of the Big Five: lions, elephants, rhino and buffalo, with the leopard being the only one we didn’t see. We also visited a chimpanzee sanctuary for chimpanzees which have been rescued after their homes have been destroyed by humans. The wildlife present here couldn’t compare to that in the UK, the sights we saw are some of the rarest on Earth and the most memorable from the trip.

In the final week I climbed Mount Kenya, the second highest mountain in Africa! It was an amazing experience topped off with reaching the summit upon sunrise, and a great finish to an unforgettable trip.

As one story ends another begins, so bring on the basketball season!

Hannah Kirkham

University of Southampton Basketball Club