East Lothian Courier | News | Bringing joy to victims of AIDS crisis

Thursday, 20th November, 2008

Published: Thursday, 17th April, 2008 08:10

Bringing joy to victims of AIDS crisis

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THE suffering of children is a reality which many people understandably prefer to keep at a distance.

But some, like Tranent teenager Louise Douglas, embrace the opportunity to tackle the issue head-on.

Louise, 18, of Carlaverock View, has spent the last seven months in Johannesburg, South Africa’s largest city, caring for abandoned and vulnerable children affected by the country’s AIDS and HIV epidemic.

The former Ross High School pupil signed up for the life-changing experience after hearing about educational charity Project Trust’s gap year programme – which offers UK students the chance to see the world and volunteer with a good cause.

After a lengthy interview and a year spent raising more than £4,000, with “great help” from her family, friends and staff and pupils at Ross High, Louise found herself on a plane to South Africa.

Now, when the clock strikes 8am and most teenagers in Scotland are still wiping the sleep from their eyes, Louise has already started her eight-hour working day at a Johannesburg nursery.

Her duties, which she carries out with her Project Trust partner Claire Tomlinson, include feeding and playing with the children, helping the older ones with their homework and organising fun activities to keep them occupied throughout the day.

She is remarkably down-to-earth when describing her work with the children – whose ages range from birth to nine years – some of whom have extremely troubled backgrounds and can suffer from debilitating illness like cerebral palsy.

“It was obviously hard to begin with but I got used to it,” she said.

As if her work with the children wasn’t rewarding enough, the teenager has also been able to take time out to tread the country’s tourist trail.

She explained: “I spent Christmas and New Year in Cape Town with the other Project Trust volunteers and we visited a lot of places. And I did a skydive over Cape Town (from 9,000ft!) for my 18th birthday, which was really good!”

Louise hasn’t forgotten those who helped her back home in Tranent and frequently sends updates of her trip to Ross High School, which feature in the school’s newsletter.

Headteacher Dorothy Bartholomew said: “We are tremendously proud of Louise. We encourage our pupils to be good citizens and think of others, through activities like our senior school community commitment programme, but Louise has been outstanding in her courage and commitment.”

When she returns home, to parents Diane and Jim, Louise will begin studying for a BA degree in drama, at Queen Margaret University and hopes to be a teacher.

“I never thought I’d say this but I’m homesick for Tranent!” she said.

Said dad Jim: “We are very proud of what Louise is doing and hopefully this report about her work will encourage other young people to try a gap year helping disadvantaged children around the world.”

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