Cricket charity seeks Glos fans to make a difference in Africa
11 July 2014
Gloucestershire Cricket Board communications officer Luke Sellers (pictured) is calling on the county's cricket fans to use their love of the game to make a difference in Africa.
UK cricket development and HIV/AIDS awareness charity Cricket Without Boundaries is looking for enthusiastic volunteers for projects in Botswana, Cameroon, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda in 2015.
Trips are typically two weeks long and include coaching in schools, training local teachers and running cricket festivals. As well as coaching cricket skills CWB uses the sport as a tool to deliver vital HIV/AIDS awareness messages.
Previous projects have seen CWB coaches run coach education courses for Massaai warriors in Kenya and use cricket to help communities in Rwanda continue their recovery from civil war.
For more information including how to apply click here.
Luke – who is also a coach education tutor and county under 14 coach – is leading a project to Kenya - his third with the charity - this autumn.
And he says it would be great to see more people from Gloucestershire follow in his footsteps.
He said: “Volunteering with CWB is an incredible experience. You feel like you are making a real difference and it is also great fun. The children in Africa are so enthusiastic you can't help but leave with a huge smile on your face.
"For me, it feels like the best possible way to use my cricket skills and experience.
“The number of people from Gloucestershire volunteering with CWB has risen greatly over the last few years and it would be fantastic to see that continue."
Although the charity is keen to hear from qualified coaches they are looking for volunteers from all walks of life. Previous volunteers have ranged from students (aged 18 and over) to retired people and individuals from a wide variety of different professions.
Groups consist of six to 10 CWB volunteers supported by local coaches from the country’s cricket association. They are a led by a project leader and ECB tutor and training is given to the whole group at a training weekend before you leave
In 2011 there were an estimated 23.5 million people living with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa - staggering 69% of the global Aids burden.
The picture is improving but directly and indirectly, HIV is destroying lives - often causing discrimination and dividing communities. That is why CWB need your help.
For more information about CWB visit www.cricketwithoutboundaries.com, email luke@cricketwithoutboundaries.com or ring him on 07866882601.
