Here is his diary so far ...

Monday, February 23

Today we attended Kikuuta Umea Islamic Primary School. All messages delivered to 280 children.

The students demonstrated particularly good speaking/listening skills and as a result we were able to incorporate additional material into our lesson plans.

We used the combustion triangle to effectively illustrate how a fire lives and breathes. In order for a fire to survive it must have oxygen, heat, and fuel.

This illustration helped the children understand fire scientifically, and as a result they were able to deduce how a fire can be extinguished if it is starved of any of the components. In other words, if the oxygen is removed from the equation then the fire can be extinguished.

Stop drop and roll demonstrates this effectively. If a students clothes catch fire then oxygen can be removed from the fire as long as the individual is either wrapped in a mat of some sort, or immediately drops to the floor and rolls around to smother the flames. The children were able to understand that this is how fire can be extinguished.

As I had my guitar with me (as always), I taught the children another nursery rhyme with additional content, Don't Play With Matches!

The words effectively describe our message and the children happily joined in. Basically, the words of the song direct the children to hand in any matches to their teachers should they happen to find them on the dormitory floor.

Unfortunately this is common and the teachers were instructed never to leave matches within reach of children.

Another sad fact of life out here is that the school children are locked in their dormitory over night – for their own safety we are told. The fact is, most children have died in blazes as a result of being locked in over night, and sometimes with a teacher present in the dormitory at the time.

In many cases all children have died which is an incredible loss to the community and saddens us as charity workers, hence our work out here in Uganda. We have managed to reverse this procedure in most schools so that the children can escape an inevitable fire.

The teachers at this school expressed a particularly avid interest in my music. They insisted I played them some western music and I was more than happy to oblige.

The song I chose for them was `Tears In Heaven' by Eric Clapton. This is a particularly heartfelt song with some beautiful words which describe something that we all understand. In fact, the content describes best what the Ugandans believe in most. Love, friendship, and rememberance of those lost.

They listened so hard to the words of the song and were ever so greatful. In the UK we treat this kind of performance as a `party piece'. Over here they really get into the mood of the performance and express they're gratitude with sheer enthusiasm, as if they wanted me to sing it over, and over, and over again. Words will never describe how that kind of appreciation makes me feel.

Tuesday, February 24

Today we visited Mityana Police Station to deliver a much more extensive programme.

The town of Mityana does not have a fire station. In fact, the nearest fire station is in Kampala which is 50 miles away. Realistically it is not possible for emergency services to reach a fire in Mityana from Kampala within the response time of 10 minutes and sadly, there is no help available for any victims of fire.

The best that the town can offer is fire-trained policeman.

The Mityana Community Foundation provided the station with a full fire kit which includes – boots, tunic, leggings, fire resistant gloves and helmet. Also, fire hydrant stand-pipes were supplied in order to gain access to town water supply in the event of a fire. All officers were trained in the use of this equipment.

Out here we are committed to sustainability. We need to make sure that the work we do continues when we leave. So far the Town of Mityana has shown dedication, commitment, and responsibility. They are aware of the problem that we are helping them to overcome and they welcome our efforts.

Wednesday, February 25

Today we visited St Luka Primary School. All messages delivered to 860 children.

Due to the huge volume of pupils myself and Phil decided that it would be best to split up if we were to complete all activities within the school day as it would not be possible to return during this trip.

There are a huge number of schools in the Mityana district and so far we have managed to provide training to one whole sub-county. I consider this a massive achievement for the team, especially since we have reached our target of providing training to over 3,000 children!

If we can save even just one life due to our efforts then it has been worth it.

Today the children were very keen to ask questions about what action they should take in the event of a fire, bearing in mind that all schools are different and the lay-out of the building determines the likelihood of a safe evacuation.

They were very keen to express their loyalty for oneanother to the point of entering a burning building to retrieve a friend who needed assistance.

Our message from day one has been that they must not under any circumstances try to fight fire, only that they should take the necessary steps to prevent it, and if they are to enter a burning building then they should expect to run into severe difficulty.

I had put it to them that their lives are precious to us and supposing one of their friends is trapped in a burning building then it would be disastrous to attempt to save their fellow students as they could very easily run into difficulty themselves.

They struggled to understand my message – it is terrible enough that we should lose one life in a fire, without adding to the problem, and if this should happen then we have failed in our efforts to save lives.

This was a hard lesson for them to learn as they are such loyal people. Loyalty is the lesson they have been taught by their parents since birth – to be loyal come what may.

This would certainly prove somewhat misplaced in the event of a fire, although I can't help but respect their sheer dedication and comradeship.

On this day I secretly admired their commitment to each other but couldn't express it otherwise the children would not have total faith in my teachings.

This was our final visit to the schools of Mityana – at least for now.

We will return later in the year to provide training in another sub-county.

As yet I am not sure where but our charity chairman will arrange a programme for us in the meantime.

This has been an extraordinary experience for me. I will remain dedicated to the cause and will look back in fondness of my time here.

I wish to express my gratitude for the welcome I have received in Mityana, and am greatful to the valiant people of Uganda.

I wish them well.