I’ve been somewhat absent over the last 1.5 weeks. Not because I haven’t had things to talk about (I have!), but because I’ve been quite busy. There’s the usual workload of course, but I’ve also been doing some charity volunteering, which has been taking up quite a bit of my time.
Now, when you say ‘charity volunteering’ to someone, the image conjured up could be of helping out in a communal kitchen, raising funds for something, etc. Somewhat wide of the mark for this instance though.
With the caveat that I’m not going to go into deep detail, there’s a charity for kids and teens with cancer that visits the UK every few years. They spend around 8 days here, jam-packed with activities. It’s really their only major trip abroad, as they’re quite seriously ill. They bring with well over 100 campers, they have a ratio of 1:2.5 councillors per camper, and a full medical team and tech crew. It’s quite a large group. Many of the kids are receiving treatment throughout the trip itself.
My father had handled the logistics of the trip for more than the last decade. He did logistics professionally, and through his connections enabled the trip to have a better experience time after time, building on it with each visit. I had assisted him with this special group several times, and was always amazed at what he managed to accomplish.
He passed away early this year. One of the first responses to the news of his passing were questions as to how the group would be able to visit this July. I took it upon myself to try to step up, and carry out what had been carried out before.
With still no idea HOW I actually managed to accomplish it….I did. Liaison with national organisations such as the CAA, airport operations/security, baggage handling, airline operations/security – it all went through. Everyone was more than willing to help out, and I am most deeply grateful to everyone involved.
It really has been a lesson in seeing that if you really do put your mind to something, it’s (usually) achievable, and I am extremely happy that I was able to help out and assist with things running as smoothly as they did
