AN INSPIRATIONAL former Whitby teacher is a folk hero in India after her fund-raising efforts paved the way for a school for deprived children. And it all resulted from Helen Jones’ first package holiday. Ms Jones, former deputy headteacher at Whitby Community College, visited Darjeeling in 2002.
She was so moved by the plight of the children, who had to walk miles to their nearest school, that she became a regular visitor to the town. Back at her Great Ayton home, helped by a close circle of friends, she set up registered charity School Aid India, with the dream of opening a school there. And last month the dream became reality when Ms Jones (64) visited Darjeeling for the school’s official opening.
“On my first trip the people were so friendly and it was such a moving experience that I wanted to give something back, explained Ms Jones, who was deputy headteacher at Whitby Community College for around 10 years up to 1995. “It was such an emotional experience to see the school and to see all the little children walking up the yard in the morning. Everybody was so grateful.
” School Aid India provides all the children with shoes and uniforms and the education is free, so even the poorest children are able to attend. The school, named Roseberry Nursery School, after the famous Roseberry Topping, has two teachers, 26 pupils, and boasts two classrooms and a kindergarten. Ms Jones helped raise the £4,000 needed to open the school by opening her garden to the public for a nominal fee and giving lectures on gardening.
She told a local paper in India: “Having an educationist background and while on my travels in the hills I was touched by the eagerness and sincerity of the school children which played a pivotal role in my decision to open a school here.” Though Ms Jones is delighted the school is up and running, School Aid India still has to raise funds to keep it open. Ms Jones recently opened her garden to the public and raised £1,400 in four hours and is now appealing for local organisations and businesses to help.
She is also willing to do talks with local community groups and visit Whitby schools to generate fund-raising initiatives. l To help out or to find out more, visit www.schoolaidindia.
org or write to School Aid India, the Granary, Langbaurgh Grange, Great Ayton, Middlesbrough, TS9 6QQ. AN INSPIRATIONAL former Whitby teacher is a folk hero in India after her fund-raising efforts paved the way for a school for deprived children.
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