Degree student stays
to tackle poverty
by Lesley Wilkinson
A STUDENT from Warrington who visited Sierra Leone to do a study on poverty was so moved by the plight of the people that she decided to stay and help.
Rachel Jackson, 23, of Underbridge Lane, Walton is volunteering for an agency in the West African country and hopes to find paid work there helping the community.
And her mum Judy and grandmother Olive Cook, 75, who are going out to visit her in December, are collecting clothes and gifts for the children.
Rachel, did a Performing Arts degree at Salford University and then spent a year travelling in the Far East, including India, Thailand and Vietnam, and spent some time working in an elephant sanctuary.
After seeing the poverty in the area, she decided to do a Postgraduate course at Birmingham University on Third World poverty. As part of the course she spent four weeks in Sierra Leone to complete a dissertation – but decided to stay.
Mum Judy said: “She lives in a brick hut, but where she lives there is no water or electricity.
“She saw the poverty in the community and decided to help. We are very proud of her, no-one in the family had done anything like this before.”
Rachel has been living in Sierra Leone since July, and has seen the country disrupted by elections. So far her friends have donated more than ?800 to help the community on her website CLICK HERE
The site also features stories about her travels including an incident where she helped a woman who was injured in a fire caused by a spark when she was refilling a small generator with kerosene.
Rachel said: “We heard the screams. By the time we’d grabbed shoes and water, the fire had spread to at least ten more dwellings and hundreds of people were running, screaming and dragging mattresses, pots, pans everything they owned out of their tiny shacks, desperate to save what little they had.”
She and friends tried to contain the fire, with limited water. They then helped to get the injured to hospital, a long journey away, where they waited a long time for treatment in poor conditions.
Her mum added that Rachel has been so moved by the plight of the community she is keen to stay there “indefinitely” and help.
Classic music comes
to town centre
by Gary Skentelbery
BRITISH male group Boheme will be playing in a free event at Market Gate, Warrington on Thursday September 27 from 11am – 3pm.
Specialising in popular classical music, show tunes and sporting anthems, the group features John Innes from the three Sporting Tenors who will be performing at the Autumn Pops at the Halliwell Jones Stadium on Sunday October 7.
The concert also featuring Philip O?Brien and Tom Raskin with guest soprano Michelle Crozier will take to the stage to wow the audience with renditions of some well known songs.
Council sniff out
odour problem
by Lesley Wilkinson
COUNCIL officers took swift action to “stop the stink” after a foul smell blighted Warrington.
More than 75 complaints from the public were made about the smell – which was traced to the spreading of green waste on fields in Widnes.
Warrington Borough Council’s environmental health team and the Environment Agency took action when alerted to the blight.
The odour had been blown into the borough on a gusting north-westerly wind, affecting many areas but particularly residents in Penketh, Great Sankey, Westbrook and Kingswood.
The green waste was spread onto the land to act as soil conditioner after harvest, in preparation for the next crop to be sown.
Tommy Wallace, the council’s head of service for housing, protection and community, said: “We have had many complaints of this nature during the past few weeks from around the district but this is the worst odour by far.
“The smell doesn’t seem to have been diluted by the wind at all and wherever we’ve smelled it, it’s been really strong”.
The Environment Agency, which authorises the spreading and stockpiling of green waste, has now revoked the authorisation in place for the farm where the odour was coming from.
Steve Molyneaux, from the agency, said: “We are in the process of reviewing similar activities in the local area in light of what occurred, to avoid this happening again. It’s not unreasonable to expect some odour from spreading but in this case the odour was excessive.”
Five called up
to GB squad
by Gary Skentelbery
FIVE Warrington Wolves’ stars have been called in to the Great Britain training squad for this Autumn?s series against New Zealand to the delight of head coach Paul Cullen.
? Five call-ups for Great Britain from our squad has not happened before in my time here,? stated a pleased Cullen.
?They have all worked very hard through a difficult season. Being part of an injury plagued team and keeping your performance levels up to their level is no mean feat, they deserve their call up.?
Great Britain stalwarts Adrian Morley and Martin Gleeson have been joined in the national team set up by hooker Jon Clarke, and brand new recruits back row forward Ben Westwood, 26, and Superleague Dream Team member Kevin Penny, 19, who has received his call up after scoring 13 tries in only 13 starts on the Wolves wing.
Penny?s inclusion caps a meteoric rise in a season that he began in Wolves? Under 18 side.
Barnardo’s bash
by Lelsey Wilkinson
STAFF at a Warrington building society hope to raise more than ?2,000 for Barnardo’s during a Charity Evening at the Halliwell Jones Stadium.
The event, on October 5, is expected to attract more than 200 people and tickets are still available.
Attractions include music from a local band and DJ, a buffet, raffle and auction of sports memorabilia by local comedian Charlie Hale.
Prizes have been donated by businesses in the town and include a box at the stadium for a game with a meal and drinks.
The event is being organised by Cheryl Lavin of the Cheshire Building Society in Warrington, with staff from branches throughout the town. Tickets are available from her on 01925 418771.
She said: “We hope local people will support us and help raise as much as possible for the charity, which is our charity of the year.”
Library update
WORK has started to extend and improve Lymm Library which is scheduled to be completed by February 2008.
In the meantime, a mobile library is visiting Davies Way car park on Mondays from 5.30 pm to 7.30 pm, Wednesdays 5.30 pm to 7.30 pm and Saturdays from 10.00 am to 4.00 pm.
