13,000ft leap raises over £14,000

They exceeded their target magnificently; raising enough funds to drill three boreholes, which will provide clean, safe drinking water for over 3,000 people in East Africa.

After receiving a skydiving voucher for Christmas, and facing the reality of jumping 13,000ft out of an aeroplane, Dessie and Caleb decided that this would not simply be a bucket list activity, but instead they would use it for something more meaningful.

They decided to raise money for Portadown based charity, Fields of Life, who work to bring positive change to communities in East Africa through the provision of quality education, clean water and health promotion.

Dessie and Caleb felt passionate about clean water, and were moved by statistics which state that one tenth of the world do not have access to clean water, and the upsetting reality that a child dies every 90 seconds from water-related disease (World Health Organization and UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme, 2015).

Their aim was to raise £4,000 to drill one borehole in East Africa, but thanks to the generosity of friends, family and other supporters, Dessie and Caleb raised an incredible £14,142! This will enable Fields of Life to drill three boreholes, each one providing clean water for approximately 1,000 people.

Dessie commented: “We would like to thank everyone who financially supported our skydive; jumping out of the aeroplane was the easy part!”

He went on to thank friends and supporters for their outstanding generosity and kindness which will truly change lives and transform communities in East Africa.

Fields of Life was founded by the Rev Trevor Stevenson and his wife Ruth who spent several years living in Luwero, Uganda in the mid 1990’s.

Fields of Life is a local charity based in Portadown that operates in six countries in East Africa; Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi, the Congo and South Sudan. The mission of Fields of Life is to “share the Christian faith by collaborating with local communities and churches in East Africa to bring about positive change through the provision of quality education, clean water, health promotion and other community based projects.”

Fields of Life have constructed 117 schools since 1997 throughout East Africa with over 50,000 children currently receiving an education, therefore giving them the opportunity to develop skills that will enable them to break out of the cycle of poverty and hardship. Fields of Life have drilled over 500 wells, providing clean, safe drinking water for over 500,000 people.

For further information visit www.fieldsoflife.org.