In a class of their own

In a class of their own

Children everywhere will soon be putting on their uniforms and heading back to school for the new term. We meet three families who, for one reason or another, have a different outlook on the big day.

THE Newcombe family have every reason to feel all at sea — they’ve just returned from a year aboard the Mercy Ship Anastasis, travelling for much of the time around the coast of West Africa. Dad Steve, mum Rachel, who are both teachers, and kids Kathryn (11), Michael (9) and seven-year-old Daniel feel that their year away has changed their lives forever.“We first heard of Mercy Ships many years ago, but never really considered it as an option for us,” Steve says. “In the summer of 2003, we got involved with a family outreach organised by Kings Kids in Manchester. This was great fun and we could see how the kids had grown in character as well as having a great time, so we started to look for a similar opportunity for the summer of 2004.“Unfortunately, we couldn’t find anything that really suited a young family and the thought of the Anastasis came to us both independently,” he continues.“At the time we had no idea if our skills would be any use on a medical ship — we’re neither nurses nor engineers! The main work of the Mercy Ships is to provide life-saving and life-enhancing operations like eye and cleft-lip surgeries, maxillofacial (surgery on the jaw) and tumour surgeries.“Nevertheless, we contacted the Anastasis and told them a little about ourselves. We didn’t know that they had a school on the ship and were excited when we discovered they were recruiting teachers.“We first visited the ship when it came to Liverpool and then finally joined in August last year as teachers on board this hospital ship bound for West Africa.”The Newcombes rented out their home in Nottingham for a year and spent the first eight months of the trip in Benin and Liberia. The final leg of the journey involved a 13-day sail to South Africa where they left the ship with many fond memories. They spent a month in South Africa before flying back to Britain.Next month the kids will return to their school but they’ll never forget what they learned on the Anastasis. During their year on the ship, they received a fully rounded education — and not just in the classroom.“I remember when we first walked down the street in Benin’s capital, Cotonou,” says Steve. “We’d strolled about 50 metres when Kathryn commented, ‘I see what you mean now, Britain is such a rich country.’ I wonder if she’d have ever really grasped that at all without leaving home.“The school on the ship has several advantages over normal school. There are eight networked computers, which, since there are only 40 students in the school, everyone gets good use of, as well as a data projector for display. The classes are small (because the rooms are small), so the students have more of the teacher’s attention and make more focused use of their time.“Rachel and I both taught a wide range of subjects and ages. Since it’s a small school, flexibility is important. Rachel taught PE to the primary aged children, as well as life skills, Bible and some maths. Back in Britain, I teach science, but there I taught maths, computers, history and physics mostly to secondary aged students but also to the little ones.“We roughly followed the American education system but since this is, in places, quite different from the British system, we took our own children for some lessons so that we could ‘top up’ to ensure that they covered what was being taught at home. “There were some very unusual trips that the school went on too. There was no chance of going anywhere like Alton Towers, but we did enjoy swimming in a lagoon and had a four-day retreat in a beachside house, which we shared with some UN soldiers from the Ukraine. We went to help our development team build a clinic in a remote village too.“Our kids didn’t enjoy the school as much as they do at home. In a class of 30 there’s bound to be more entertainment to be had! They also missed having lots of children to play with. They did develop good friendships there, but they played with the same few children every day. Because of this, they really loved our Saturday morning visits to a local orphanage with 56 children. Our boys got stuck into a great game of football!”Steve feels that the year on the Anastasis has not only been a great adventure but also an investment in their children’s characters. As well as receiving formal learning, they’ve had the benefit of experiences that most British children can only imagine — living with 350 people from over 30 nationalities on a 160 metre ship, sailing to a different country every couple of months, visiting orphanages, African churches and schools. They’ve also seen lives dramatically changed in the ward, had the thrill of travelling four to a moped, and witnessed the indescribable African sunsets as well as the porthole views. Then there Children everywhere will soon be putting on their uniforms and heading back to school for the new term. We meet three families who, for one reason or another, have a different outlook on the big day. Mercy Ships, a global charity, has operated a growing fleet of hospital ships in developing nations since 1978. They bring hope and healing to the poor, mobilizing people and resources worldwide and serving all people regardless of race, gender or religion. More than 2000 volunteers from over 40 nations serve with Mercy Ships.The Anastasis was based in Liberia for several months of the Newcombes’ tour of duty — the civil war raged until 2004 here and has caused devastation. There is a heavy UN presence and it’s not considered safe to leave the capital, Monrovia. Schools, houses, hospitals have all been destroyed and there is no mains electricity, no working sewage system, no mains water and food is scarce.For more information, call 01438 727800 or visit www.mercyships.org.uk

If you’d like to make a donation, please send a cheque to Mercy Ships UK, The Lighthouse, 12 Meadway Court, Stevenage, Hertfordshire SG1 2EF. By Caroline Lindsay.