Bella Mclaughlan and Clara Portwood are two normal teenagers from England on an unusual mission to liberate a Darnall farm school with books.
The 15-year-old book lovers believe that reading should be a right, not a privilege and want to make a difference, one chapter at a time.
Mclaughlan said the aim of their charity, Liberation Libraries, is to bring the joy of books to communities who do not have access to libraries.
“In 2011, I went with my dad, Andrew, to Uganda with the Tag Rugby and Netball Trust. I was shocked to see that many children had no books at all,” she said.
“I gave them a few books and I was so overwhelmed by the excitement these books brought them, that I wanted to do it again.”
So, the strawberry blonde and her friend, Portwood, set about asking friends and family to donate books and thus started Liberation Libraries at the beginning of this year.
The response was overwhelming and before long, the girls had gathered nearly a 1000 books as well as ten laptops.
They made contact with Cara Dunlop, who lives on a farm near Zinkwazi and works with the Ramlakan Primary School.
The girls hopped on a plane and made their way to King Shaka airport last week, shipping some of the books and carrying others in six, big, heavy bags.
The two bookworms were greeted by the joyful singing, dancing and poem reciting of about 150 children aged between six and twelve years at the small school.
“Our welcome was extraordinary and the array of talent was eye opening,” said the cheerful Mclaughlan.
The enthusiastic and driven principal, Alice Clara Kaunda was over the moon with the books and overflowed with joy and excitement.
“I have been dreaming about this day. I was so worried that our little school might become a white elephant, because we live in this forgotten town,” said Kaunda, with a smile.
“The community lives below the breadline, but no matter how small and poor we are, we aspire to be a school of excellence. Having access to these books will give the children a big advantage and will help them become competent, skillful and innovative citizens.”
After three days of unpacking, sorting and bookmark making, the two determined girls transformed two empty classrooms into a fully fledged library and a computer room.
If you would like to donate any books, please contact Cara on 082 851 2683 or check out liberationlibraries.co.uk
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