Knockbreck Primary School, Waternish, Isle of Skye

Gill and Ian were asked to judge a fancy dress competition at Knockbreck Primary School, Waternish, Isle of Skye on Halloween night. The school have decided to adopt the charity to help the children and are looking at various fund raising events. This was the first.

This was the first time we have had to do anything like this and it was so difficult - the quality and originality of the costumes was fantastic and all of the children deserved a big pat on their backs for their efforts however we decided on a wizard in the youngest class, a gold cyberman in the middle class and a penguin in the eldest class- we also had to judge the pumpkin lanterns and decided on a square eyed pumpkin with goofy teeth.

Thanks to the children, staff and parents of the school for a very enjoyable evening and for your rund raising efforts.

Woolston High School

Last year Woolston High School students raised £1780 in aid of the Tsunami Appeal. We organised a number of fund-raising activities which included a non-uniform day, a "Weakest Link" competition, and a Year 8 Bring-and-Buy Sale. There were a host of other events like penalty shoot-outs, cake stalls, and raffles.

We also had a Music and Drama Showcase Evening in which pupils read a selection of their own poems about the Tsunami, performed drama and music pieces.

We are very proud of our achievements and hope our donation of £1780 will help make a difference.

The Power of Humanity

A 17 year old Sri Lankan girl called Thrishana Pothupitiya wrote an essay about the tsunami that hit her country. She describes what happened, but also looks beyond the destruction to the "human kindness and compassion that reached out to the people of her land". The theme of her essay is the power of humanity. It concludes: "The ties of humanity will help us to get through this ordeal, we will one day stand up on our own two feet again, and we will rise like the proverbial phoenix. We will say thank you to human beings of all nationalities, creed and colour who came to our aid and responded in our hour of need. We will draw strength from the simple acts of humanity that helped us, from those who extended hands of friendship and support when we fell, as the water rushed at us and threatened to flow over our souls. We will never forget."

Paradise Lost
by Tom McIntosh

Sun kissed beach
Clear blue water
Ice cool drinks
Paradise Isle
I’m not waking, I’m dreaming.

Scorched hot sand
Collecting Shells
Hot and sticky
Reviving dip
I’m not swimming, I’m sinking

Wall of Water
Unforgiving
Destruction
Desperation
I’m not waving, I’m drowning.

Worldwide cries
Disbelief
Emergency
Tide of grief
I’m not living, but surviving.

Clear away
Start again
Rays of hope
Brings the life
I’m still mourning, but alive.

When we think about what happened, we can be stuck with pictures we have seen of destruction and devastation, we can feel really sad about the loss of life and loneliness that some people have had to live with -- or we can, as many of them have done, still feel the sadness, but use it to remind us that whatever situation people find themselves in there is hope. Ordinary individuals can achieve extraordinary things by working together. If the deaths of all these people help those of us that remain to come to this realisation and live fuller, more meaningful lives, then they have not died pointlessly but have given us a gift of life and the opportunity to keep the tsunami of compassion rolling across the planet. We should use this time to think about how we respond to others in need and to make sure that we live our lives to help ensure our world is one we can be proud of.
Linda Buckley, Head of Sixth Form & Lay Preacher,
Woolston Community High School

Tsunami
Hayley Reid (Yr 9)
Woolston Community High School

One and half years have passed
Since the massacre of the sea.
Killing too many innocent lives
Unintentionally.

One moment life was at its best
Just like it's always been.
The next it’s crashing over your head,
A nightmare unforeseen.

Scars in the min will still remain
Buildings stay torn down
But within the one month aftermath
There’s a hint of a fading frown.

Houses are being rebuilt,
Lives starting to turn around
Children playing in the street
Without a moaning sound.

So when you’re in the deepest pit of hell
With nowhere else to turn
There’ll always be someone out there for you.
It’s that you have to learn.

The Tsunami
Rachel Worral (Yr 9)
Woolston Community High School

On Boxing Day,
Hell struck the shore,
So many people, memories,
Alive no more.

All the survivors, wished we were dead,
When they saw all the bodies,
No more can be said.

But slowly but surely,
We’re moving on,
Trying to cope with their families gone.

The whole of the world,
Donate to our cause
Trying to heal,
Our cuts and our sores.

What is there to say?
We can cope.
We still hold within us,
A reserve of hope.

Tsunami Poem
Sara Malone (Yr 9)
Woolston Community High School

It was a normal day in Indonesia
The waves slowly pushing on the sand
Nobody knew what was about to happen
And soon those waves would destroy the land.

Suddenly the waves got higher and higher
And the people, they soon fled
Babies screaming, children crying
Running, hoping not to end up dead

The water rushed through the continent
All was very soon destroyed
People’s lives, gone too soon
It was a disaster that they had tried to avoid.

But now it has been rebuilt
And the people are to make sure
They don’t let it all happen again
Because they live with the memories of December 2004.