Saturday 18th November 2006
Clem Cairns Orange Team
It’s an emotional thing – arriving in Cape Town with 350 other Irish men and women. Not the airport stuff. It’s just like any other. You queue for immigration. The official looks at you and you get that uneasy felling of having done something wrong. You try a smile and maybe get one back. No. The emotional bit starts at the breakfast debrief. A choir from the township, all small kids, give a performance of song and dance with such joy that you are transported, in spite of the 12-hour flight, delays and lack of sleep. Niall welcomes us all, tells us our responsibilities, and the things to look out for. Normal, predictable stuff, particularly if you have been before. Until he mentions why he is here. He cannot bear to see people live in shacks. It brings a tear to his eye and for many of the volunteers a lump in the throat. The conditions that people live in and the joy when they finally get their own house are two things that remain with us all. At the township – Mfuleni – there is a welcome party of children and women serenading us, and our piper leading our procession from the buses has to cease his exertions. We are back. It’s another year. The feeling of holiday is gone and the fact that we are on a mission settles. Old friends from previous years appear, a handshake, an exclamation, and the promise of a drink later. We’re in business.
Keith Duffy (Celebrity/Boyzone) – Yellow Team
When we first arrived at the township we all got off the bus and congregated in the middle of the street. We were greeted by some of locals who put on a fantastic song and dance show, and although the township itself looks quite depressing with the shacks made of anything the locals can get their hands on – there was still a fantastic and inspirational view of Irish volunteers. It looked like the United Colours of Benetton with all the team colours! As the local entertainment finished a piper led us into the township where we were to begin our work as labourers for the day. I myself was part of the Yellow Team. I met with my five other co-workers as we started building our first house – no. 27. We’ve got a local guy working with us and helping us out, who has been a godsend and surprisingly enough we have just enough Indians and not too many Chiefs. Day one is just about over and we got a considerable amount done, seeing as we only started with a foundation slab this morning. Looking forward now to the rest of the week, where we will be on site all day. I’m delighted and honoured to be here as part of the Niall Mellon Township Challenge and delighted to meet and get to know all the other volunteers. Taking into account I haven’t done a hard day’s labour in many years, I feel like I have actually achieved something today. And many more of you should do this trip next year.
Gerry Fennell from Arklow, Co Wicklow, Green Team
All the locals were so welcoming to the Irish volunteers, we were greeted with a sample of local entertainment as we arrived to the township - you could tell they were delighted to see us!! It was a great start to the morning and we all realized why we were here. When we got into the site we were delighted to see that the local people had already made a start, there was a great sense of team effort and everybody got stuck in straight away. I am what’s known as a “bakkie” – which basically means making sure the foreman has all his supplies for the day… so its full on from start to finish. While it is difficult to work in the heat, we keep going and spirits are high, I am looking forward to putting a good dent in the target today.
Declan Pierce – Dublin, Blue Team
Wow! What a day I’ve just had! To be honest I had no idea what to expect on this trip and as I traveled over on my own I was a little nervous to start. However, the people on this trip have made me feel so welcome and “part of the gang”. I now have mates from Cork, Limerick, Galway and Clare! We left our lovely hotel in the heart of Cape Town and began our journey to the township. The area surrounding the hotel is plush and wealthy… suddenly we found ourselves in the deepest poverty I’ve ever seen. All around us 15 mins away from the hotel was Huts and Shacks. It was jaw dropping! We were greeted in the township by the families who live here and the kids performed a traditional dance to celebrate our arrival. The joy on their faces suddenly made me realize why I was here. I’ve spent the day on the site as a general helper for the skilled brick layers and roof guys and the progress has been fantastic… the heat took a while to get used to but overall I’m so happy to be here helping out. Bring on tomorrows challenge!
