A STUDENT from Priestley College has helped build a school in a Nepalese village devastated by an earthquake.
Bethany Heeley, who is 17, travelled to Thulodhunga in the Basa region with other cadets from Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service to put the finishing touches to the school.
“Seeing the children’s faces when we handed over the school was the thing I enjoyed the most,” said Bethany, a former pupil at The Heath in Runcorn.
Bethany, who studies Health and Social Care at Priestley College, raised £3,250 to cover the costs of her contribution to the build of the school and her travel.
As well as delivering whiteboards and other provisions, she helped build some steps into the building, improved paths and did some painting.
Bethany also taught English, but was always aware of the devastation the country suffered during two recent earthquakes.
“We were was quite remote, but you could see the damage on the mountains opposite us,” she said.
The group flew from Manchester to Kathmandu and trekked through the Himalayas to reach Thulodhunga.
They found the school almost completed and ready to replace the tents which had been used as classrooms following an earthquake six months ago.
The cadets then painted walls, cleaned windows and floors and put up noticeboards before designing and painting a mural on the side of the building.
During their time in Nepal, the group spent time with the villagers and learned about a different culture, eating Yak meat and cheese with the Nepalese.
They also visited a stupa, a Buddhist religious monument where people go to meditate.
“It’s an experience I will never forget,” said Bethany, who hopes to study Child Nursing at university.
