Dergview support delivers gifts to children in poverty

HAVING taken up the role of CEO with Team Hope just last year, Castlederg woman Deborah Lowry has spent this festive season delivering gifts to some of the world’s most poverty-stricken communities through the charity’s annual Christmas Shoebox Appeal.

Now in its 15th year, the appeal has delivered more than three million shoeboxes packed with essential items and gifts to children across Africa and Eastern Europe.

Deborah has just returned from Albania and Kosovo, where she and her team hand-delivered thousands of shoeboxes.

She described the experience as both humbling and inspiring.

“The sights we saw were unbelievable,” she said. “Children living in absolute poverty, often sharing a single room with up to 20 others.”

While visiting slum areas in Albania, Deborah witnessed first-hand the impact a single shoebox can have.

She explained that the team often brings extra items for parents, but one moment stood out.

“This year, Dergview Football Club had donated a number of shoeboxes and a football top,” she said.

“As we were walking through the slums, we saw a young boy standing on his own. He wasn’t asking for anything, but we knew straight away he was the one for it.

“We gave him the football top and a pair of new shoes and he took off running around like he was Ronaldo. For those 15 minutes, he was the centre of attention, standing ten feet tall. It was incredibly powerful to see.”

To date, Team Hope has delivered shoeboxes to 13 countries, including Albania, Ukraine, Kosovo, Malawi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda and Kenya.

Each shoebox, Deborah explained, is built around what the charity calls the ‘four Ws’: Something to wash with, something to wear, something to write with, and something to make the child say ‘wow’.

“It’s important that every box includes those elements,” she said.

Deborah added that shoeboxes are donated by schools, workplaces, sports clubs, families and individuals, meaning anyone can take part.

While many children have already received their gifts this year, she said people can still get involved up until Christmas Eve, with donations destined for Rwanda and Kenya.

“People can visit our website to order everything they need to make a shoebox, or they can build one online,” she said.

“The online shoebox option is very effective and also supports local economies in the countries we work in.”

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For more information or to take part in the Christmas Shoebox Appeal, visit www.teamhope.ie.