News....news....news....

July 2009 -  it’s been a great fundraising month for us...

Home-baked cakes and treats went down a storm one Friday at Ashurst, raising £380;

We’re delighted to have the support of five competitors in the Zurich Ironman 2009. The justgiving site remains open if you’d like to register your support at www.justgiving.
com/2cc-zurich2009;

..and coming up, another bring and buy clothing night, this time with our very own stylist!

April 2009 - special thanks to Gemma and Nick who nominated the Rwenzori Trust for their wedding list.

February 2009 - the start of a new school year in Uganda and we’re delighted to be able to continue our sponsorship of 35 secondary school kids. Seven of the children from last year have left the project (due to poor exam results) and a new seven have joined the project.

January 2009 - the community trails in the forest land have been repaired and upgraded thanks to a generous donation from the Rwenzori Development Foundation. If you’re in Ruboni, go and see for yourself!

 

The Rwenzori Trust

The Rwenzori Trust was founded in May 1992 by Henry Osmaston and David Pasteur, who transferred their intellectual property rights in the Guide to the Rwenzori (the first edition of which they published in 1972) to the newly created charity. The trust was registered as a UK charity and Andrew Stuart joined as the third original trustee. Each of the original trustees had spent periods of their working lives in the colonial administration in Uganda.

The trust was established for the purpose of advancing education in Uganda for the public benefit. This purpose includes, but is not limited to, supporting training, research and conservation on Ugandan mountains.

To this end, the initial primary focus of the Rwenzori Trust was raising funds through sales of the Guide to the Rwenzori (by Osmaston and Pasteur) to support the carrying out of research in, and maintenance of accommodation and paths inside, what is now the Rwenzori Mountains National Park.

In 2006, shortly before his death, Henry Osmaston published the second edition of the Guide to the Rwenzori. He passed away, at the age of 83, whilst delivering the first copies of the new edition to friends. Further details of the Guide can be found here.

Following the deaths of both Henry Osmaston and David Pasteur, in 2006 Andrew Wielochowski and Nigel Osmaston (Henry’s son), both also having extensive knowledge of the Rwenzoris, joined Andrew Stuart as trustees of the Rwenzori Trust. With the help of a bequest from Henry’s estate, it remains the intention of the trustees to design and construct a new hut to accommodate researchers working in the Rwenzori Mountains National Park.

In September 2007, Sarah Moore contacted the Rwenzori Trust looking for a forum through which to operate her proposed child sponsorship project. The trustees appointed her to join them and thanks to the generous support of our donors, that proposal became reality in February 2008 when 35 children in the shadow of the Rwenzori Mountains started their new school year supported by the Rwenzori Trust. More details about the Child Sponsorship Project can be found here. Sarah first worked in the Rwenzori area in 2001, on a teaching placement, and has since worked with the local community to build an eco-tourism facility at the entrance to the Rwenzori Mountains National Park. If you’re planning to visit this area, the Ruboni Community Camp is an excellent place to stay and more details can be found here.