African Immersion Experience

Hello, my name is DJ Howley and I am a 5th year student in Clongowes.

I am delighted that I have been chosen by my school to take part in this year’s African Immersion Experience taking place in April 2025.

Myself and a group of 16 other students will travel to Lesotho, a small landlocked independent country in South Africa. It is about the size of Munster with a population of around 2 million! It is in the bottom 15% of the poorest countries in the world with over 50% of the people living in poverty and the male life expectancy at around 50 years. We will stay in the village of Malealea in Southern Lesotho.

Our group will set off as Pilgrim Servants and Students inspired by the Jesuit ideal of faith that does justice and that is why we call ourselves Pilgrims. We will make our contribution to the local community by doing whatever the local community asks us to do rather than us telling them what we think might be good for them. As students we hope to be open to learn from the Basotho people and return home enriched by their welcome.

Our families will bear the cost of our travel and accommodation and we are the workforce once we get to our base at Malealea. There are urgent year long needs for which the people there rely on us for financial support in the form of education, housing and health. In the past the boys that have gone before us have carried out works like building a school, a community centre, digging wells, fixing roads, painting, anything that leaves the village and their people in a better place.

We work with an organisation called The Malealea Development Trust; this is a local organisation that works for its own community to build a better future for its people. They focus on community development, health & well-being, education and caring for orphans and vulnerable children. You can learn more about the trust at www.malealeadevelopmenttrust.org

So, I am writing to you to ask for your financial help, to enable us to bring with us the very important financial aid to a people who struggle every day to survive. No amount is ever too small and every penny we raise will go directly to the Malealea community, to be used in the local community where we will be based for our 2 weeks.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and for sharing it with your friends and family. I appreciate every contribution made.

DJ