You can put your shirt on it - it’s a great idea.
A thriving sports club in Huddersfield is doing its bit to brighten the lives of youngsters in Africa.
Newsome Panthers Junior Rugby League Club have donated old kits to two schools and now boys and girls in Northern Malawi are able to wear the shirts and shorts for games in the sun.
The donations came about through Newsome Panthers’ manager Liz McGuire, who runs the current Under 15 team and is a neighbour of Josie Redmonds, who lives in Lepton.
Josie runs Butterfly Space, a community project in Northern Malawi which works with local schools. Volunteers have built toilets for Chindozwa First Primary School and started school gardens at the Chikale First Primary School.
They are also working to improve the Nkhata Bay pitch which is used by numerous local teams, playing in leagues and tournaments.
Liz said: “The Panthers had outgrown the kits we had and I was left with 20 shirts and 20 shorts.
“I knew Josie was doing vital work in Africa and when I approached her about the sports kit, she was delighted.
“I boxed it all up and sent it off. It amazingly took seven months to get to the schools but now the 11 and 12-year-old boys there are proudly wearing the strips.
“They play football in bare feet and how they manage without boots is beyond me.
“We have eight junior teams at Newsome and we hope to send out more kits in the future.”
Butterfly Space helps people of all ages. It includes work with nursery schools, disabled people, women’s groups and people suffering from HIV.
Josie, 36, developed a specialist interest in eco-tourism while studying and after several trips to Malawi she moved there full time.
She is based at Butterfly Lodge on the lake shore of Nkhata Bay, which is a commercial enterprise that provides a launch-pad for voluntary work.
Josie has been at home in Lepton for a few weeks before returning to Malawi.
