‘They were amazed’ – Westmeath hurler teaches skills in Tanzania
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Aoife Doherty, Kris Foster and Conor Shaw from Tanzanian Heavenly Homes, pictured with Mto Wa Mbu villagers draped in Westmeath GAA and Brownstown GAA jerseys at a skills workshop earlier this month.Image 2 of 4
Raharney and Westmeath Camogie star Aoife Doherty showing Tanzanians how to solo a sliotar. Image: John McCauleyImage 3 of 4
Conow Shaw pictured explaining the rules of hurling to villagers.Image 4 of 4
Conor and Aoife pictured with buckets of maize, rice and beans for locals.Villagers from Mto Wa Mbu in Tanzania were left “amazed” by the skills and pace involved in hurling after a training session with a Westmeath county star earlier this month.
Conor Shaw from Brownstown and his girlfriend Aoife Doherty from Raharney were on a volunteer mission with local non-profit Tanzanian Heavenly Homes when they introduced the locals to the sport during their downtime.
They brought equipment, including 15 hurls, 15 sliotars, and around 100 jerseys featuring the maroon and white of Westmeath and the blue of Brownstown, which they left behind for the villagers' enjoyment.
Mr Shaw was impressed with how quickly the locals picked up hurling after only a brief introduction to the rules.
“We brought all the stuff down to a green area beside an orphanage one day where they usually play soccer, and there were about ten lads playing at the start,” he said.
“We had them in the jerseys and after an hour, there must have been about 70 or 80 people who had come down to take part – the word had spread.
“They were absolutely amazed by it, and everyone got a go.
“We must have played for about two hours, and some of them were very handy at it. I’ll be bringing a few of them home with me next time I’m out there!”
The fitness coach said the villagers really enjoyed the cultural exchange.
“They had never seen anything like it before and absolutely loved it,” he said.
“We taught them the rules, how to strike the ball, how to roll lift, stuff like that, and they were amazed by the whole thing.
“After about two hours of playing, we left all the hurls there for them and they took them away, so you never know, they could be playing hurling all the time since.”
Mr Shaw described the volunteer trip as a life-changing experience.
“It was unbelievable; they are the nicest people you could ever meet,” he said.
“A lot of them have nothing or very little, but they were all so positive about life.
“It was brilliant to be able to do food runs and bring them stuff to put a smile on their faces. I’m hoping to go back next year and do it again.”
He was amazed at the quality of work Tanzanian Heavenly Homes is doing on the ground.
“John McCauley and the team have a farm over there and they use the food from that to feed elders in the village, who now have their own homes in a compound there,” said Mr Shaw.
“It’s almost like a village they have built now, and they employ people to look after the farm with money raised locally.
“The next idea is to plant enough food so that they can feed the elders but also sell more food to fund other necessities and make the whole thing self-sustainable.”
One of 16 mostly young people from the area to take part in the trip, Mr Shaw said they all bonded extremely well over the shared experience and are planning to stay in touch.