TSUNAMI PUPIL’S PLEDGE TO THAI HOSPITAL

Added: (Tue Mar 07 2006)

Pressbox (Press Release) - NEWS RELEASE

TSUNAMI PUPIL’S PLEDGE TO THAI HOSPITAL

A 17-year-old Uppingham School pupil and his family who were caught up in the 2004 tsunami have set up a fund to raise money for the hospital in which they were treated.

Andrew Walker-Smith suffered spinal injuries and his mother’s pelvis was crushed when the natural disaster struck on Boxing Day in 2004 as they holidayed in the Krabi region of Thailand. The death toll around where they were staying exceeded 1,000 people.

Now they and other survivors with whom they shared the experience have embarked on a campaign to raise £13,000 for an ultra-sound machine for the local hospital in which they were cared for.

To date, Andrew’s fellow pupils, along with staff, at Uppingham School have contributed just under £1,200 to the fund.

The Lower Sixth year pupil, in a speech in Uppingham School’s chapel, said: “The generosity, compassion and humanity of the Thai people will never be forgotten and will be an eternal shining light in the darkness of those horrible days. We will never forget the people of Krabi for all they gave.”



As well as by contributing to the fund in which he is involved, Andrew said that people could help the region recover economically from the disaster by going there on holiday.



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About Uppingham School: Uppingham School is a boarding school, situated in the heart of England. Safely integrated into a small market town in the beautiful Rutland countryside, Uppingham has around 750 pupils who come from all over the country and abroad. Founded in 1584, by Robert Johnson, and raised to its present eminence in the 19th Century by the great educationalist Edward Thring, Uppingham continues to flourish today under Stephen Winkley.

Headmaster: Dr SC Winkley
School type: Co-educational independent boarding school 13 – 18
For more information visit: www.uppingham.co.uk

February 2006