PALMER’S student and air cadet Lewis Coble spent over two weeks helping to renovate a remote school in the Thar Desert, north-west of India.
Lewis, 16 from Grays raised almost £1600 alone to help fund the trip by taking part in a range of fundraising activities including bag packing at his local Asda store, a yard sale and a sponsored trip to every underground station as quickly as possible.
As part of the 282 Squadron Air Cadets team, Lewis learnt to live the Indian way of life whilst embracing its rich culture. The main part of the trip was to help renovate a small school in the desert. This involved painting the entire school and cleaning it from top to bottom.
The 20 air cadets also met the locals including the Chief of Bikaner and his family. They told us about their lives which made us realise how lucky we all were. The team also took part in a three day camel safari and visited many temples and forts including The Taj Mahal.
A-level student, Lewis said: “This trip was a huge learning experience for me and made me appreciate what I take for granted. Getting the chance to help a community rebuild their school was extremely rewarding.”
Principal of Palmer’s College, Mark Vinall said: “Community service, locally and internationally, is an essential part of a Palmer’s education and Lewis is a terrific example of this commitment in action”.
Lewis hopes to go onto university after College.
