On 30th August, One World Link took place in the annual Ecofest event organised by Warwick District Council. This has become an annual fixture on OWL’s calendar over the last few years. It is a chance for OWL to share information and updates about our work, reaffirm our commitment to being part of our local community here in Warwick and Leamington and – most importantly – engage with friends old and new. This year we took the opportunity to focus on the new EducAid project we are launching in Bo to support our linked schools.
One World Link with Cllr Tangri at Ecofest Leamington 2025
St Patricks pupil and dad at OWL Ecofest stand 2025
In typical British fashion, we were blessed with mixed weather throughout the day, but the morning sunshine brought out many people of all ages. We had many interesting conversations and made a number of new contacts who we will be contacting with more information about OWL and our work. If you were one of the people who dropped in on our stall, including Councillor Naveen Tangri, Chairman of Warwick District Council, thank you!
OWL will also be taking part in an event on Saturday 13th September between 10am and 3pm in All Saints Parish Church in Leamington as of the national “Heritage Open Days” programme. We will be showcasing our work as part of a wider display of local history research, activities and events. Please come along and find out more if you are in Leamington that day.
Over 40 years of records going back to our origins have recently been stored at the Warwickshire County record Office. Details of events, campaigns, visits and a variety of other activities related to the work of One World Link are now available for the general public to access. Jane Knight explains.
As time leaps forward, year by year, I have been increasingly aware of OWL’s long history building up especially as it passes its 40th Anniversary. With that history are all the records of its progress.
Because of Lockdown, I spent more than normal time taking part in Zoom sessions with old friends and colleagues around the world. They raised quite a lot of concern about what happens to all our experiences and records once we are gone? There is always the dread that they will end up on someone’s bonfire at the end of a garden.
Sorting OWL’s historical papers
I have no spare space to spread out where I live, and the pressure on me to do something about preserving OWL’s archives was mounting. Where to sort? and would anyone want the piles of documents etc. anyway?
By good fortune, my son James who knows OWL well, was willing to let me use his large garden shed which is furnished with shelves and a table tennis table. As his family are moving on, he handed it to me and members of the OWL committee to use as a temporary workspace.
And so on October 6th, Paul Atkins, Kip Warr and myself delivered 2 big boxes of newsletters, press releases, reports and photos all dating back to 1981, to the Warwickshire County Records office.
It was a great relief after we started, to find that WCC were actually interested in what we were doing and they welcomed the materials with enthusiasm. We just hope they will be used in the future.
We came across many letters sent through the years from key friends in Bo. A special feature is the ‘War file’ which contains personal experiences of the Sierra Leone Civil War in the 1990s. They were related to us in hasty phone calls made from Bo and Freetown by teachers and friends. Bishop Koroma (then Father) told stories of near escapes when he was expected to, and trying to get teacher’s pay out to all the Catholic schools while the war was going on.
One of the file’s contents was a letter from Johannes Mallah senior (later Chair of Bo OWL), recounting in detail his terrifying experiences being ambushed by rebels on the way to a meeting in Kenema.
Delivering OWL records to the Records Office
It was a fascinating experience working out suitable categories for sorting, and reading and sifting through a huge variety materials which capture the exciting progress of One World Link in the Bo and Warwick Districts.
There are accounts of exchange visits, across wide sectors of the communities from councils to teachers and midwives which led to strong friendships and practical benefits for 40 years. The partnerships and cultural exchanges, based on principles of equality, have changed the lives of many of us, here and in Sierra Leone.
Remaining in the shed, are records of many of OWL’s contributions to the UKOWLA (UK One World Linking Association) conferences and campaigns to spread the linking idea across the UK and there are records of more Global activities (Towns & Development) to promote linking and local government and local community cooperation for development in the South and across Europe. I am still hoping to lodge this small collection somewhere for posterity. So do contact OWL if you know of any possibilities?
Tribute to the late Maada Fobay, Chairman of Bo OWL
Four teachers from Bo visit the UK under the British Council’s Connecting Classrooms scheme
Visit to Bo by UK OWL Chairman , Richard Hall, Phil Clarke, WDC planner, and midwife, Helena White.
One World Link’s work with Bo City Council was “Highly Commended” by the Commonwealth Association of Planners in its 2019 Awards for Outstanding Planning Achievement
