My trek for Tanzania

A MAN who has helped more than 200 Tanzanian children attend school is preparing to walk 26 miles to help more people in the country.

Trevor Allen, 54, fell in love with the African country when he volunteered to complete a toilet block in the Machame area, near Mount Kilimanjaro, in 2008.

He was part of a team who finished the 16-cubicle block, meaning 220 children, as well as staff, no longer had to use one hole in the ground.

Since then, Trevor, of east Hull, has visited the country seven times, raising money to help send youngsters to school, set locals up in business and make a difference in their community.

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Now, he is planning to walk 26 miles in the Yorkshire Dales on Sunday, August 19, as part of the Jane Tomlinson Walk For All Yorkshire Dales Walking Festival.

Grandfather-of-five Trevor, who will return to Tanzania in September, said: "I love it and I feel like it's my second home. The people are brilliant.

"I will use the money I raise to fund as many children as possible to go to school, feed families, set another two or three locals up in business and buy mosquito nets if needed."

Funding his own trips, including flights and accommodation, Trevor said he uses money he raises to help the people he has met in Tanzania as much as possible.

He has previously bought hairdressing equipment and chickens for Tanzanian locals to set up businesses and make a living.

Trevor said it costs £25 per child to send a child to school for a year and he regularly supports Kisereni Primary School, which is close to where he stays.

He said he has been training for the walk at the gym and is completing two to three hours on a treadmill in preparation for the distance ahead.

He said: "If people are sponsoring you and giving you their hard-earned cash, you can't do something easy. You have to suffer.

"I ask children in Hull if they could have one thing, what would it be. They say a bike, or a scooter.

"In Africa, they say they would like the chance to go to school."

He said he briefly considered not returning to Tanzania when he was diagnosed with skin cancer in May last year.

But he underwent surgery and has been told there is no longer any evidence of the disease. He now attends check-ups every three months.

Trevor, a library caretaker, said: "I was going to stop going but you can't live your life like that.

"I spend a lot of my free time raising money and trying to educate children here about how well off they are."

Trevor has distributed hundreds of pairs of glasses to help people improve their vision in Tanzania and also spent days teaching children to tell the time before giving them a watch donated by his supporters in Hull.

He said: "They couldn't believe the glasses were free. One woman said 'I can see you'. It was amazing."

Trevor said he is looking forward to the walk and thoughts of the people he is helping will spur him on.

He said: "The African kids will get me through it. Some have to walk 12 miles a day to get to school and back, so that will keep me going."

To sponsor Trevor or find out more about the work he does, e-mail masaitrev@hotmail. co.uk

To register for Walk For All, visit www.forallevents.co.uk