Harry B-P (19) is a keen cricketer and wanted to incorporate this into his gap year before heading off to university. After considering various locations and options in a consultation with Emily, he decided to spend 3 months on the beautiful island of St Lucia. Although it is principally known for white sandy beaches and exclusive resorts, there is also a great need for community projects which engage young people from the island in sport and education to improve their prospects. The Language Gap works with UTS Caribbean to select and prepare volunteers to join their programmes including cricket, rugby, athletics, netball, equine therapy, education and more .
Harry reported from the island with a wonderful summary of his time there:
"When I landed at Hewanorra International Airport two months ago I was almost immediately captivated by the beauty of St Lucia — stunning scenery, the famous Pitons, lush rainforests and warm turquoise water. It was unlike anything I had seen before. What really stood out was the warmth of the Lucian people, who have been so welcoming to everyone in the group. Before I knew it I had settled into a routine that feels bizarrely normal.
My days have been split between two very different but equally rewarding things. Mornings are spent at a variety of local primary schools, including a special educational needs school. Despite the crying babies and classic St Lucian chaos, I have been lucky enough to help out during these very formative years of the children's lives. Seeing a different approach to teaching has been really refreshing — the teachers are not afraid to employ "tough love," exemplified yesterday by the immortal line "give that mouth a holiday" to a rather talkative student. As the weeks have passed, the students' joy for life has rubbed off on me and I truly feel they've given me more than I've given them.
Photo: Harry with local staff, fellow volunteer and young student in a primary school.
In the evenings I head down to cricket and train with the Gros Islet Knights at the Alton Crawfton Cricket Stadium, which he has — modestly — named after himself. The sessions have been brilliant, full of energy and laughter compared to back home in England. Despite the fun, the players are incredibly talented — a real highlight has been the boy I am working with making his first hundred at the St Lucian national trials. He has since gone on to receive his West Indies U19 call-up.
As the days continue to run away from me, I have to remind myself how fortunate I have been to be given this opportunity. I always wanted to do something slightly different on my gap year and if it weren't for Emily and the Language Gap I would never have found the beautiful country of St Lucia."
Photo; Harry taking part in an afternoon cricket training session.