How do you raise more than £130,000 to equip a Ugandan women’s medical centre with an operating theatre, transforming the centre into a fully-fledged hospital?

That was the task begun by Rotary in Harpenden under the leadership of Dr Jim McWhirter of the Reading Matins Rotary Club. Having already worked successfully with Jim on two other Ugandan hospital projects we had no hesitation in throwing ourselves into this fundraising challenge.

Our first target was to raise £5,000 in order to gain grants from Rotary Districts. Our own contribution was boosted by donations from local schools, an anonymous charity and a substantial sum from the Developing World Group of Our Lady of Lourdes, Harpenden. With our target met, the Rotary District grants took the total to £39,000, which in turn qualified the project for a Global Grant from Rotary’s international charity, The Rotary Foundation.

With the Global Grant monies and working with other Rotary clubs worldwide, Dr Jim turned the £39,000 into £133,000 – enough to see that much-needed operating theatre become a reality.