A SCHOOLGIRL paid for medical equipment for a hospital in Africa then travelled there to donate the much-needed kit.
Poppy Whitehead, 17, raised money for the equipment by surviving on just £2 a day to raise awareness of poverty in Busua, Ghana, encouraging her family and schoolfriends at Burgess Hill Girls to donate to the cause.
She bought a foetal doppler, which measures a baby’s heartbeat in the womb, a blood pressure machin, and some sterile and more up-to-date tools to donate to the Ghanaian hospital in person while she volunteered there.
“Going to Ghana truly was an amazing experience that I’m sure I will never forget,” she said.
“It was probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done but also the most rewarding. It has really opened my eyes and changed me as a person. I met some amazing people and had some great fun.”
Poppy raised £2,200 in donations, a portion of which was split between two school to fund exercise books and stationery, while Burgess Hill Girls donated some sports equipment.
The remaining money will sponsor some of the poorest children in the area through school.
Liz Laybourn, headteacher of Burgess Hill Girls, said: “I think it is hearing stories like this that makes my job feel such a privilege. Poppy was determined to make this trip and make a difference and I believe the people she met out in Ghana had a great impact on her.”
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