One of our Sales Administrators Anna-Louise Hannah made a special delivery of sports equipment to a children’s orphanage in Thailand in memory of a Pickering student who died in a tragic accident after a night out in York.

Anna-Louise, who works at our Malton dealership, transported two large bags of sports equipment which had been donated to the orphanage by the Rob Stephenson Trust https://www.robstephensontrust.com, set up by Rob’s brother Sam as a legacy for his sports-loving brother who died in 2016 after being involved in a road collision.

The charity raises funds to help children in the UK and overseas access sports and Anna-Louise, who worked for the trust for a short time, undertook the task of taking equipment to orphans at the Child Protection and Development Center in Pattaya. The orphanage provides a sanctuary for the street children of Pattaya many of whom have been subjected to the trauma of human trafficking, sexual abuse and devastating poverty.

Anna-Louise, who took t-shirts and trainers as well as equipment including sets of bibs, footballs and a rugby ball, bean bags, skipping ropes, hula hoops, rounders bats and tennis balls, spent two weeks at the orphanage where she took part in various activities with the children.

She said: “The orphanage is purposefully located on the outskirts of Pattaya to remove the children from the dangerous surroundings that they have been rescued from, re-homing them into a safer environment. Alongside the homes for the children, the compound also contains a basketball court, a nurse’s office, teaching rooms and a vegetable garden.

“Every aspect of the children’s care is centred around helping them to become independent, well rounded individuals. The staff who work at the centre have clearly worked hard to build caring and trusting relationships with the children, creating a safe and loving environment. It is evident that this is not simply a housing facility but a home and I was so lucky to have been welcomed into it with open arms.”

The centre is a charity run organisation and relies heavily on donations to carry out their work and donations can be made through the Rob Stephenson Trust Facebook page or by visiting their website http://hhnft.org/projects/child-protection-development-program .

The trust has also provided funds for projects closer to home including netting for Thornton Dale Cricket Club, where Rob spent many happy hours in the summer. As Rob wanted to further his studies abroad, students can apply for funding to support their studies through Newcastle University, where he was in the third year of an agricultural degree at the time of his death.