Hey Mum! it was great for you send here! You got my long email! Say hello to Lisa Whyte, Barbara, Aaron's family for me! Merry Deafmas!

Your mad son Ash xXx

Hey there,

It was lovely to hear from you, Angela! Sure u did inspire two of us and here we are in the country, helping out the deaf community like u did for Gambia. After reading ur message and i have respond to it in the postcard as it will explain more about the deaf community as u are right that we have missed out the main part of our work here!! too busy explaining all the other stuffs not Deaf community. doh! lol Ashton have said some here and i will say more in the postcard and hope it have explained what we have done with deaf community!! It was great to read all the message on the board and keep it coming from anyone and wherever u are! :D It will be funny to spend xmas in different country and not used to it yet as the weather is always hot and humid. :S but here is very into xmas, just like England! which it is good thing! :D Missing u all loads Mwahs Steven/xxxxxxxxxxxxx
a

Hi Ashton, How are you? I stumbled across this website, I will be passing it on to all my friends who constantly ask how you are doing. It is going to be a strange Christmas without you, I will miss your cooking! I hope you enjoy yourself in the SUNSHINE! the best christmas is in the West Indies. Remember Dominica? The past few days have been very COLD in Bradford.
I think your card wilI arrive late, so I will take this opportunity to wish you a very Happy Christmas and (as not to embarrass you too much, I LUV & MISS U) a LOW alcohol intake New Year. Keep up the good work, regards an Christmas Wishes to, your main buddy Steven and all your work colleagues. The people at the Dominica Association, Daphney, Veronica, Balinda, Pat (Eke), Edlyn, Joan (fr. Huddersfield) and many, many, many more people, wish you well.
Lots of Luv from
Your Mummy

Hey Angela! It was good for you to be back to The Gambia, cool! You must miss them a lot! I am happy about the improvement out there, slightly is a good thing! You did made difference! :) I saw you on a video-tape at the TV production in early 2004. I was so tempting to go because of your experience. Simoen Hart & Helen Phillips VSO experience first inspired me at Preston University years ago, I really wanted to do it but I wasnt sure that time. So seeing your experience on a tape inspired me! So you inspired TWO people! What an inspirational woman! Yeah you are right about us spent with volunteers more than I should have with Guyanese Deaf community; although there is a small community in big country. I met most of Deaf people in Guyanas capital Georgetown (Region 4) occasionally. Not many of them using ASL; more like home-made signs or contextually Most of Deaf people have a basic job like working at supermarkets, bag-keepers, street-cleaners etc. Rest of them doesnt have a job; one Deaf man told me that employers refused to give him a job just because of his deafness. A Deaf woman called Donetta, she works as a copywriter at Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) where I work at. She is really straight-forward woman. I will work alongside with her for ASL class & Deaf education workshop across Guyana. Only 2 Deaf social communities are Ians workplace and Garys Flex Gym. I always visited/stopped by and chat with my Deaf wicked mate Ian, who work at cycle shop. He was the one who fixed my impaired bike countless!! He is really funny and extremely good at story-signing in a beautiful own sign language (Guyanese Sign Language) mixed with ASL (murders or burglary mainly!). I can see that he is trying to work hard to keep his family good life tirelessly. Some of his mates met up for a chat at a working hour times, it was good socialising! Whenever my bike breaks, I always take some of my working times off to visit them. I know some Deaf people meet up at restaurant Popeyes on Saturday nights but I never turned up (always going out with volunteers for drinks and meal etc). Yeah theres no excuse! But I will try my best to turn up for a chat after Christmas!! Other Deaf social community, Flex Gym, Deaf GYM instructor Gary, I love him! He is a wicked guy! He is really really really funny! We always wind each other up! He reminds me of my mate in Yorkshire! Some other Deaf people turned up for a chat everyday. Only time was I see them on Sundays (Deaf Church), actually I last visited was October! Been visited there only fourth time. To be honest, I didnt feel brave enough to come there as I find this bit boring. Great for them to be together but after church, they left shortly though. I think the reason is spending with hearing volunteers because volunteers can sign ASL as I taught them every week. Did you teach hearing volunteers Gambia Sign Language often? It was great for you to spend with Deaf community all the times!!! Honestly I find this communication with hearing community more frustration than Guyanese Deaf community. I will take more pictures of Deaf community to show the UK!!!
take care of yourself Angela! Merry Deafmas! Ash xXx

Hey everyone!!

It's me Ashton the mysterious! How are you all in coldly England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Northern Ireland and Isle of Man? Hope you are doing well! Looking forward to celebrating christmas?

Im so sorry that I haven't used this website for a while! Seen this website for the first time since... umm start of the Sept!! Stevo and me created this website but he used it loads. More like it's his webiste now! I can see that Stevo is so informative! I used other websites for putting my diaries and pictures though. So I really like this website, it's clear and simple, feel tempting to send here for my diaries (postcards) I think you need to know what I have been done last 4 months. You don't need to catch up at once! or if you can! pffft! heehee!

Anyway you can see my postcards during my time in Guyana

17th Dec (August 2005)
15th Oct (October 2005)

Hopefully looking forward to chatting with you for making new friends!

Take care of yourselves!

Merry Deafmas

Ash xXx

Hey Steven and Ashton,
Apologises if I am one of the lazy readers, who have enjoyed reading your news, but didnt get round to reply you sooner!! Its great to read your news and I can empathy with you what you have been through in Guyana.

I have just returned from a week break in The Gambia and its great to be back to a wonderful country. I am pleased to say that there are slightly improvements since I left there last year. It was nice honour for me to be there for the two Deaf members wedding day, it was an unusual day in a typical African way!! Lots of things happened to me in a week and obviously I helped them (I couldnt give up my voluntary experience!!). I am definitely going back there again in the future, hopefully next year!!

It is lovely to hear what you both have been through so far, and lots of photos to look through. Its interesting and I will have to be honest with you that you are very lucky to live in a nice home, Guyana seems more civilised than in The Gambia. I couldnt believe that you have television and internet at home, you are so lucky!! I didnt have any socket for either telephone or Internet at my home in the Gambia, but I was not complaining as I managed to survive thou!!

When I was looking through your pictures.. Just out of my curiosity as it seems that you have hung around with the volunteers all the times, do you mix with the local Deaf community in your social time? I dont mean to compare you with my experience in the Gambia, I worked and socialised with the Deaf all the times, maybe their (Guyanan) lifestyle is different!! Also I am interested to hear more about local Deaf community, how they live, their culture, their homes, markets, streets, foods etc. More photos about their local grass roots would be great for people here (in UK) who would like to see how they live.

I am amazed to hear that you both work together really well as living together as well 24/7!! That is positive and lucky you have company as well!! Its great about Deaf Awareness Day and let it continue for many years to come.

Have you managed to lose some weight.. no beers but what about fast foods??

It was really nice of you to mention my name in SIGNmatters that you were inspired by my experience in The Gambia.

If any of the readers who are tempted to do what Steven and Ashton are currently doing at the moment, I would encourage you to grab an opportunity of lifetime check out www.vso.org.uk and apply for Youth for Development before 31st January 2006 for placement in summer 2006.

By the way Merry Christmas and Happy new Year.. enjoy the sun and dont burn!!
Luv Angela xx

Hi Steven! Hope ur well and not working too hard!! I decided to write in as I haven't posted a comment on this board so far! Not much to tell from this end, just trying to prepare for Christmas. Can't believe its approaching so fast. As for the New Year I'll be sunning myself in Tenerife with some of the other girls as we managed to find a last minute deal. We head off on New Year's eve but we'll be arriving a few hours before the clock strikes midnight! No doubt your New Year will be something to remember since u'll be spending it in Guyana! Take care, Una xx

Hi Stevo, Glad to see you are doing well over there. Just thought I'd say have a great Christmas and well done for doing some really great work out there. God Bless and take care.
Nicky Adolphe from your course in Sheffers
P.S. The Graduation was pretty poo, so you didn't miss anything at all!!!

Hey there,

I want to say that it is lovely to hear from some of u and i am still doing great here in Guyana! :D I had a great time at Deaf Awareness Day and I am pleased to say that it was really successful day with good number of people turned up for the day. More information about the day is on the postcard and please read it to see what we have done and i am really pleased with the outcome of the day :)

Jessica, I do have doubt there for one moment when u say that rebecca is seeing with chris evans, it have thrown everything off the path and i didnt get any evidences from anyone which it make things worse, u had me there for a moment!! but it is shame that u two are not together as u two will make a lovely couple! :D never mind!

I wanna to say that u all are not the only one with bad weather as we had to go through monsoon weather at the moment, heavy rain started yesterday morning and it is continuing, it is not looking good at the moment as the water is raising every minut and it will be flood sometimes this wkd but i am hoping it will not happened. :S
I had to go and buy tinned foods, creams, bottle waters etc to keep us company if there is a flood coming, so for now, we are playing the waiting time!! :)

For the love dept, i havent got out to look for one as i was too busy focusing on my projects as it is more important than looking for women!! I had to admit that there are lot of fit women out there and i will try to get their fone numbers for u, Markie! :D and Yes, sarah is nice but we are friends and nothing more! :) So u know that i am doing what i am supposed to do, working and working to help the deaf community in sports and Deaf Awareness! :)

I gotta to go as better to get back on work as need to do a lot of writing reports on my sports projects from the schools!! :)

Miss ya all and keep the post coming in as it is good to read from the other side of the world! :D

Mwahs

Steven/xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hey Stevo! Coming up to Christmas now, what have you got planned? You're going to be basking in the sun while the likes of us freeze in the typical British weather!! Just come back from Belfast for Ant's and Stevo's 21st-both got the "sheffy" treatment!! :-) As you know, some of our year girls are off to Mexico, i know it's too expensive for you to join, we'll drink some tequilas on ur behalf!! Sounds as if you're doing great out there in Guyana! Off now, back to my uni work-lovely(!)

Take care, Jessica x

P.S What Tom B and I were saying to you, not true, jus playing tricks!! :-p

Hey buddy...
Pleased to hear that you're having great time out there, and not like others at other part of the world, you are actually making a difference, that is quite a something. Well Done mate, Keep working hard next 10 months to ensure that Deaf people in Guyana can be treated as equal or ever come close to that for once.
Noticed in the photos, you're getting on well with particular pretty girl, namely Sarah, is there anything going on in that department? Ha ha! Not that i would blame you, she seem really nice person!!
Not much here to report, although this morning when i woke up, had a look outside, and guess what? Everythings covered in snow, its been snowing overnight, its about 3cm here in Cardiff, so its pretty cool depsite the freezing cold...
Hope alls well, and keep us posted with news/photos, its great!
Ciao for now..
Nick

Hey stevo, just seeing the photos from your album and now I am very tempted to go over to Guyana and see it for myself! God, I cant be able to cope with all the pressures a bit longer from my friends for instance stevo in Guyana, jessie and co in Far East, Ande and co in Australia, Tom & Graham in somewhere in the world, emlyn and co in South America and the list goes on!! (A message for Mr Donald Trump, if you are reading this, please please can I borrow £20K from you?!?!) Any fit babes out there in Guyana? If so, give them my phone no pls!! Heh!
Take care for now, Markie xx