When most teenagers will be sunning themselves on Mediterranean beaches this summer, Imogen Rogers will be working in a nursery in the Bolivian outback.
The 16-year-old St Joseph’s College sixth form student from Nantwich is fulfilling a lifelong dream to visit her aunt and see the wonders of Bolivia.
Academic high-flyer Imogen, who achieved five A*s and six As in her GCSEs, is now raising £1,900 she needs to fund her trip through the charity Up Close Bolivia.
She will meet her aunt Emma Donlan, who has been in Bolivia for 22 years, and then spend her time working in an over-crowded children’s nursery in the remote Valley of the Moon, which also has an equine therapy centre for disabled children.
Imogen said: “Who wants to go to Ayia Napa and spend two weeks herded together with a lot English people?
“I want to see something different – give something back and immerse myself in another culture.
“My auntie has been in Bolivia for over 20 years, has married a Bolivian man and works as a regional director for Christian Aid so I have heard all about the country, its people and how much they need our help.
“I will be working in a nursery where there is just one adult for 16 infants so I expect it to be very much hands on from day one and I am really looking forward to the challenge.”
The Valley of the Moon, named for its mountainous almost lunar landscape, is one of the poorer and more remote parts of the country.
Imogen added: “In parts, Bolivia is still a developing world country yet in other areas it is quite wealthy.
“I expect to see some extraordinary extremes of wealth and poverty almost side by side.”
With the help of her cake-baking mum Mary, Imogen is nearly half way to her target.
She will be increasing her efforts to raise the money before she departs on July 22.
Imogen said: “An important element of meeting the acceptance criteria is that you raise the money yourself and show some initiative, so hopefully I am developing some new skills there too.”
Roisin Maguire, headteacher at St Joseph’s College in Stoke-on-Trent, said: “It’s really important for young people to broaden their horizons, see the world as it really is and learn from different cultures.
“I agree with Imogen, there is really very little to be gleaned from Ayia Napa, but so much to learn from the Valley of the Moon.”
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