Sherpa thanks children for help after earthquake
BBCA Nepalese Sherpa has travelled more than 4,500 miles (7,242km) to Teesside to thank children for their fundraising efforts after a devastating earthquake in his country.
Dawa Geljen Sherpa visited Barley Fields Primary in Ingleby Barwick which was partnered with Shree Garma School in Nepal as part of an international effort to help those affected by the 2015 earthquake.
Shree Garma School, like many in Nepal, was badly damaged in the quake which killed some 9,000 people and left nearly 22,000 injured.
The Teesside school raised money through bake sales and fundraising events to help support the rebuilding of classrooms at Shree Garma School.
Dawa Geljen Sherpa set up the charity Classrooms in the Clouds - Nepal (CITC Nepal) to build earthquake-resistant classrooms and to encourage girls to stay in school.
He said he was in a café when the earthquake struck and he remembers everything shaking.
"Houses, schools, towns and villages were all destroyed in minutes," he said.
"Everything was falling and it was so frightening and devastating.''
Deputy Head at Barley Fields Rob Shildrick said the aim of partnering with an international school was to improve the children's understanding of other countries.
The youngsters at Shree Garma, which is located about 41.6 miles (67km) from Mount Everest, exchange video messages with the children on Teesside and discuss their lives.
"The lives of the children there are very different, with some walking hours to get to school," Shildrick said.
"It is good our children are learning about the hardship some youngsters face.''
Shree Garma teaches about 500 children from nursery to the age of 16 and work to build a two-storey block, made with earthquake-resistance technology, is currently under way there.
Dawa Geljen Sherpa said he had been ''shocked by the kindness of strangers so many miles away''.
He said: "Their fundraising and friendship has made a real difference to the lives of hundreds of children in remote communities in Nepal.''
