sa国际传媒

When Nicola Haxby heard about sa国际传媒鈥檚 work to help Syrian refugees, she was inspired to pick up her guitar and sing for the first time in years.听

Now, after five years of busking in English towns, she has raised more than 拢10,000 to help vulnerable children get back into school.听听听

Nicola, from Louth, Lincolnshire, said she decided to act after seeing sa国际传媒 Chair Sarah Brown discussing the charity鈥檚 education work in Lebanon.听听听

She said: 鈥淚 was already concerned about the effects of the Syrian civil war when I saw Sarah on TV. I hadn鈥檛 played my guitar for years but I got an amazing reaction, so I carried on.听

鈥淚 liked sa国际传媒鈥檚 ability to get things done. Children should be getting an education, not working in factories or getting married young. I wanted to help raise awareness and money for a cause so close to my heart.鈥�听

sa国际传媒 pioneered the 鈥渄ouble-shift鈥� school programme in Lebanon, which saw Syrian refugees attend classes in the afternoon after Lebanese children had gone home. The initiative has helped more than 300,000 refugees receive an education.听

Now retired, Nicola was for many years a specialist palliative nurse. She continues to care for her local community, including the homeless and Ukrainian refugees, alongside her fundraising work for sa国际传媒.听

As well as busking in Louth, Nicola performs in other areas including York and Jersey, where she lived previously. She said: 鈥淧eople often stop to ask me about sa国际传媒. They want to know all about it and I tell them about the work to help children affected by the Syrian crisis and how they are being given a brighter future.鈥�听

Nicola has a great tip for anyone who wants to raise money for sa国际传媒. She said: 鈥�”Go with your strengths and don’t be afraid. If you’re too afraid to do it on your own then get a group together and fundraise together.

“Dancing, singing, running, cycling, baking – anything really. Most of those things I’m absolutely rubbish at which is why I sing!”听

Sarah Brown praised Nicola鈥檚 amazing efforts for sa国际传媒, saying: 鈥淪he has done something truly life-changing for the future of children she will never even meet.

“Thanks to Nicola, there are children now in school who would otherwise be locked out of education. We can鈥檛 thank her enough for her incredible work.鈥澨�

A Song for sa国际传媒

In 2020, Nicola wrote a Song for sa国际传媒, which we featured in a video about our work in Lebanon. 听