On Wednesday 26th February, students at the College had the privilege of hosting Christopher Hurdman, a volunteer responder from the charity REACT Disaster Response, who delivered an insightful presentation on the vital work carried out by this charity. The event was organised entirely by our BTEC Level 3 first-year students, as part of their Managing an Event Unit, where they were required to research and invite a guest speaker, reserve a venue, carry out a risk assessment, promote the event and prepare questions to ask during the event.
Christopher began his talk by sharing his personal experiences, detailing his journey with REACT and his fundraising missions, including his climb of Aconcagua, the highest peak in South America, to raise both awareness and funds. He then provided students with an overview of REACT's life-saving missions, including recent operations in war-torn countries, the hurricane-stricken Caribbean, and areas across the UK affected by flooding.
Christopher’s commitment to raising awareness of the charity’s work was evident throughout his talk and the engaging Q&A session that followed. As he put it, it’s crucial for him to “show what ordinary people can do.” When asked by a student whether special skills were required to volunteer, Christopher emphasised that anyone, regardless of their education, professional background, or skills, can contribute: “Everybody has something to bring to the table.”
This was an enjoyable and well organised event which engaged its attendees. Our students are already planning another event in March, this time focused on raising funds for REACT. They are currently considering organising a bake sale and a series of interactive games, both aimed at raising awareness in College of the charity’s work and supporting its efforts.
