Only the best for - Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics

taking on the challenge. Employees arranged for the
bus to travel the 100 mile distance from Essex, UK, to
Southampton. WWL UK staff then had to help secure
the bus’ important cargo and safely prepare the bus for
its two-week voyage from Southampton to Durban,
South Africa.
“We were happy to help with the charity’s good
cause,” says Tony White, Port and Terminal Operators
for WWL UK. “When we saw the photographs of the
bus and the children’s smiling faces, it brought home
how a small gesture can make a big difference for the
children of Zambia.”
the book bus is the brainchild of Tom Maschler,
the British publishing magnate who is credited with
launching the careers of authors such as Gabriel Garcia
Marquez and Ian McEwan. He believes strongly that
books can change people’s lives. Maschler chose Zambia
for this project because aside from being one of the
world’s poorest countries, it has also been devastated
by the HIV/AIDS crisis. An estimated 600,000 children
have been orphaned by the disease, which affects a
staggering 15 percent of the population.
The tour of Zambia was coordinated by the company
VentureCo, which enlists travelers to participate
the bus visited schools, orphanages and hospitals
in south Africa and Zambia, entertaining children
with storytelling, art and drama sessions.
in charitable works such as the Book Bus Project.
Participants travel with the bus for two to eight weeks,
visiting schools, orphanages and hospitals. Aside from
sharing books, bus volunteers host activities such as
storytelling, art, drama sessions and sporting events.
the bus itself is nearly 30 years old and had to be completely
retrofitted in preparation for its new life in Zambia.
Seats were replaced with bookshelves. Mechanically
the vehicle needed new electrical circuits, a heavy duty
pump and generator, rough terrain tyres and a tropical
engine cooling system. The exterior has been illustrated
with pictures of children reading and playing with
books and animals. The bus was also stocked with tents
and a camp kitchen for volunteers to use.
Considering all that was done to procure and then
prepare the bus for its Zambian mission, WWL UK
worked diligently to make sure the bus arrived on time
and in pristine condition, with its sizable book cargo
safely secured. The bus left Southampton March 14,
2008, and arrived 16 days later in South Africa. From
there it drove to Zambia where it spent May through
October touring the country. Plans are already in place
for repeating the book bus tours in 2009, according to
VentureCo.
“ We were
happy
to help
with the
charity’s
good
cause”
VENTURE 3 2008 1