V I R G I N U N I T E

newsletter
G U E S T S N E W S L E T T E R I S S U E 9 M AY 2 0 0 9 Compiled by Eve Branson

“WHAT IS VIRGIN
UNITE? WHAT IS ITS
AIM? WHAT DOES
IT DO?”
WELL, AS RICHARD HAS ASKED ME
TO HELP WITH THE LOCAL VIRGIN
UNITE ENTERPRISE IN MOROCCO, THIS
NEWSLETTER GIVES SOME ANSWERS TO
THOSE QUESTIONS.

V I R G I N U N I T E

C O N TA C T
Morocco
Virgin Unite
The School House
N E W S A N D D E V E L O P M E N T S F R O M T H E AT L A S M O U N TA I N S
50 Brook Green
Hammersmith
London W6 7BJ
tel: +44 (0) 203 126 3962
fax: +44 (0) 203 126 3980
email: sue.hale@virginunite.co.uk
K A S B A H TA M A D OT • ASNI • ASSELDA • TIMZRA • TA N S G H A RT • IMSKER
virgin unite morocco
Goats Touch Down
If you’ve read my last
newsletter you will
appreciate the many
hurdles we had to overcome
to import 30 Cashmere
goats to Morocco, a crazy
idea that came to me in the
middle of the night!
A year ago I had a dream.
Normally dreams do
not materialise, but my
determination kicked in and
I bought 30 Cashmere goats
from a local English Farmer,
Pat Thorne, to be flown to
Goats lounging about in isolation
Morocco.
As you may be aware, there have been some setbacks along
the way. Firstly, owing to the outbreak of foot and mouth
disease in England, soon to be followed by the blue tongue
disease affecting livestock, our permission to export the goats
was declined. Eventually, all permissions to ship the goats to
Morocco were granted (provided our English vet examined each
goat). But the goats were oblivious to these setbacks, as Billy,
whom we named ‘Richard’, had been busy!
Pat Thorne, the farmer on our goat project, who is also
President of the Cashmere Goat Society, not only had to select
then sort out 30 of the best goats, but also had to put them
into an isolation container for 3 weeks. A signed declaration by
the vet was then read that all was in order to travel abroad.
Finally all the documentation was ready, when a week before
they were due to fly, DHL couriers announced to us they were
cancelling the plane! Not only had the poor goats been
enclosed for 3 weeks but by now I’d booked tickets for a film
crew to be there for the goats’ arrival and organised various
other help to be in Casablanca.
A week went by. Frantically the Thornes and I were becoming
desperate when Jonathan Blackney, our transport manager
phoned to say Royal Air Maroc would accommodate our goats.
They would fly via Paris and then Casablanca; relief all round
although the cost would be £12,000.
So come April 2009, I received a most joyful phone call from a
lovely man called Brahim Bendar, House Manager at Kasbah
Tamadot to say the goats had arrived safely at Casablanca and
they were now tucked up and on their way to ‘Ormvah’
quarantine stations, situated near the hotel. The only hitch had
been, somehow, the farmer’s wife had mis-counted and added
one too many for the customs papers! We were made to feel
like criminals, but none of us was put in prison and the goats
were soon grazing peacefully on an isolation farm.
It’s a Goats Life
So you will understand the
excitement when in April I, along with
a Virgin Unite film crew, flew to
Morocco to be reunited with
our goats.
I awoke at Kasbah Tamadot, the sky
blue, the sun rising, then I was off to
the Moroccan isolation farm to help
herd the goats into a truck. Beautiful bags created in Tansghart village
The Moroccan vet passed all 30 as fit,
save one, number 8, who had to
remain in isolation. I don’t know who
was the happiest and most relieved
as we drove them to their final
destination near the vilage of
Tansghart. As we lowered the ramp,
all 30 goats ran and bounced to their
new 5 star hotel. I wonder if they
realised they have the finest view in
They arrive at last…thank goodness!! Learning to spin Patchwork class Cushion created by a student of Asni village
Morocco - snow capped mountains
on their left with the river below
rushing and gurgling by. Lucky goats! Tea With ‘Grandad’
I left them utterly content; they are even enjoying a ready The last day was my next challenge. Kenton Jones, Kasbah girls in the Higher Atlas Mountains who have nothing but a
Tamadot’s General Manager, mentioned he’d come across a heart of gold, so well deserve.
water supply as now we’ve bought water to the village. We
village called Imsker in the Higher Atlas Mountains which was
left Asise, their new herdsman, combing their fleeces and I’m committed to doing the work if there are the funds
completely primitive and undiscovered. Ok that’s me. I was off
smiling broadly, proudly in charge of the only herd of white to fund it.
Cashmere goats in the whole of Morocco. - off with my film crew. Then I started thinking… if they needed
help, money would be essential and already I’d heard of a
Being some of the only Cashmere goats in Morocco, I shall not Japanese girl who thought her father might be able to come to
feel happy until they produce their kids and the local brown and
Reflections… and plans for the future
our rescue. And to film the village would surely make any
black goats keep well away! Meanwhile, my next job is to focus generous benefactor realise the desperate need for support. Thanks to the generosity of our friends
on how we’re going to breed the goats, as we weren’t able to in Los Angeles, who once a year in
Parking the car outside Imsker we wandered through the
send “Richard” the Billy who’s been so very busy up to now! October host a Moroccan-themed ball
village. The village chief known as ‘Grandad’ had been told of
in association with Virgin Unite called
our arrival.
‘Rock the Kasbah,’ we’ve been able to
Yes, I felt like the pied piper with most of the villagers and fund several projects. Not only is it a
Spinning in the High Atlas children following me up the unmade alleys, passing the odd wonderful event, but the money raised
thin cow in a doorway and scrawny hens surrounded with their has so far enabled us to lay water pipes,
So what will the goats be used for, you ask? My aim is to teach day old chicks – slipping and slithering, higher and higher we provide teachers for schools, create
crafts to girls at the three adjoining villages to Kasbah Tamadot, climbed, with ‘Grandad’ holding my hand, until finally we came
looms, build goat sheds and much
using the goats’ Cashmere wool to produce beautiful gifts that they to his mud house. more of the basic necessities.
can sell and become self supportive. Each village specialises in a
Stooping, we entered and went up the dark narrow steps and The Berbers are very special people, Piping water to the village of Tansghart
unique craft; Asni in embroidery, Tansghart in knitting and crochet
out to the sunny small balcony where we were graciously generous, proud and full of love and
and Asselda in carpet making. offered local Berber mint tea. laughter. But funds won’t stretch to yet another village – I’ve
Finding volunteers to teach the crafts is difficult but luck so often I’d been here before but my film crew were overwhelmed in formed the ‘Eve Branson Foundation,’ so every penny spent is
comes my way.Two lovely ladies,Ann Saunders andWendy from‘Ewe this small room as to what angle they could capture this accounted for.
to Spinners,’ a not-for-profit organisation arrived at my English house, generous hosted tea party, all the while dodging the two light Now with yet one more dream, I’m so hoping for the funds we
complete with 3 spinning wheels and Cashmere wool. Not only did bulbs dangling from the ceiling, unattached by any electricity. need to create another craft house in Imsker. Please help make
they give me a lesson, but said they would volunteer to teach the girls this dream come forth to reality and visit
By now ‘Grandad’ had organised some of the teenage girls to
in Asselda. To make sure the girls had all the tools they needed, we www.virginunite.com to see how you can help.
come to a small empty room next door as I was keen to know
donated a large room with 8 looms for carpet weaving – my dream is if they wanted our help to teach them crafts and indeed they If you are interested, I hope you get a chance to book another
that one day they will be weaving and making Cashmere carpets! did. After seeing their handmade loom made of string and visit to Kasbah Tamadot where you’ll be able to see my next
And for some strange reason luck was still on my side. Patricia posts, we strolled through the village to see three different sites newsletter.
McLaughlin and her friend,Veronica Ferguson, decided to return to that might be for sale and suitable for a craft centre.
continue teaching patchwork to the 40 girls at Tansghart and Asni. Nothing will be possible without funds, so I hope the film we’ve
EVE BRANSON
The finished work is available in the Virgin Unite shop. just made with Virgin Unite will convey the help those Berber