A Kippen woman who organised digs for more than 20 delegates from a West African nation for COP26 has praised the “touching” support from locals.
June Waley and husband Giles took in a pair of representatives from Burkina Faso who were attending the global climate summit in Glasgow - which ended on Sunday.
After being contacted by a representative from the country about the struggles to find spare rooms, June took to social media to appeal for those in communities across Stirlingshire to open their doors in an effort to help out.
The appeal yielded a massive response, with 24 members of the Burkina Faso delegation being hoted for the two weeks, with more than 40 beds offered in all.
June said: “There were the logistical challenges of getting them sorted with travel, but in the second week we really began to build special friendships that will continue after the conference.
“Our house became a bit of a hub for feeding people and when friends realised how stretched Giles and myself were with logistics and sorting meals out, big trays of curry and lasagne just started arriving.
“We were so touched and the delegates were just overwhelmed by people’s kindness and generosity - the phrase we kept hearing was ‘c’est incroyable’.
“I think people were just grateful for the chance to contribute in some way to COP, others did a lot of driving and helped out with airport drop-offs and collections, as well as driving them from here to meet other hosts.”
During their stay in Scotland - and between long days working at the conference which often began with 6am bus journeys - the Burkinabe group were also given the chance to sample some of Stirling’s sights - including the Tolbooth, Loch Lomond and Stirling Castle.
Burkina Faso environment minister Siméon Sawadogo, the top official from the country attending the conference, stopped by Kippen to pass on his thanks personally for the warm welcome received by locals across the region.
June added: “The minister came out to thank us and he actually came straight from the meeting of heads of state to Kippen, which marked the most exceptional two weeks of our lives.
“We had 14 people living in the village, we had one in Bridge of Allan, a couple in Milngavie, three in Dumbarton and the rest were scattered along the X10 bus route so the school kids in the morning often got to meet them while they were on the same bus.
“There was also a lovely evening where the delegates wanted to show us how grateful they were so they showed us a video of how seriously their country was affected by these issues and then we had a wonderful meal at the Inn at Kippen where the Burkinabe did a little singing.”
The Waleys themselves hosted the country’s ambassador to the European Union, Jacqueline Marie Zaba Nikiema, and her press officer for the two weeks - with the ambassador even getting stuck in to cleaning dishes at one point.
And following the stay, June received a quote from the ambassador’s press officer, which read: “You have shown such legendary hospitality that I have to say thank you for the friendship.”
“I will never be able to forget what you have done for us - really we have met a wonderful people.”
