AROUND 60 Exeter College Music Academy students were last night awarded end-of-year prizes in recognition of their huge achievements in their chosen fields during the past 12 months.

Between them, they received a diverse range of accolades ranging from Best Recording and Best Solo Performance to Best Arrangement, Best Music Journalist, and Best Stage Performance at the 2010 Music Academy and Project Music Awards, held at the College’s Centre for Creative Industries (CCI).

Winner of the award for Music Student of the Year was Joe Straker. Presenting the awards was ex-music student Simon Pilgrim, drum manager for Project Music, which also sponsored the awards evening.

Also attending the event was special guest Emanuel Mbaji who had travelled to the UK from his native Kenya. A representative of the Kesho charity, he paid a visit to thank students for their fundraising efforts during the last year and to talk to them about life at the village school which they have helped.

Founded by Kate Noakes of Okehampton, a former Exeter College student herself, the Kesho charity sponsors Kenyan children from the area of Kalifi to enable them to go to school.

Exeter College Head of Music Laura Wright says: “I met Kate through a friend of mine last Summer and she told me about Kesho and I mentioned the charity to my National Award Second-Year students the following day.

“As a result, they decided to donate any profits from their Autumn performance to the charity and were delighted to discover the £120 they raised had been used to sponsor two children. The group has since raised an additional £60, which they couldn’t wait to give to Emanuel last night, and I would very much like to keep up our involvement next year.”

As the Kesho charity is based and run from the village that the children live in, they are able to build up a strong relationship with those helping them access education. The charity not only helps pay for transport, particularly as some children live many kilometers from their school, but also uniforms, essential equipment, and emergency relief for the poorest families when needed.

“The value of their education is immeasurable,” continues Laura. “Who knows what they might go on to achieve. The letters we have received from the two sponsored children, both girls called Rehema, and the school, have made it all very real for us. As one student said, ‘It makes you realise you are part of a world community, not just the one in Britain.’

“I feel really proud that every single student I spoke to said they wanted to help Kesho. Many have since told me that it has really made them think about how easy it is for us to take education for granted. They have thought about many aspects of their lives, and it has led them to consider how we should all start thinking on a more ‘global’ scale, and about what being part of the human race actually means.”

Among the students is Tom Raubenheimer, aged 18, of Okehampton. The former Okehampton College pupil, who has just completed his National Award for Performance and his National Certificate in Music Technology, explains: “It is important for me to be able to feel like I’ve helped other people. It’s about helping people out who wouldn’t have had the option of an education without that help. With an education, they can get better jobs, bring more money into the family, and have more of a chance to do what they want in life.”

Visiting Devon from Kenya on an awareness-raising trip over the next few weeks, 22-year-old Emanuel has experienced first-hand what it means to be sponsored by the Kesho charity. Having been able to go to school because of it, he now hopes to go to university in Niarobi in September to read Human Resources Management

Emanuel gave a short talk to the audience expressing his gratitude for the chance he has been given to access a good education. He said that he enjoyed the awards event and looked forward to continued communication between the Music students and the Kesho charity.