A WEST Devon couple will soon be taking on a mammoth journey to drive thousands of miles down through Africa to donate a Landrover ambulance to a Tanzanian charity.

Bob and Elaine Prior have bought and restored a 1975 ex-army Landrover ambulance to donate to former West Devon couple Geoff and Vicky Fox's charity Wild Orphans.

Bob and Elaine, from Middlemoor, are good friends with Geoff and Vicky Fox, who live in Tanzania but own a house in the hamlet.

Bob said: 'Geoff, who's now 75, went out to Tanzania when he was 19 and worked on a tea plantation. His childhood sweetheart, Vicky, lived in Whitchurch but went out to join him a few years later following their honeymoon.

'Some years ago, Geoff recognised the AIDS epidemic for what it was. The government were just burying their heads in the sand about the whole thing, so Geoff decided to do something about it.'

Since then Geoff and his wife have built an orphanage, a school, a training college, and a hospital.

Bob said the charity is currently taking on projects such as building 'granny homes' to house grandmothers who are left looking after young children.

'The AIDS epidemic is taking away mothers, fathers and grandfathers. If a man is away for work, their attitude over there is that it is as acceptable for him to use a prostitute as it is him going for a beer.

'They use prostitutes, then go back to their wives and pass on the disease,' said Bob, who said grandfathers will often use prostitutes too.

'So the family unit then becomes the grandmother looking after the young orphaned children.'

The grandmothers and children currently live in mud brick huts which quickly fall into states of disrepair, so the charity is building comfortable and secure 'granny homes' to house the grandmothers and orphans.

Bob offered his help to the charity when Geoff mentioned he needed a robust ambulance for the hospital.

'About 18 months or so ago I was having a beer with Geoff while he was back, and he asked if I knew anyone who would could bring a 4x4 ambulance over to Tanzania — the beer and I said I would do it!'

Since then Bob and Elaine have been raising funds and purchased an ex-army Landrover ambulance which had been in service in Cyprus. It was brought back to the UK, decommissioned and had been left in a field.

'We brought it down from Scunthorpe and took it to Nigel at Hillside Landrover in Tavistock, who restored it for us.'

The ambulance is currently being shipped out to Mombasa, Kenya, and Bob and Elaine will fly out to meet it there at the end of the month.

They will then drive it down through Kenya to Tanzania to meet Geoff and hand the vehicle over to the charity.

For more information about the charity visit http://www.wildorphans.org">www.wildorphans.org