A MOVING exhibition of photographs capturing the aftermath of last year?s Boxing Day tsunami disaster in South East Asia is to be staged in Tavistock at the end of this month. The exhibition, by photographer Mark Pearson, is being brought to Tavistock by the town?s Rotary Club, which raised a staggering £13,770.63 to help survivors of the tsunami, sending out dozens of Shelterboxes containing vital supplies and emergency equipment. David Glover, secretary of the club, said: ?Everyone, especially those who donated money to the appeal, can come along to the exhibition ? it?s our way of saying thank you to Tavistock and the surrounding district for their tremendous donations. ?I?ve seen the exhibition and it really is outstanding ? it?s real tear-jerking stuff ? but it shows people what happened and how their donations helped.? A DVD will also be playing throughout the exhibition in the lower room at the United Reformed Church in Russell Street, demonstrating what Shelterboxes contain and how vital their contribution was in the aftermath of the disaster. The exhibition is being staged in Chicago and the Eden Project before it comes to Tavistock, then going on tour in towns throughout the UK. David said Tavistock?s response to the appeal following the tsunami was ?amazing?. ?In only two days our street collection had raised £6,000. ?I was the first one on the street and in just half an hour I had collected £80. We had one single donation of £1,000 ? one lady just emptied her purse of about £50, then came back with more in the afternoon ? it was quite extraordinary,? he said. Shelterboxes cost £490 each and contain a ten-man tent, ten sleeping bags, tools, water purification kit and various other utensils. Mark Pearson is a documentary photographer and has travelled extensively, earning a reputation as a top humanitarian photographer. He has highlighted such issues as child labour in Nicaragua and the extreme poverty of communities in Latin America, in addition to the work of the World Food Programme in Uganda. Mark travelled to Sri Lanka on December 28, then on to Banda Aceh in Indonesia and he is recently back from the earthquake hit island of Nias. He is currently planning a trip to Uganda and Sudan for the Shelterbox organisation. Mark Pearson?s photographic exhibition for Shelterbox can be viewed between Thursday June 30 and Sunday July 3, 10am to 4pm daily ? admission is free.
