“We have had marriages coming out of it so we have new generations coming through now as well”
A Derry youth group is looking back on 20 years of cross community trips that have seen young people from across city jet across the globe for as little as £120.
And the Reach Across trips, that have seen local youths enjoy journeys to countries as far flung as Poland, Denmark, Romania, Lithuania and Hungary, have been so successful in bringing people together that some have even resulted in marriages, organisers say.
Members, leaders and staff members from Reach Across as well as Derry City and Strabane District Council Mayor Ruairi McHugh gathered recently to celebrate the organisation’s 30th anniversary and its lasting legacy.
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Reach Across was established in September 1995 after the closure of youth group Holiday Projects. Since then it has elevated itself to international status with partnerships around the world.
Discussing the impact that Reach Across has had on Derry’s young people, founder Barney McGuigan said: “We have had around 4,000 young people involved in the youth programme, about 120-150 per annum, with people applying at the start and more during the year through their friends.
“We have worked with 22 countries on international projects, our 1999 trip to Hamburg, Germany was the first one, priced at £120, the most recent one was priced at £150. The price of our local residential trips have never gone up either. It was about giving an opportunity that most members wouldn’t have been able to experience or afford.”
Over the next 20 years since its inaugural international trip to Hamburg, Reach Across had international youth exchanges with groups from Portugal, Belgium, Poland, Denmark, France, Romania, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus and Hungary.
Since Brexit, Reach Across has had to navigate alternative avenues for funding, to ensure that they can still provide affordable experiences for their members.
Barney said: “Our schools programme has been a backbone of Reach Across in the past number of years. Other than that we are relying on fundraising. We are always diversifying and bringing in new opportunities to cover costs.
“We have been able to offer international trips at £150 for 20 years, which makes it accessible to everybody. We feel without Erasmus there would be those who could and those who can’t, and they could be two friends sitting beside each other.”
Reach Across has developed friendships and even marriages throughout its 30 years. For those involved, it remains a part of their lives even long after they leave.
Barney said: “In terms of the legacy of Reach Across, I just look at all the acknowledgements and the buzz we had on the 30th anniversary night.
“What was in that room really proves the Reach Across family. Over the years so many people have looked out for others, becoming their friends or just caring for people they might not know. We have had marriages coming out of it so we have new generations coming through now as well.
“It is a family, I just feel people join for the right reasons and want to mix and meet people they might not have had the chance to meet elsewhere. Parents also would want their children to join and meet people from other areas and backgrounds. The amount of emotions on Saturday night at the 30th anniversary celebration was definitely worth it.
“If you did a circle around the tables it started with the original members from 30 years ago and finished with the current members who have just turned 18 this year. Everyone stayed and enjoyed the old videos of their predecessors and became a part of the Reach Across family.
“A lot of memories are shared in the events and the main thing we take away from the success over the year is the friendships that were built.”
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