Terry Waite broadcasts Radio 4 Appeal for Y Care International

23 July 2007

The humanitarian, author and former hostage negotiator Terry Waite CBE is delivering a BBC Radio 4 appeal this month, to raise funds for and awareness of Y Care International, the charity he co-founded three years before he was taken captive.

It will be broadcast on Sunday 29 July 2007 at 7.55am and 9.25pm, and repeated on Thursday 2 August at 3.25pm.

In the appeal, Terry Waite speaks of his 2004 visit to the Middle East – his first to the region since his release from captivity in Beirut in 1991.

He was there in his capacity as President of Y Care International to mark the charity’s 20th anniversary by visiting its work with young people in Lebanon and the Palestinian Territories.

In the appeal, he recalls meeting a young man, Jawad. Jawad was shot by a sniper and fell into a deep depression, unable to work and support his family.

He was taken to the YMCA's rehabilitation centre near Bethlehem, which Y Care International supports, where he received specialist counselling and physiotherapy. At the same time, he was helped to retrain as a tailor.

In the appeal Terry Waite says: “Today, almost four years on, Jawad has regained his confidence and is once again supporting his family. His is just one story of the thousands we come across during the course of any one year.”

He ends the appeal by saying “Please give whatever you can so we can continue to make a positive difference to thousands more young lives.”

The appeal can be heard at BBC Radio 4 (92–95 FM and 198 LW) or online at www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/appeal. Listeners can donate online or by post (sending a cheque payable to Y Care International to Freepost BBC Radio 4 Appeal, marking the back of the envelope Y Care International), or by calling 0800 404 8144.