Carrickfergus Does It Again – second student exchange with Danville Kentucky in July 2024

Their exchange partners from Danville arrived in Carrickfergus on a chilly July morning and spent the week exploring what Northern Ireland has to offer from trips up the North Coast to experience the Giants Causeway and the Dark Hedges, to a night at the Grand Opera House.

Following this, the seven teenagers from Carrickfergus travelled to Danville stepping off the plane into a moist heat like none of them had ever experienced before.

“It was like stepping into a shower” shared Keira Aiken, one of the Carrick seven.

Director of Uplift Ryan Moffett with some of the exchange students and chaperone Michael Aiken

They had a wonderful time being offered the Deep South hospitality in the homeland of Kentucky Fried Chicken.

On the back of this successful first exchange, Uplift Community Outreach collaborated with the Sister City Committee in Danville to do it all again.

Ryan Moffett, director of Uplift Community Outreach explained: “The Sister City Committee has been linked with Carrickfergus from 2009 and has provided various opportunities for adults to visit and build relationships while exploring the heritage of Carrickfergus.

“Plans to run the project were originally meant to go ahead in 2020, but due to the pandemic we were unable to make this project work.” Once the travel restrictions had lifted this enabled the first exchange to go ahead.

Going to Danville in 2024 there are 8 excited young teenagers from all walks of life in the Carrickfergus area. This year funding has come from many sources to make this program affordable and open to all.

Uplift Community Outreach would like to personally thank all those who have contributed in making this project possible.