Invitation pops into in-box from someone I’ve never met. A woman has read about my walk in the local paper. Could she host a dinner for my friend and I? Together with the local head of the Women’s Institute, as they’ve recently adopted a resolution to raise awareness about cervical cancer.

The next day we’re sitting down to a delicious home-cooked dinner with six people from the little town of Deal, in Kent. The conversation ranges widely: the Women’s Institute, what happens in Deal, birdwatching and how cervical cancer is being eliminated. My friend Javier regales the party with stories of the Uganda-Kenya railway. We’re all enriched, connections are made, and Deal will remain in the minds of Javier and me as a place of wonderful, warm hospitality.

All because one courageous and kind woman reached out. Thank you!