Abandoned as a baby to fend alone.. now I help the world's forgotten children; JUDY'S AMAZING LIFE IS AN INSPIRATION.

Byline: By Samantha Booth

SITTING having dinner in a Mexican cafe, Judy Westwater's heart went out to the street girl sitting waiting patiently to pinch the scraps from her table. As an 11 year old in South Africa, she had done the exact same.

Abandoned by her mother and father, she had been left to fend for herself in the Johannesburg township of Hillbrow.

Living among the empty bottles behind an off-licence, she washed her school uniform at the local swimming baths, raided bins for scraps and stole leftovers from restaurants.

Noone cared or even seemed to notice and it was then she made a promise to herself to do anything she could to help other street children when she grew up.

Judy, now 59, said: 'Hillbrow was a dastardly place and it wasan absolutely horrendous time for me, but it gave me an education and the skills I have needed for the rest of my life.' Judy, of Inverness, now dedicates her life to rescuing street children all over the world, despite crippling arthritis and the kind of life movies are based on.

She was only two when her mother and father both ran away to lead separate lives in Altringham, Cheshire.

It was in the depths of a bad winter in 1947 and for eight months her seven year-old sister struggled to take care of her and her other sister without food, coal or money.

One day her sister came home from school to find Judy eating old ashes from the fireplace.

She also remembers her sister filling a metal tub with cold water to bath her because they had to be clean if they were to go out to find their mum.

Finally, social services realised there was a problem and brought in a homeless couple to look after the girls.

In the chaotic environment of post-war Britain, bizarrely the authorities felt this wasan ideal solution.

Instead, the three children were allowed to run wild and endured severe beatings.

Judy was finally separated from her sisters and sent to a children's home.

Her father came back for her three years later, promising the authorities hewas taking her to Australia to start a new life.

In reality, he shaved off all her hair, made her dress as a boy and then locked her in a sweltering hot cabin for weeks onend as they sailed to South Africa.

SHE said:'The trip was a nightmare. I wasn't allowed out and our cabin was in the bowels of the ship so it was boiling. 'But whenwe docked in South Africa I thought I had walked into a story book. There were all these native women with their babies on their backs and people in brightly-coloured clothes. I was entranced, but then my dad took me to a horrible nasty back street hotel and vanished.

Finally, the landlord told me as no rent was coming in I would have to go.'

Left alone, Judy made friends with a circus troupe going through town and stowed awayon their train.

For a while the acrobats, tightrope-walkers and clowns provided the young girl with the family security she craved.

It was short lived. The authorities finally tracked her down and she was forced to go back to her dad.

It wasn't long before he vanished again and Judy was left to fend for herself - this time on the streets.

For the next five years she survived on her own wits, making a living from odd jobs, shining strangers' shoes and scavenging. But she had never forgotten her family, and at 17, she had raised enough money to fly back to Britain in search of her mother and sisters. Sadly, they had all made new lives for themselves and Judy felt like an outsider.

Remembering her time with the circus in South Africa, she joined a travelling trapeze team.

She became a knife-thrower's assistant and learnt how to ride a motorbike as part of a stunt team.

It was here she met her first husband, a fellow stuntman.

They had four children together, but her career came to an abrupt halt after she injured her leg in a motorbike accident .

It was 1972 and after ten years together her husband had also become abusive, so Judy came home to Britain with her children.

At this point she remembered the pledge she made as an 11 year old left alone on the streets of a South African township and enrolled in a drama-teaching course. Despite struggling as a single mum, Judy opened the first music and drama centre in London, aiming to give children the self-belief they need to get themselves off the streets.

Judy said: 'With the best will in the world, nobody can understand what it is like to be a street child unless they have been there themselves.

'I know what it is like to feel terrified of every adult, to be susceptible to abuse and not to feel like you are part of anything or belong anywhere, which is why Ifelt I could help.

'Giving these kids a little of their self-confidence back is amazing and all the hard work is worth it when they summon enough trust back to give you a cuddle.'

In 1987, Judy married her second husband John, a Scots health and safety executive, and moved to the Highlands.

She continued to run the schools and raising funds from their cottage, where she lived with John and her two kids.

Sadly, weeks after they were married he discovered hehad cancer. Judy nursed himfor four years, but he died in her arms in 1991. Her grief was devastating, but Judy is a firm believer that good can always come from badand she felt compelled to do more for street children.

USING money left by John, she set up her own charity Pegasus which funded seven rescue centres for street children in South Africa.

Many of the children have been physically or sexually-abused with no-one to help them.

Judy and her team of workers help them into education and employment.

But she can't save them all. One boy who had grown-up with the project was shot in the head last year because he refused to be drawn into gang warfare.

The success of Judy's South African projects resulted in her being asked to go to Mexico to train educators in how to help street children.

She moved there for eight years and trained 25 people who all had to train another 25 in turn, so Judy's word spread. Pegasus, works alongside the International Children's Trust.

Their spokeswoman, Alison Sanderson, said: 'Whenever wework with Judy on her overseas projects , she does invaluable work withmany incredibly vulnerable children.

'Her skills with drama and the arts go a ongway to giving them back their self-esteem and helping them make the right choices to get off the streets.'

Now she is back in Inverness, but still helps raise funds for projects across the world, despite her crippling arthritis which doctors say is a manifestation of the trauma she suffered in her early years.

She still travels abroad to visit the centres and believes that while her spirit is strong enough, she will not give in to the arthritis.

Amazingly, despite everything she has been through, and everything she has seen during her life, Judy is still full of hope that good can always come from all the bad in the world.

# - For more information on Judy's work, call 01463717179.

CAPTION(S):

HEART OF GOLD: Judy kept her promise to help street kids; A TRUE SURVIVOR: Judy with some of the street children she saved in South Africa, and as a stunt rider with the circus, aged 19; Pictures:; Ian; Jolly