Remembrance Day Assembly

All students and staff from GIS took part in a special Remembrance Day assembly.

Mark Beales
Photos by Ritche Guisona
Garden International School held a special Remembrance Day assembly to remember those who have died in armed conflict around the world.
The whole school came together on November 9 to mark the occasion. Students, teachers and staff wore poppies as a sign of respect for those who have given their lives.
Principal Dr Stuart Tasker led the assembly, explaining the significance of Remembrance Day and the reason why people wear poppies at this time of year.
Students then listened to The Last Post and stood for a minute’s silence. Berenice in Year 8 and IB1 student Yogesh then read out two well-known poems related to war - ‘For the Fallen’ and ‘In Flander’s Fields’.
GIS is based in Ban Chang, near Pattaya.

A minute’s silence was led by Principal Dr Stuart Tasker.

Even the youngest students from GIS paid their respects at a special assembly.

Amadeus visits the CPDC

Radchada Chomjinda
On the 26th of October we were delighted when a huge group of around 250 people from Amadeus came to visit the Child Protection and Development Center. Leading the group were David Brett, the president of Amadeus Asia Pacific, and Ana Doval, the director of Human Resources. Many activities were prepared to ensure a memorable day for the children of the CPDC and the children from the slums who were also present.
The Amadeus group arrived at the CPDC compound at 10:30 a.m. The 200 children of the CPDC with the children from the slums, Mercy Center, Baan Jing Jai and the Fountain of Life Center who arrived earlier, were all already very excited and looking forward to all the planned activities.
Everyone was directed towards the sports court where five of the girls from the CPDC performed a classical welcome dance in colorful dresses. Later, a brief speech was made by the director of the Human Help Network Foundation Thailand. She extended a warm welcome to all the visitors and our girls presented garlands to the two executives, David Brett and Ana Doval.

After this, Radchada introduced the team leaders of the different activity groups and directed everyone to where the activities were to take place. The huge visitor group was split into smaller teams to participate in several activities with the children. The activities included drawing, planting vegetables and trees, working at the mushroom farm, sport activities, painting the storeroom, making beads handicrafts and cooking.
The groups spread out all over the compound with the children. At the dining hall the kids were busy showing the visitors how to make wonderful necklaces and on the football ground a team of visitors and children had a lot of fun playing games like “musical chairs”. At around 12 o’clock, exhausted from many different events everyone met in front of the education center where a huge buffet was set up and everyone enjoyed a fantastic lunch together.
After lunch the president of Amadeus Asia Pacific, David Brett, gave a thank you speech at the sports court and photos were taken to remember this important day. Everyone enjoyed this very memorable and wonderful sunny day at CPDC. Both the visitors and the children had great fun at the various activity stations around the compound enjoying each other’s company and spending a great time together.
We would like to thank all the visitors of Amadeus who took the time to come and visit us at CPDC. It was a fun day for everyone and our kids had a special and unforgettable day meeting everyone and taking part in all the events.

A ‘new’ wheelchair for Jaruwan

Jesters Care for Kids Charity Drive 2012, Sponsored by Glencore International and Canadian Jackalope Open

Jaruwan quickly settled into her ‘new’ wheelchair. Woody and Jaruwan are holding the set of spare tires for her wheelchair.

Lewis Underwood
Last week at our monthly rice and milk distribution for poor families with disabled children in the Nong Prue Municipality, Sam, who is head of the project, told us that 16-year old Jaruwan needed to get her wheelchair repaired. We offered to replace it outright, but he said that since it was a high-priced model, and only 2 years old, that replacing the broken parts and wheels would be more than sufficient. So, we went with his call.
Jaruwan, as an infant, was paralyzed from the waist down after a car hit her mom’s 3-wheeled motorbike, while they were out collecting recyclables.
When Sam called me the other night to say that the wheelchair was ready for delivery, he also said he wanted to get it to her right away. After all, without a back-up unit, Jaruwan was stranded and left to her own devices to get around the house.

It was pitch black that night and their house was off the road in the jungle. Even though I had been there before, it would have been hard to find without Sam’s directions and a faint, naked light bulb in front of the house, where family members were anxiously waiting our arrival.
We took the ‘new’ wheelchair inside the house, where Jaruwan was at the time, and as soon as she saw us, in one fluid motion scurried over, hoisted herself into the seat and, just like that, she was mobile again. Her excitement and engaging smile was enough to make our night too.

Even in the relative dark of night, that great smile of Jaruwan’s lights up the room in her refurbished wheelchair.

The timing of this repair was also good for another reason; we learned that evening that she was due to go back to her school for the disabled in Khon Kaen for the start of the new term in two days’ time. Jaruwan is studying computer programming there and after graduation, aspires to come back to Pattaya to work at the Redemptorist Vocational School for the Disabled.
Besides repairing her wheelchair, we also provided a set of spare wheels for her. The total cost for this project was 12,600 baht, which is a pretty good price for the extent of benefit it renders.
If you would like more information about our charity drive and our projects, please visit our website at www.care4kids.info or www.facebook.com/jesterscare.forkids.

Pattaya Sports Club & Hand to Hand target the underprivileged

Margaret, Pye and William.

William Macey
Margaret Grainger is a one off. Her day is devoted to helping the underprivileged children of Pattaya. She runs a day care centre for 50 plus children from the slum area to provide the time for their parents to work. She visits the local prison 3 times per week to help the children who have been caught up with the problems of their parents who have been arrested. She makes regular visits to slums in Pattaya and is also involved with City Hall to educate children to the dangers of online liaisons. There are also 50 children that have been fortunate enough to have been given a scholarship courtesy of Margaret’s contacts and to cap it all, she is training for the Cross Bay Swim to raise funds for her various projects.
You would think that all this activity would occupy all of her time but, unbelievably, she has found a little bit extra to start something new.

A volunteer with a very young baby.

There are a number of children in Banglamung Hospital that come from poor families and suffer from all manner of ailments including respiratory problems, intolerance to their mother’s milk, premature birth, etc. Neither the hospital nor the families have the financial capacity to provide everything that is needed, very often, not even being able to buy nappies/diapers. With this information Hand to Hand will decide if they can help in an immediate, practical way or in the longer term but during the last week, they have attended to 23 children between the ages of 0 and 10. The nursing staff are aware of the help that Hand to Hand can provide and, as such, will contact them to arrange an immediate visit, particularly in the case of an emergency.

A volunteer with 2 of the older children.

There is an ongoing problem with babies that need specialised formula milk that neither the family nor hospital can afford. It is a special dried milk that comes from a supplier in Bangkok and has all the nutrients babies require and is a substitute for the mother’s milk. They are currently helping an 8 month old baby who was born premature. His parents had to leave him to go back to work and are unable to visit him, mainly from a transport perspective. He has a number of medical issues and the outcome of these is that he is only the size and weight of a 2 month old. He has never had visitors or been held by any other than the nursing staff.
Fortunately, she has the help and dedication of some great volunteer staff and one in particular, Pye, who is as devoted to the children as Margaret and is ever present.
Pattaya Sports Club are always happy to help Hand to Hand whenever possible but if you feel you would like to help in any way, please contact Margaret on 0890936067 or William at Pattaya Sports Club on 0861522754 or look at their web page handtohandpattaya.com Any help would be more than welcome. Give her a ring, Margaret will be pleased to receive the call.

Just a few of the children.

The sleep of the innocence.

Remembrance Day Assembly

Amadeus visits the CPDC

A ‘new’ wheelchair for Jaruwan

Pattaya Sports Club & Hand to Hand target the underprivileged