December 1, International AIDS Awareness Day has come
and gone but the money keeps pouring in and the AIDS awareness badges are
now thin on the ground. No chance of buying a Union Jack, Thai, Australian,
Japanese, Scottish, Welsh, American, Korean or German flag now… sold out
weeks ago. Students are now buying the South African made badges of other
nation’s flags and wearing them proud.
Ishita,
Regent’s Head Girl, also dispels a number of misconceptions.
Back in October the Round Square Service Group
hesitated, ummmed and ahhhed over the ordering of 800 handmade beaded
badges from South Africa and on top of that 500 key chains from the
Camillian Centre in Rayong. Could we really sell all of these by December
1st and raise over 100,000 baht for AIDS awareness?
December 1 came around and the RS Service Group
delivered a hard hitting and emotional whole school assembly in the Globe
Theatre. Year Six joined the secondary school and the audience was treated
to a hard-hitting message of misconceptions and biological explanations.
The Year 12 IB Drama students performed a powerful piece of drama entitled
“Safe!” that really drove the message home to the students.
Natasha
introduces the assembly and puts to rest the misconceptions of HIV.
Students representing the 38 different nationalities in
the secondary school were invited onto the stage to hold hands and form the
shape of the AIDS awareness ribbon. The assembly finished with an auction
of three rare beaded badges in the pattern of pink elephants. These badges
have been in huge demand around the Pattaya campus. The two auctioneers,
Declan and Svend, challenged the audience and got the bidding to quickly
rise. The first two badges were sold for 1,500 baht each, and the last for
a fine total of 5,000 baht. 8,000 baht; not bad for 10 minutes
auctioneering.
Declan
and Svend auction the three pink elephants.
After the assembly, students continued to dig deep into
their pockets and badges representing Slovakia, China, Bulgaria, Taiwan and
Estonia are now being sold.
On December 2 it was with great pleasure that the RS
Service Group welcomed Dr. Philippe Seur from Pattaya Heartt2000 to speak
to the Regent’s students at lunchtime. An extremely informative
presentation was made about HIV and AIDS and living with the disease,
especially in Thailand. A number of questions were put forward by the
students and a lively discussion followed. The RS Service Group thanked Dr.
Philippe for giving up his precious time and presented him with 20,000 baht
for Heartt2000.
Year
12 IB Drama students put on a hard-hitting performance.
The RS Service Group and Student Guild hope to visit the
Camillian Centre soon after Christmas and donate 40,000 baht that has been
raised from the key chains. 49,000 baht has already been sent to South
Africa to the Kidzpositive organization that supports HIV / AIDS affected
women and children in that country.
The RS Service Group would like to thank everyone who has supported
their AIDS awareness campaign this term, especially St. Andrews Student
Council and Mr. Matt Eames and his triathlon team that raised 15,000 baht
sponsorship during the recent Phuket Laguna Triathlon.
Members
of the RS service group explain how HIV attacks the immune system.
IT
teacher Mr Somchai and Mathayom 1 students collect litter from Koh Loy as
part of an annual clean-up operation.
