|
Jesters Care For Kids
Charity Drive: “It’s all about educating the children”
Lewis Underwood
From the very beginning, the Jesters ‘Care for Kids’ Charity Drive has been
about providing needy children with the benefits of education.
This can come in many forms, such as meaningful activity at the Rayong
Training Center (organic gardening, handicraft-making, learning English) or
schooling and vocational training that is provided at the Eastern Child
Welfare Protection Institute in Huay Pong. Or, the specialized instruction
needed for ‘special children’ at the Khao Baisri School for the mentally
impaired, and the Pattaya Redemptorist School for the Blind. But for most of
the poor and needy children the goal is simply getting them into government
schools.
 Once
a birth certificate is procured, children at the Center who are at least 6
years old are provided with school uniforms and bags in preparation for the
May start of the new school year.
The Sisters and their staff at the Fountain of Life Center have been
responsible for taking the poor disadvantaged children off the streets and
out of their mire by offering them day care, nutritious meals, medical and
dental care, rudimentary education, as well as the opportunity to go to a
government school.
For many of these children, born in slums or distant villages, the first
step toward this goal is getting an official identity, or birth certificate.
Indeed, amongst the poor in Pattaya the word has gotten around that the
Fountain of Life Center assists children born out of hospitals to obtain the
necessary documentation in order to be able to attend government schools.
Sometimes, it takes the staff at the Center many years to procure these
documents, involving numerous trips around the countryside to the children’s
villages, in search of relatives, friends of relatives, or anyone who might
to vouch for the children in question. Only then can they get started on the
lengthy process of getting the paperwork processed and in order from these
distant provincial seats.
Once the birth certificate is procured, children at the Center who are at
least 6 years old are provided with school uniforms and bags in preparation
for the May start of the new school year. Just last month, 83 kids from the
Fountain of Life Center took this next step and entered one of the 10
government schools in the Pattaya area.
Since 1998, and the inception of the Jesters ‘Care for Kids’ Charity Drive,
there have been 561 children who have passed through the Center to go into
government schools. The Jesters made scholarships available for the needy
ones to be able to do so.
In addition to these children, since 1998, 11 orphans have been given
scholarships to the Koon Jae Boarding School in Ban Bung, Chonburi,
including a further 2 last year. However, still more children, ones who have
not passed through the Fountain of Life Center, are provided with
scholarships based on Pattaya government school teachers’ recommendations.
Generally, these scholarships are issued to those students excelling in
their studies, despite living under grave conditions.
The ultimate step, however, has been taken by 20-year-old Em, a car
mechanic, who started with the Fountain of Life Center 11 years ago when he
lost both parents. He subsequently entered and worked his way through the
government school system and is now half way through his Bachelor’s degree
in Engineering at the University of Technology Rajamangala in Patum Thani
outside of Bangkok. The Jesters ‘Care for Kids’ has provided financial
support and scholarships for this most worthy candidate bound for success.
Presently Em is doing a 2-month stint of field work in Samut Sakorn. He is
also now president of his class, and has passed every subject, except
calculus. But then no one else in his class has survived the rigors of
calculus, so the professor will now focus on this most difficult subject
during the final year.
All the while, Em still finds time to return to Pattaya by bus on weekends
to cut the grass and clean windows at the Fountain of Life Center. He also
recently made a special trip to see Diane Connelly who, after many years of
helping at the Center and the Jesters Charity Drive since the outset, is
soon departing from Thailand. We, like Em, will miss her dearly and his
success will be some reward for Diane’s outstanding contribution to ‘Care
for Kids’.
A reminder for the diary of our two main fundraising events. Namely, the
Jesters Children’s Fair and family day on Sunday 10th September at the Diana
Garden Resort & Driving Range, North Pattaya. Then six days later, on
Saturday 16th September, we stage the Jesters Pub Night, featuring the grand
raffle and auction, at Jameson’s the Irish Pub. You can contact us by e-mail
at: [email protected], or visit the web site at: www.care4kids.info
Finally, a warm welcome to new Platinum sponsors Mike Koerner and the Herrod
Foundation, bringing the 2006 total to 15 Platinums …so far!
Some of the 83 kids from the
Fountain of Life Center who last month entered one of the 10 government
schools in the Pattaya area.
Correction: Last week we
inadvertently mis-captioned this photo. The caption should have read, “The
ISE High School Student Council presents their 25,000 baht Silver sponsor
cheque to Woody.” We regret any inconvenience this may have caused.
L to R: Mike Franklin, Sister Michelle, Em and
Woody. 20-year-old Em is now half way through his Bachelor’s degree in
Engineering at the University of Technology Rajamangala in Patum Thani
outside of Bangkok. The Jesters ‘Care for Kids’ has provided financial
support and scholarships for this most worthy candidate bound for success.
YWCA Bangkok-Pattaya
Center presents tables, chairs and meals to schoolchildren
Piyavadee Suvannahong
Members of the YWCA Bangkok-Pattaya Center in cooperation with Pattaya
Sports Club and Kings Seafood Restaurant presented chairs, tables and
lunches to schoolchildren at Ban Ronghib School on May 30.
 Bernie
Tuppin, PSC charity chairman, has the fun task of handing out dessert.
Miss Varinlaksana Rongnaimuang, acting headmistress of the school said
that Ban Ronghib had 228 students and two teachers, one assistant
teacher and one staff member, and two nursery teachers whose salaries
are paid by the local administration. The school is experiencing a
shortage of teachers, which is affecting teaching and learning, and most
of the students come from poor families.
Miss Varinlaksana said the school is responsible for providing lunches
for the students. It can barely afford to feed all the students and has
to charge them 10 baht each, but the students are allowed to eat as much
as they like. Even so, 10 baht is a lot of money for the students and
many of them are below the standard weight for their age.
Canal water is used for drinking water and the school also has a
shortage of chairs and tables for the cafeteria, and the students have
to sit on the concrete floor. The donators presented three sets of
chairs and tables, which should be enough and the students won’t have to
sit on the floor to eat their lunches.
Nitaya Patimasongkroh, chairwoman of the YWCA Bangkok-Pattaya Center
said that the lunch program is a regular activity of the association.
During the visit the association also learned of other problems like
drinking water and the lack of teachers, which will be discussed by the
association to find ways in which to help further.
Nitaya Patimasongkroh,
chairwoman of the YWCA Bangkok-Pattaya Center, gives out food to the
children.
The schoolchildren enjoy
being able to eat their lunch whilst using the new tables and chairs.
The children say thank you
for the delicious food.
Assumption College students visit special exhibition for HM the King
Assumption students from
Mathayom 2’s English Programme were among the visitors to the Impact
Arena.
Mark Beales
Students from Assumption College Sriracha travelled to the Impact Arena
in Bangkok to view the a special exhibition to commemorate the 60th
anniversary of His Majesty the King. The exhibition highlighted the
various work His Majesty has carried out in order to improve the lives
of his citizens.
The first hall, “From the mountain to the ground”, explained how to
generate electricity from water. Various zones were designed to give
students the impression they were in a real forest.
 Assumption
students busily take notes during a special visit to see a major
exhibition in Bangkok.
Some displays told about the King’s special project to create rainwater
where it was badly needed in agricultural parts of Thailand.
Other zones showed how Thai people live, and how the King has helped
them with their homes.
Some of the students wrote about the visit in their English Programme
classes. Mathayom 1’s Napon Ravirujiphant said, “The second hall showed
the King’s pictures from the past. When the King was a little child he
built a dam from the mud … I want everybody to go to the exhibition. I’m
sure you will see rare pictures you can’t see anywhere else.”
Mathayom 2 student Asanee Yuttasoontorn said, “There were many people
who came from everywhere in Thailand to learn about the King’s work and
the King’s history. He always goes to an area that has a problem and
helps the people.”
Another Mathayom 2 student, Vipu Ngamrattanakul added, “I know many
things about the King now. Thailand became a perfect country because of
him. He helped farmers when there was drought, he gave them rain and he
gave them animals to sell.”
Assumption College Sriracha is the largest school on the Eastern
Seaboard of Thailand and educates 4,200 students. It runs several
specially-designed English classes from Prathom 1 to Mathayom 2. For
more about the school, visit www.acs.ac.th
2000 students unite to condemn extremist kidnapping
About 2000 students from 18 educational
institutes around Chonburi condemn the kidnapping of two female
teachers.
Patcharapol Panrak
Two thousand male and female students from 18 educational institutes in
Chonburi province congregated at Singsamut School sports field in
Sattahip on May 25 to sign a petition condemning the kidnapping of two
female teachers, Miss Juling Pungkanmul and Miss Sirinat Thavornsuk who
were snatched by southern extremists at Ban Kujingsoepa, Chaloem, in
Rango, Narathiwat province on May 19.
The actions of the extremists, who are calling for the release of two
men arrested by the authorities for the killing of a marine, has shocked
Thailand. The students called for the extremists to realize what they
had done and to also realize that teachers are like second parents to
their students, taking care of them and preparing them to become
responsible members of society.
Calling on the extremists to cease their vicious actions against
innocent people, the students said they condemn anyone who inflicts
cruelty upon teachers, students, soldiers and the public.
|
