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Sports Day at Asian University creates bonds of friendship
Look mom, no hands!
Forty blindfolded kids…see how
they run.
Heave ho, the stronger team
wins.
AU kids can jump quite high.
Students and staff of the Asian University participated
in a fun sports afternoon on Wednesday June 28.
Students from the Intensive Academic Programme joined with nurse-trainers
and others on the English Immersion Programme to compete.
Amongst the games were Water balloon tennis, Three-legged races, Basketball,
Tug-of-war and Sack races. There was even a Spaghetti-eating competition,
with participants’ hands firmly tied behind their backs!
The event was held in the Sports Centre, on campus, and was a good chance
for making friends across the different faculties and many programmes taking
place at the university.
National Honor Society receives new member
The International School Eastern Seaboard (ISE) is
proud to announce that Krit (Tone) Sukawat has been accepted as a member
of the National Honor Society. Tone is a grade ten student at ISE, a
dedicated hardworking member of the student body.
 Supoj
Potnetrakom, attaches a NHS pin on the shirt of Krit Sukawat, his
grandson who was inducted in to the National Honor Society.
Membership in the National Honor Society is based on four criteria:
scholarship, character, leadership, and service. Scholarship is a strong
commitment to learning, the willingness to spend hours studying to
achieve top marks. Character is the positive force each person has that
makes him or her an individual with strong ideals. Leadership is the
desire to be a strong positive force for good in school and in the
community. Service is being prepared to work for others, recognizing a
need and being willing to do something about it. Any student who wishes
to become a member must excel in all four areas.
The National Honor Society is recognized around the world as a
prestigious organization that students strive to join. Membership brings
with it recognition but also responsibilities to maintain the four
principles the organization is founded on. ISE is confident that Tone
will continually work to uphold the principles of the society.
ISE is a small international school based on an American curriculum. It
offers a full range of studies from Pre-K to grade 12 as well as the
International Baccalaureate (IB) program in grades 11 and 12. It is
located in the idyllic setting of Burapha Golf Course.
The Fountain of life kids have a new tooth fairy
Mike Franklin
After a sad farewell to Diane Connelly, the dedicated and long serving
Tooth Fairy, the Kids at the Fountain of Life Center are ‘in the Pink’
again with the welcome arrival of Ingrid Cunliffe, complete with wand
and wings!
 Diane
Connelly receives the memento plaque from Woody, Karyn, Linden and JCD
Committee.
So the Jesters ‘Care for Kids’ article this week is by way of an
introduction to Ingrid and, when asked how she became involved, this is
what Ingrid had to say………..
“I came to live in Pattaya 16 months ago with my family. Shortly after,
I met a lovely mum from the school who was involved in voluntary work
for the Fountain of Life Center. The FOL, run by the Good Shepherd
Sisters, takes care of around 150 disadvantaged children whose births
are not registered and, as a result, the children are undocumented and
without civil rights. Priority is given to obtaining birth certificates
for the children so they can enter a Government school at the age of
seven. The children are bussed in from the slums every day and receive
wonderful care and schooling at the Center, until such time as the
documentation needed is available and processed.
I went along, and as soon as I stepped in the Center I knew I wanted to
be part of this great establishment for the duration of my three years
living here.
When I met Diane Connelly, the infamous tooth fairy, we soon we became
firm friends and my involvement with the kid’s dental program began!
Sadly Dianne is moving back to England so along with two great ladies,
Erin and Louise, so I have taken on the Fountain of Life Dental program
for this year.
No less than 98 new children have started at the FOL this year, and
about 90% of last years students have progressed to Government Schools,
as their birth papers have been found and processed enabling the
children to go to school, meeting the requirements of Thai law.
Of the 98 new children, 35 have had sealant on teeth that require more
treatment to prevent further cavities. This service was provided free by
the Dental Department at Bangkok Pattaya Hospital, following a visit to
the Center late May, when Dr.Tassanee, Head of the Dental Department,
and her team checked all the children to assess what treatment was
needed. The sealant was purchased through funding by the Jesters ‘Care
for Kids’ Charity Drive and Pattaya International Ladies Club. These 35
kids also need additional dental care, and the Jesters will also fund
this through the Center.
Bangkok Pattaya Hospital offers the FOL a discount for all other
required treatment, so this helps to support the regular weekly visits
we make to the dental department!!!
A total of 42 children needed urgent care, with some having as many as
10 to 12 cavities and some also need root canal treatment. A further 39
children needed more routine dental care, and 17 actually have perfect
teeth, much to the delight of Dr.Tassanee!!!! Essential Fluoride tablets
are also regularly supplied by the hospital and given by the teachers to
the kids as a further prevention measure.
This program would not be able to continue without the great support
from all the wonderful staff and Pediatric dentists at Bangkok Pattaya
Hospital, and the funding provided through the Jesters Charity Drive and
Pattaya International Ladies Club. I would like to take this opportunity
to thank them personally, and look forward to their continued support.”
So, it’s welcome aboard to Ingrid, not only to the Fountain of Life to
take over Diane’s role at the Center, but also to the Jesters ‘Care for
Kids’ Charity Drive Committee. Ingrid also happens to be a qualified
nurse, so she will routinely check with Sister Joan about any issues
with the kids that need attention.
Ingrid’s arrival naturally prompted a visit with the PMTV film crew to
the Fountain of Life Center to see what is currently happening there in
Healthcare generally, and specifically the Dental Program. .
A visit was also arranged to the BPH Dental Department with a couple of
‘Nang Fa’ bad teeth cases, and into the surgery of Dr. Apinya.
‘Treatment in the chair’ was quickly under way, during which I was able
to talk to Dr. Apinya. No problem getting the kids to go for treatment
though, as it means a ride in a nice car and a balloon from the doctor.
Tune in to Pattaya Mail Television, now on four cable networks covering
Pattaya, Jomtien, Chonburi & Sattahip, to see the visit. It includes a
healthcare update at the FOL and live action in the surgery with Dr.
Apinya.
However, the underlying message in this issue of Pattaya Mail is to
meet, greet and welcome Ingrid Cunliffe the new Fountain of Life Center
‘Tooth Fairy’.
The FOL Children really
had no problem getting the treatment from Dr. Apinya while the little
FOL choir sing and dance on the ‘Brushing the Teeth’ theme.
PILC travels up North to visit the School of Life
Helle Rantsén
PILC Welfare chairperson
Jesters Care for Kids project coordinator
It is not every day that you meet a person who fills you with
wonder, and to whom you feel a connection to right away. I have just had
the great pleasure of meeting such a person, a woman called Khun Joy who
is the director and one of the founders of the School for Life.
 Helle
Rantsén presents a token of love to Khun Joy for the kids.
Khun Joy is not an unknown woman in Pattaya. She came with a group of
her wonderful “kids” in April when they performed at the Asia University
and later she brought the artist group from the school to give them an
opportunity to have an exhibition at Gallery Opium.
Khun Joy is the “mother” of 140 children aged from three to 18 years,
boys and girls all with troubled backgrounds and from risk groups. These
children have the fundamental need of special care and guidance.
You notice from the first moment you meet her kids how special they are,
with a self-confidence and self-esteem that comes natural to them all.
Khun Joy brings up the kids in a very strong family orientated unit. It
is not for fun that she is called mother by all of them. Because that is
what she is. The School for Life is not just another institution, but a
real home and you can feel that right away.
The older children are taught how to take proper care of the younger
kids. They have to go through a program before they can call themselves
guardian angels. One part of the program is to live in a camp that is
real back-to-nature.
Every week the staff and children meet to sort out the kind of problems
that occur in every family. After I had met Khun Joy and some of her
kids I was deeply impressed by all her work with them.
PILC has for some time been working closely with Jesters Care for Kids
to try and help the children and staff at Ban Jing Jai.
We quickly found out that it was not enough to renovate their buildings
or provide dental and health care. In our opinion we needed to help and
support the children and staff by PILC providing training for the
present personnel at Ban Jing Jai. And we knew who to call - Khun Joy,
who right away offered her help and support.
So on 23 June the PILC welfare team members and the director of Ban Jing
Jai went up North to see for themselves the School for Life. It was a
very interesting and eye opening experience and we all learned from our
discussions.
In the future Khun Joy will visit Ban Jing Jai for other talks and
training and it is the hope of PILC and Jesters Care for Kids that we in
the future can send a group of the older children from Ban Jing Jai to
School for Life to be trained as guardian angels.
School for Life also visited Garden International School when they were
in Pattaya in April. The kids had a positive impact on this school and
the fact that Khun Joy for some time has been the mum for children from
the tsunami area made the school decide to donate funds towards this
special group of children. The funds had been raised though a united
effort from pupils, staff and parents after the tsunami.
Being an active parent at GIS I was asked to deliver the funds to Khun
Joy and brought back with me a big thank-you from the kids at the School
for Life to the kids at Garden International School.
Its always a pleasure to
see happy children.
Cheerleader championship
a whirl of color and dance
Vimolrat Singnikorn
Pattaya’s annual cheerleading competition erupted into life in a
whirl of dance fever at city hall on June 30.
Hundreds of people turned up to watch the To Be Number One Cheerleader
Pattaya Championship 2006. The competition included spot aerobics and
gymnastic dance performed by students from the city’s primary and
secondary schools and also at college levels.
 Young
artists display their works of art at the city hall fair.
The atmosphere was electrified as teams strutted their routines for the
judges, drawing applause and cheers from spectators.
Deputy Mayor Wattana Chantanawaranon presided over the opening of the
event, saying ‘To Be Number One Cheerleader Pattaya Championship 2006’
is a worthwhile project for our youth, utilizing sports and activities
to keep them occupied and away from the dangers of drug use.”
The competition was followed by performances from the Fantasia Academy.
 These
little princesses delighted the crowd with their folklore dances.
Winner of the primary school category was team Zeus from Pattaya School
3 junior , with the Queen Winner from School No. 5 in second place and
Baby City Nine from Pattaya School No. 9 in third place.
In the junior secondary school category, Star One from Pattaya School
No. 1 took the winner’s honours.
In the senior class, team Sharky from PBAC came first and were closely
followed by team Devil from Banglamung Vocational College.
Verawat Khakhay, Pattaya deputy mayor presented prizes to winning teams.
Her Royal Highness Princess Ubolratana created the To Be Number One
Cheerleader Championship project as part of her efforts to instil
healthy competition among the nation’s youth to enable them to become
productive members of society. The inaugural competition was held on
July 15, 2002.
The young cheerleaders put
on a remarkable show.
Huay Yai pupils enjoy lunch provided by YWCA and Pattaya Sports Club
Vimolrat Singnikorn
The children of Huay Yai School enjoyed a real treat on June 23 when the
YWCA Bangkok-Pattaya Center in conjunction with Pattaya Sports Club laid
on a slap-up lunch for them.
 Nothing
beats an ice cream after a hearty meal.
Leading the children in welcoming the group was school director Viroj
Ampornwichai, and in addition to the lunch the visitors had brought
along a supply of yellow shirts for the children to wear on July 7, at
the Buddhist Lent candle parade which this year has extra significance
marking the 60th anniversary of His Majesty the King’s accession to the
throne.
Nittaya Patimasongkhorh, president of the YWCA Bangkok-Pattaya Center
said that the association provides lunches and student study grants for
schools that are felt to be in need of assistance. Other than Huay Yai
School the association will be providing assistance to other schools in
the area.
Huay Yai School is under the jurisdiction of Chonburi Region 3 school
administration, which teaches children from nursery level to primary
level. The school has 192 students, mostly from underprivileged
families.
Children enjoying their
lunches.
The children cheer as the
presentations are made.
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