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HIV / AIDS awareness at The Regent’s School
Jenny, Assistant Pillar Leader of Service
Year 12 IB Student
On November 30, the Regent’s School Pattaya had their AIDS assembly and
invited Dr. Philippe Seur from Heartt2000 and Miss Louise from the Life
Center to donate the money raised by the RS Service Group to them. The aim
of this AIDS awareness project was to increase the AIDS awareness, also to
raise money to help those people with AIDS all around the world. Overall,
the Round Square Service Group raised over 57,000 baht and donated it
equally to four different organizations: Kidzpositive in South Africa;
Heartt2000 in Pattaya; The Camillian Center in Rayong and the Life Center in
Bangsaen.
 Jenny
and Cat leading the AIDS awareness assembly.
The Round Square Service Group has been working on this project since
September. AIDS badges were sold both in the primary and the secondary
schools under the clock tower at every break time and lunchtime. This year
the service group also introduced the new AIDS pens. These two AIDS products
were very popular in the Regent’s School. There were also posters around the
school that tried to increase the awareness of HIV and AIDS. On November 27,
we also had a bake sale that tried to fundraise for people with AIDS, and
generated around 3,500 baht.
On November 30, the whole school wore the red AIDS ribbon, which is a symbol
of sympathy and remembrance. In the AIDS assembly, we attempted to increase
the knowledge of AIDS and most importantly, to increase the awareness. Year
10 Drama performed a hard-hitting piece on HIV and AIDS, and many questions
were asked. We also displayed every nationality’s (over 40 in our school)
living with AIDS population and the prevalence rate and got the
representative from each country to make the shape of an AIDS ribbon on the
stage. The whole assembly was very successful and effective.
 Joyce
points out the importance of wearing her AIDS beaded badge with pride.
The Round Square Service Group would like to thank the Primary School for
raising 9,600 baht by selling the AIDS badges and the parents who brought in
food and bakeries for the AIDS bake sale. Also, Mr. Shu Chang Nan who
donated 3,000 baht for this AIDS project.
To conclude, we should give a great thank you for the Round Square Services
Group for doing all this hard work over this last term. Without them, this
AIDS project wouldn’t be able to be this successful. We should also thank
Mr. Crouch who helped by giving ideas and encouragement, as well as sharing
some of his experience with previous AIDS projects. He encouraged us to
think more about the people we were helping than focusing just on the amount
of money raised.
Even though the AIDS day has passed, remember AIDS will probably never stop.
We should always care about people with AIDS and never discriminate.
Jenny presents over 20,000
baht to Dr. Philippe of Heartt2000
and Ms. Louise from the Life Centre.
Hyun Jin interviews Mr. Lewis
about the difference between HIV+ and HIV-.
Karina and Rosaleen proudly
wear their Kidzpositive beaded badges.
Asian University student represents Thailand at 120th Anniversary Events
Fon (second left) plays
Koto in Japan.
2007 was the 120th Anniversary of Diplomatic
Relations between Thailand and Japan, and there were many celebrations
throughout both countries. Nattasuda Anusonadisai (Fon), a second year
student at Asian University was chosen to represent Thailand at one such
event.
She writes:
 Fon
dances in Japan.
“I was invited to perform Thai Dances in a prefecture called Saga on
Kyushu Island. Despite the fact that I was a solo dancer, there were a
couple of youngsters from Udon Thani invited to present how well Thai
agricultural areas are being developed, with Japan’s support. The main
event was held on December 2, but we got there a week earlier because of
the meetings with the governor plus some formal preparation and
practices. Frankly speaking, I was so tense. All the governmental
processes went smoothly and the governor was so sweet. He even tried to
make conversations about sports: “How was the last Thai vs Japan
baseball score?” Baseball is so popular in Japan but I hardly ever heard
anybody speak about it in Thailand or, do they? After all the
governmental complexity, we were taken to see the local sights and we
visited some high schools and ‘Care for the community’ houses.
“A couple of days before the main event, my adopted ‘mother’ (the one I
have known for many years, from back when I was on an exchange program)
was informed that I had to play the Koto (a Japanese musical instrument)
for the opening, in my dance costume! It took me ages to recall all
those lessons, and to tell the truth, I was way more excited and worried
about this than my twenty minutes of three Thai dances.
“When the day of the performance came, a stagehand briefed me to get
behind the curtain once the Koto playing was finished, then catch my
breath before going out to perform my two songs. It was not easy,
because those two songs lasted for about seventeen minutes and I had to
give my professional smile to the audience for the whole time. So when
anybody asks how I felt about it, I simply said ‘Good’, just to make
sure that I am not fainting while doing the next performance. The first
two dances were ‘Rabum Sri Nuan’ and ‘Rabum Mae Bot Lek’ which belong to
the middle Thai and the last one that required a different costume is
called ‘Rabum Sri Wichai’ from Southern Thailand.
“I admit it was tiring but it really was worth doing and I was so happy
and grateful that I got the chance to represent my country - it is an
honour that I will remember for the rest of my life. Besides, it was so
exciting to be in the Japanese newspapers and on the local TV!”
Lions feed students
Vimolrat Singnikorn
Members of the Lions Club of Chonburi Pratamnak Pattaya District
310 C served lunch to students at Wat Kaopotong School on December 27,
as a New Year treat.
Leading the Lions were Komkrit Prasitnarits and Somsakdi Naksonti, and
school director Prakorb Chomjan welcomed them and their team.
 Children
from Wat Kaopotong School says thank you to the kindhearted people for
offering them lunch.
Prakorb said that the school has received support from the Lions Club
and other private organizations before. Donations have included a
refrigerator and a water cooler, together with scholarships. The school
is now in need of renovations to be made to its cafeteria, which has to
be increased in size to accommodate the growing number of students.
The school receives funds from Nongprue Municipality to buy food, which
is then prepared on the premises.
Wat Kaopotong School is located at Moo 4 on Pornprapanimit Road, in
Nongprue Sub-district, and comes under the Office of the Basic Education
Commission at the Ministry of Education. It was established in 1976, and
received cooperation from the inhabitants of the Nongprue and Pong
Sub-districts. Village chief Kuan Tongbai donated a total of 5 rai, 3
ngan, and 55 square meters of his land to the government for the school.
Because the school is located next to Kaopotong Temple, it was called
Wat Kaopotong School. Currently it teaches students from kindergarten
class 1 to primary school class 6. There are seven permanent teachers
and four substitute teachers, and 263 students.
Members of the Lions
Club of Chonburi Pratamnak Pattaya District 310 C offer lunch to the
students from Wat Kaopotong School.
Members of the Lions Club
of Chonburi Pratamnak Pattaya District 310 C pose with students during
lunch.
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