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Fountain of Life treats birthday kids to monthly party
Youngsters celebrate their birthday thanks to a generous donation from Barry
Poppat and friends.
Jasvinder Gadar
On Feb 25, the Fountain of Life (FOL) held their first
birthday party to celebrate the birthdays of the children born during
January and February. The seven children, ranging in age from 4 to 11,
celebrated their birthdays in grand fashion to launch an event which will
hopefully be held monthly from now on.
The idea was created by Sister Joan and Jess Thakkar
whose husband Mukesh collected funds from his three friends - Barry Patel,
Barry Poppat and Mukesh Amin, who had come to Pattaya from the UK on a
golfing holiday.
Jess has since asked her friends and family to sponsor
the month of their birth by making a 1,000 baht donation and has already
secured pledges for over 10,000 baht. The inaugural event consisted of just
cake and birthday cards for the children, but it is planned that with
greater donations the funding will be available to make the day even more
special with some gifts.
Many of the children at the FOL do not even know their
date of birth let alone have the opportunity to celebrate their birthdays.
An annual event that most children around the world take for granted is
sadly something new to the children at FOL.
FOL hope that many people will come forward with a 1,000
baht donation to sponsor the month of their birth and make it possible for
the children to have a truly memorable day. Please contact Sister Joan at
the FOL on tel. 038 361720 or email [email protected] to make a
donation and give a child the gift of a special and memorable day.
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Rayong kids learn fire extinguisher use
Firefighters teach students how to properly use a fire extinguisher.
Theerarak Suthathiwong
More than 300 Rayong students learned how to prevent
fires and use extinguishers in a workshop organized by Mabyangporn
Sub-district
The Feb. 15 seminar had youths from Mabtoey, Mabyangporn,
Sapansi and Huayprab schools.
Sub-district President Chatree Neontuam said fires are
often caused by carelessness, neglect and a lack of education. Teaching
vulnerable youngsters how to use fire extinguishers can limit damage and
injury from fires, he said.
Lewinski’s Captain’s Day raises
46,000 baht for Baan Jin Jai
Pattaya Sports Club Charity Update
Lewinski’s raised 46,000 baht for Baan Jin Jai on Captain’s Day.
William Macey
Lewinski’s have developed a close relationship with
Baan Jin Jai and take every opportunity to raise money for this
orphanage in Nernplabwan. Captain’s Day is the perfect stage to bring to
everyone’s notice the needs of these young children, so a day out at
Green Valley Golf Club was an ideal vehicle to raise some funds.
The new captain, Piere Bietry, followed in the steps
of previous captains and made every effort to have a successful day.
46,000 baht was raised, but this was not the 1st fund raiser of the
year. In September last year, another 45,000 baht was collected to boost
the annual contribution to Baan Jin Jai.
Lewinski’s asked Pattaya Sports Club to contribute
and, having supported Baan Jin Jai for many years, the answer was a
simple - yes, of course.
Back at Lewinski’s, everyone offered a toast to the
new captain and Colin Davis provided a meal to all those in attendance.
Everyone was delighted when some children, accompanied by Piantah,
arrived to enjoy the evening. As you can imagine, the fruit, gateaux,
apple crumble and custard went very quickly, leaving a big smile on the
children’s faces. They have already submitted their names for the next
event.
For your information, Piantah and her fellow helpers
work tirelessly to help 75 orphaned children, of all ages, to have a
safe and secure life and anyone reading this article wanting to
contribute funds, clothing or toys would be very welcome. If you do not
know where they are situated, you could contact Lewinski’s or Pattaya
Sports Club for more information.
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Clean water for 2300 students in Rayong Province
 Bernie
Tuppin
Jesters Care for Kids has recently finished their
latest community program in the locality of Makaam Khu located in the
Rayong area. There are 7 schools in this district and earlier in the New
Year the regional director of education approached the Jesters about the
need for clean drinking water at 3 of the schools.
The schools in question were Nikom #3 School with 700
students, Nikom #4 with 700 students, and Nikom #7 with 900 students;
all in need of safe drinking water.
Providing clean water is a new dimension for us, and
being keen to expand our scope of help to the schools, we were ready to
move forward. After all, clean water translates to better health for the
kids, presumably better attendance and hopefully better academic
results.
To get the project started we contacted Ekarin of
EPTC Company, who are water purification specialists located on
Sukhumvit Highway just past Central Pattaya Road. He kindly agreed to
visit each school, discuss problems with the directors and assess
requirements at each location.
Kids
at Nikom #7 show how happy they are with the new drinking water project.
This done, the work was quickly carried out,
filtration systems installed distribution points constructed and
existing installations upgraded. The result was three grateful school
directors and 2,300 healthier students. Jesters would like to thank Khun
Ekarin who charged only for the component and supplied free all labor
costs.
Jesters Care for Kids is proud to improve the
facilities at schools like these and continue to assist the wellbeing of
children in our locality. If you would like to help us continue to
benefit the children in need, please visit our website at www.
care4kids.info and join us.
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Pattaya School No. 6 scouts talk sex, drugs & Preah Vihear
Students circle the campfire during their scouting camp at Sattahip’s
Prince Chumphon Military Camp.
Patcharapol Panrak
More than 300 students from Pattaya School No. 6 were
taught respect for family, teachers and the nation in a scouting camp at
Sattahip’s Prince Chumphon Military Camp.
The 336 boy and girl scouts discussed the current
border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia over the Preah Vihear
temple. Students admitted to not knowing much about what actually was
happening, but agreed that the World Heritage Site would be the biggest
loser in an armed battle, with the ancient temple either damaged or
destroyed.
Other lectures discussed sexual activity and drug
use, with teachers stressing that students should have traditional,
conservative and moral behavior in these areas.
Vice-Principal Saijai Kongcharoen said Thailand’s
scouting program is a way to preserve innocence in Thailand’s youth. The
goal is to have them listen to parents and teachers, honor their country
and develop their intellect and spirituality.
She said the discussion over Preah Vihear shows
today’s youth are cognizant of the importance of preserving historical
relics. And the discussion over sexual behavior and drugs helped the
kids to realize the damage immoral and illegal behavior can have, Saijai
said.
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What it takes to get impressive IGCSE results
Benji with mother (Somsri middle) and father (Peter right)
at a nice holiday dinner at home.
Janette Oracion
Bagsic
He is one who doesn’t care too much about achieving
anything yet he has attained four Outstanding Achievers Awards in
Thailand including Third Place in IGCSE Thailand; 11A* and 1A. What is
the secret? Who is he? How did he do it? Let’s dig deeper and find what
lies behind the scenes.
Benji going out to ride bicycle after school.
His name is Benjamin Huber but is fondly called Benji
by most of his friends. He is the son of Mr. Hanns Peter Huber and Mrs.
Somsri Huber. Benji’s school experiences were a variety and a mixture of
culture and languages as he was used to move from one school to another.
This started during his Early Years which he spent it in Munich, where
he was born, and then Mannheim, both in Germany.
As his mother is Thai he was learning to listen to
the tones and words, but never spoke it. His father is Austrian. German
is his mother tongue, but now his best language is English.
Now, time to hit the road. He moved to Singapore and
enrolled in a Swiss school but then transferred to the German school,
Deutsche Schule Singapore. After a year there, his parents relocated to
Austria where he attended a public school in Baden and studied
everything in German. His public education opened doors for him to
improve academically and he became one of the four top students in the
class.
His final year in primary was spent in another
school. This is where Garden International School entered the scene. He
gave credit to the school for helping him to develop his skills very
clearly. He showed enthusiasm in music and continued learning the
saxophone which he has learned to play in Austria, and picking up the
electric and classic guitar, while also enjoying singing in the choir.
Additionally, he also became involved in many Drama productions, such as
Totally Over You, which was a great success at GIS, organized by Mrs.
Grisdale and Mr. O’Shea.
Academically he was above average, though he did
excel in the subjects he was strong in. He learned Thai and English
which he never studied before and became proficient both in writing and
speaking. Due to the fact that he was used to changing schools
frequently and many of his good friends had also left, he felt the need
to change.
He tried St. Andrews and studied year 9. Then was the
time of the IGCSEs which was when he realized he could achieve great
things while developing his strong interest in sports. He worked and
studied hard, but still had a great time, and never had too much stress.
He gradually built up his knowledge and skills to tackle the exams, and
with the help of his teachers and parents, he peaked at exactly the
right time to attain a total of 12 IGCSEs, 11 of A*s and 1 A : Physical
Education, Mathematics Higher (the only A), History, English Literature,
Co-ordinated Science (Double Award), Geography, Business Studies,
English Language, English as a Second Language, Pure Physics and German.
His favourite subjects, History, English Literature and Science, were
actually the ones that he got the great achievements in. Benji also
admits that Mathematics was his weakest subject, but he also took it a
year ahead of time.
“At the news of my IGCSE achievements, I was
extremely overjoyed. I felt that all my hard work had paid off,” he
said.
It must be stressful for him to keep up the status.
But what a surprise to hear him say that he doesn’t find it so. He
enjoys learning very much as much as he enjoys his ways of reflecting
his day simply through going for a walk, a swim, or a run, riding his
bicycle, or practicing his musical instrument. Interestingly, he’s
adding baking and cooking to his list.
Currently, he is back at Garden International School
(GIS) getting a whole new breadth of knowledge and skill as he explores
IB. “Achieving anything in life is something that comes naturally if it
means to come,” Benji said with a humble smile.
His options are still very open as to what he will
pursue after finishing IB. But he is very confident to go straight to
the path which leads him to a suitable and enjoyable life experience. As
part of IB, he is yet learning another language, which is Mandarin
Chinese; so that will make it a total of four languages he will be able
to use in his future career.
When asked of any advice he can share to the younger
students, this is what he said: “We are all different. Build up your
strengths and accept your weaknesses. Follow the path you are interested
in and enjoy what makes you happy. Never give up what you think is the
best for you and don’t push yourself too far or set goals too high. Work
hard but still look after yourself. Success is important but happiness
is the greatest success.”
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Mercy kids given new home
(L
to R) Dianne and Fred Doell, Veera Ladnongkun and Bill Clarke.
Lhen Lhen Mortela
The Mercy Center Children’s Home in Nong Prue
Pattaya, a rental property which for the past 5 years has served as the
temporary home for children who are “at risk” in our community, is being
replaced by a permanent home.
Fred and Dianne Doell, who are the founders and
directors of the home, have been instrumental in procuring land and
achieving their dream to provide a permanent home for these kids. In
conjunction with a Local builder Veera Ladnongkun, who owns and operates
VL Builders Ltd., Fred and Dianne are on track to accomplish their goal.
Construction has begun on a 504 sq meter building on
4 rai of land in the Pong district that will be the new children’s home,
which will be appropriately named “Our Father’s House”. Construction is
expected to be complete in May and the move will take place immediately
thereafter.
Thanks to the many donors who have contributed, or
are contributing money or materials to help in this very community
minded project. If this very heart warming story moves you to become a
participant by making a contribution, you may contact Bill Clarke by
email at [email protected] telephone: 088 4841027 or Richard
Haines at [email protected] telephone: 0840016901
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Regent’s raise 90,000 baht in this year’s annual Coin Challenge
The
Regent’s students finishing off the annual Coin Challenge.
Andrew Chambers
The Regent’s School Pattaya has just held their
annual Coin Challenge. Forms spend several weeks bringing in their loose
change, and the event culminates with all the coins being laid out
around the school oval. With the whole school raising an impressive
90,000 baht this meant the coins reached all the way around the road
with plenty to spare.
Paul Crouch, who organised the event, explained that
the money raised will go to our community partners: “It was a great
effort as always, and our projects will really benefit from this money -
a big thanks to everyone who took part.”
Forms and houses compete to bring in the most money -
and this year Blue House were the overall winners, collecting over
22,000 baht. This total was significantly helped by Mr Nixon’s 10B
class, who raised over 13,000 baht on their own. Well done Blue House
and well done 10B!
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