by Dr. Iain
Corness
It is always pleasant to be able to write about a real
success story, and Bua Endonpradou, a sales executive for the new
Northshore condominium development, is undoubtedly a ‘real’ success
story.
A
girl from a very poor village in Korat she has lived her life with the
philosophy that “You don’t get a choice where you are born - rich or
poor, but you do have a chance to make your life better.” This week’s
local personality item is the story of how Bua, that poor village girl,
made her life better.
Bua was the sixth child born to a rice farmer and his
wife. After Bua, there came another three children, making it six girls
and three boys to be housed and fed from the small rice paddies.
The family home was over two kilometres from the local
village school, and Bua walked there and back every day. There were no
luxuries in this household like bicycles for the children. After school
there was no play either, as it was into the rice fields to help with
planting or harvesting for all the family members. On Sundays, it was the
entire day in the paddy fields.
I asked Bua if she were a good student, to be met with,
“Yes! Of course!” However, even though she showed academic promise at
the village school, her schooling had to finish early. “My parents were
very poor and could not send me to a good school,” said Bua.
By the time all the children became teenagers, it was
obvious that they would have to join the workforce, to ease the strain on
the family budget, and since one of her sisters was working in a hotel in
Pattaya, Bua left Korat to come and join her.
Unfortunately, she was too young to work as a cleaner
in the hotel with her sister, so the young Bua went to work in a noodle
shop, serving at the tables, a job where age was not important. However,
she was now in the workforce and could earn money to send some back to her
parents, to help them care for the rest of her brothers and sisters. (This
concept is entrenched in Thai family life, and even today, Bua will still
send money home.)
When she turned 18 and was then old enough for hotel
work, she joined her sister as a cleaner in the same hotel, working her
way up the domestic tree to become a maid. “It’s a hard job,” said
Bua, and I am sure she is correct.
However, maid Bua did not lose sight of her wish to
make her life better. “I wanted to study more, so I went to the
Photisampan Sunday school to finish secondary education.” This
educational facility takes in the young people who have not finished their
schooling, with intensive lessons every Sunday. It is not an easy way to
get that necessary education, and in Bua’s case it took her four years
of Sundays to get her certificate of completion. Those were also not four
consecutive years, as she had to go with her sister to where the work was
available. Sometimes that was not in Pattaya, but in Sattahip, where she
would have to break her studies as travelling was not possible. But she
never lost sight of her true goal.
In the year 2000 she secured a job as a waitress in
Shenanigans in Pattaya, and she completed her schooling at Photisampan.
However, that was just a stepping stone, not the final goal. She was
accepted into the Aksorn College of Technology for a diploma course in
Business Computing.
During the day she worked in Shenanigans, and at night
she studied at Aksorn College. “This was for my future life,” said Bua,
“I wanted to be better, I didn’t want to work as a waitress for
ever.” After two years, the hard-working Bua received her diploma. The
girl who had begun her working life serving noodles, then working as a
maid and was now serving beer, had evidence of a real accomplishment, a
tertiary diploma course, successfully completed.
With her qualifications it was time to leave
Shenanigans, even though it was a tearful farewell, both for Bua and the
other staff members. A previous employee at Shenanigans was working in a
real estate office, so Bua literally moved across the street to join her
in the East Coast Real Estate as a receptionist. That was in September
2004.
She had only been there a few days when the opportunity
arose for her to be able to join their sales team to handle the Northshore
condominium project. “Every time I am getting better,” said Bua,
“and I’ve sold three condos already!”
As part of her “getting better” she wants to study
English, as she feels this will help her be even more successful in her
job, and in her future. Even her hobbies are tied up in this need to be
better. She reads books in English, so she can better understand the
language. She listens to music, especially songs where the lyrics are in
English, for the same reason.
So where is the end of the rainbow for Bua Endonpradou?
“At the moment I just want to be a good salesperson,” said the girl
who has already sold three condos in less than a month! But this does not
mean that she is turning into a hard driving career woman. She is also
looking forward to having a house and a family, though there is no real
boyfriend at present, “But I’m looking,” said Bua with a laugh!
I asked her if her parents were proud of her
achievements. “My parents are very happy. They were sorry they didn’t
have the money to give me good schooling, but now they want me to finish a
degree course.”
Bua Endonpradou is a remarkable young lady. A fine testimonial to the
spirit and courage of many Thai country girls. Congratulations, Bua!
