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Spellathon funds earn Regents Primary a Koh Phi Phi Service Trip
Baan Maelid students teach
Regent’s students how to make bracelets.
Katrin Puutsa
During Round Square Week last June, a group of young
service minded children from the Regents School Years 4 and 5 visited a
local school on the small island of Koh Phi Phi. The money raised by
students, parents and friends during last year’s Spellathon was used to buy
materials that our children used to build a sustainable school garden. We
were also able to invite and finance five children from our community
partner school ‘Baan Maelid’ in North Thailand to join us in Koh Phi Phi.
This annual five day service trip once again proved to be
a wonderful success; it was a rare opportunity for pupils from schools in
South, Central and Northern Thailand to connect through a common passion for
helping others. The children kept extremely busy during their time on the
island by building, painting, gardening, snorkeling, hiking, exploring,
cooking and playing! Well done Nil, Zack, Lily, Karl, Tong, Poppy, Alexis,
Ji Min and Iulia - you were all amazing and should be proud of your
achievements!
We’d like to take this opportunity to say a huge thank
you to everyone that took part in or sponsored someone during the Regents
Spellathon 2011.
Baan Maelid and Regent’s
students enjoy the view.
Decorating a beautiful garden
at Baan Koh Phi Phi.
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CEA treats kids with a day at the Hard Rock
Boys line up to receive their
swim trunks.
Paul Strachan
Living in Pattaya, it’s easy to take the beach and the
clean air for granted and easy to forget those who have never tasted such a
wonderful way to spend your day.
On Sunday the 4th of September, 37
children who are under the care of the Melissa Cosgrove Children’s
foundation came down from Bangkok to spend a day at the Hard Rock Hotel in
Pattaya. Many of these children live in a temple and have never seen the
beach or even been in a swimming pool.
The day was funded by Kevin Fisher, the managing director
of CEA projects, and he was on hand with his staff and a few close friends
along with Tracy Cosgrove to ensure the kids had an unforgettable day.
How far can he make it? He has
a good cheering section.
In the morning the kids were all given swimming costumes
and had loads of fun splashing about in the pool, using the water slide and
playing games organized by the ever-energetic staff at the Hard Rock.
Then it was time for lunch and the boys got stuck into
the rice, noodles, sausages, chips and ice cold soft drinks.
Tracy Cosgrove explained in an interview for PMTV that
these boys have ended up alone for a variety of reasons and that she has
been taking care of them for over ten years. However, she only has a budget
of seven baht per boy to feed each day. This explained why they loved the
food so much and were going back up for seconds.
After lunch the kids played some more games in the pool
then had some ice cream to cool off, then some dinner and a movie.
Kevin Fisher said that he admired Tracy for the work she
did and that he was delighted to support the event and could see that is was
a real special day for the kids.
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Asian U represents Thai Education in Nepal
H.E. Maris Sangiampongsa
(right), Royal Thai Ambassador to Nepal, and Ulrich Werner (left),
Director of International Development, Asian University, during one of
their four meetings to discuss contemporary educational opportunities
for Thailand and Nepal.
Ulrich Werner
On invitation from the Department of Export Promotion
(DEP), Ministry of Commerce, Asian University joined the Thailand
Education Mission 2011 in Nepal from August 25 to 29, as one of the best
universities in Thailand. Asian U’s Director of International
Development, Ulrich Werner, introduced Asian University and its unique
educational concept, which results in internationally competitive
graduates, to the Honorable Upendra Yadav, Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister of Foreign Affairs in Nepal, and His Excellency Maris
Sangiampongsa, Royal Thai Ambassador to Nepal.
H.E. Maris served as Charge d’ Affairs in the Thai
Embassy in Germany where he became a strong supporter of the German Dual
Education System and the Universities of Applied Sciences, both of which
he promotes as an ideal solution for Thailand.
Since Asian U currently develops a Dual Undergraduate
Education Programme, there was plenty to talk about. While visiting the
Asian U booth, H.E. Maris introduced the Nepalese Deputy Prime Minister
to this model in which companies employ school leavers and send them
into a 4 year education programme jointly developed for each individual
student with the faculty of Asian U. Participants will spend 30 weeks a
year on campus and the rest in coordinated traineeship in the
corporation. This is the most promising way to provide companies with
graduates perfectly educated and trained for the requirements of their
employers.
While in Nepal educational diversity is limited - you
get on every campus exactly the same as on any other campus - it was
very interesting for Nepalese students to learn about the huge variety
of educational opportunities offered in Thailand. The Nepalese school
system ends with grade 10. Subsequently, students attend a 2-year
furthering programme to gain university access. Studying grades 11 and
12 at the College@AsianU therefore is an interesting alternative for
many parents who want to send their kids into a safe environment for an
international education.
In July this year, Asian U joined the UNESCO-UNITWIN
programme on invitation of the host university, Handong Global
University, a major UNESCO focus programme on University Twinning and
Networking. This membership opens Asian University doors to cooperation
with over 830 hand-picked institutions of higher education worldwide.
Besides this international channel, further
international cooperation is coming up. Visitors from Environment Campus
Birkenfeld of Trier University of Applied Sciences in Germany, Aachen
University of Applied Sciences, De Montfort University in Leicester/UK,
and Southwestfalia University of Applied Sciences in Meschede, Germany,
have announced their visits for this year to start cooperation with
Asian University.
Asian University is a private university located in
Huay Yai at route 331, Banglamung, Chonburi Province, about 25 km
inbound from the beach resorts of Jomtien and Pattaya. Education in
small classes focuses on intense cooperation with the lecturers in the
Faculties of Business, Engineering & Technology, Liberal Arts, and the
International College @AsianU as its fourth faculty.
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Mercy, mercy, mercy “…all I want for Songkran is my two front teeth…”
Dr Lertutsahakul donates her time to explain
to the Mercy children how to care for their teeth on an every day basis
Lyndy Moore Eggleton
Staff of Mercy Pattaya’s new children’s home, Baan
Khong Por, welcomed some guests this week. The dentist came to visit …
and there was no escape except for those who had already lost their two
front teeth, that is!
This welcome visit (welcomed by staff and management,
anyway!) is a first from Dr Tassanee Lertutsahakul, Head of the Dental
Center at Bangkok Hospital Pattaya, and two of her team. Dr
Lertutsahakul donated her time to explain to the Mercy children how to
care for their teeth on an every day basis, so that they wouldn’t have
to be afraid of the dentist because their teeth would remain white and
grow strong.
It was an occasion for the boys to show their
strength and courage, too.
All I want for Songkran is
my two front teeth…
Mercy children are currently preparing a song and
dance for the 300 guests due to celebrate the official opening of the
new Children’s Home, Baan Khong Por and the 10th Anniversary of the
Mercy care organization. It is destined to be a brilliant performance.
Mercy Center Family currently offers loving, often
life-saving, care and protection for twenty children, who have been
misused, abused, abandoned or orphaned, at Baan Khong Por children’s
home. These children were at high risk in the slums and streets of
Pattaya. The Mercy forever home is to be officially opened on 25th
September in the presence of Mayor of Pattaya, Mayor of Nongprue, Mayor
of Pong and the Honorary British Consul. The Mercy/Pattaya Street Kids
scholarship initiative provides funding to enable 250 students to attend
school and the slum support project provides basic foodstuffs and
essentials, on a weekly basis, for one hundred families in Pattaya’s
poorest areas. Single parent support project helps to provide jobs and
childcare to enable parents and children to stay together.
Contact Mercy’s office on 038 416 707 or email:
[email protected] and visit us, either in person off Soi 1, Duck
Square, Pattaya Thai, by the side of Smile Dental Clinic and across the
road from Big C South, or on our website: www.mercypattaya.com
You’ll be glad you did!
A brave boy sits still
while dentists examine his teeth.
Mercy children’s home
residents rehearse for their ‘on stage’ appearance at the Official
Opening on Sunday, September 25.
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Asian U starts
partnership with
Environment Campus Birkenfeld, Germany
Dr. Viphandh Roengpithya
(left), President and Founder of Asian University, and Prof. Dr. Dirk
Löhr (right), Environment Campus Birkenfeld, Trier University of Applied
Sciences, Germany, hand over the signed Memorandum of Agreement.
Ulrich Werner
With the signatures under a Memorandum of Agreement,
Asian University and Environment Campus Birkenfeld, Trier University of
Applied Sciences, Germany, started their partnership on September 7,
2011.
Prof. Dr. Dirk L๖hr, Professor of Taxation and
Environmental Economics, and Dr. Viphandh Roengpithya, President and
Founder of Asian University, agreed that both universities are a perfect
match. Active cooperation is planned in the fields of undergraduate
student exchange, project work and thesis writing of German students at
Asian University, lecturer exchange, semester-long sabbaticals of German
lecturers at Asian U, and in the education and supervision of Ph.D.
candidates in Asian U’s Ph.D. in Technology research program.
The cooperation involves all faculties at Asian U:
Business, Engineering & Technology, and Liberal Arts.
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Studying is easier with the help
of Pattaya Sports Club
As it was.
Bannawang School has 145 children between the ages of
4 and 11 and is situated on the outskirts of Pattaya. Like many village
schools, they do not feature high on the list to receive financial
assistance when some equipment or repairs are needed.
Nittaya Patimasongkroh from the YWCA asked Pattaya
Sports Club to visit the school, for they had a problem. When PSC
visited the school, 40 of the younger children were hard at work
learning to read and write Thai and, like many schools, are introduced
to English at an early age.
So what was the problem? As you can see from the
photograph, they had no desks and had to lie on the floor to complete
their studies. Not an ideal situation to complete your best work for
anyone.
Pattaya Sports Club came to the rescue, not on a
white charger in shining armour but with sufficient funds to purchase
chairs and desks. These had to be made to measure, for as you can
imagine, 4 and 5 year old children would find it difficult to reach
normal sized desks.
The smiles on the children’s faces tells the story so
when Nittaya and Noi passed around some refreshments, everyone is sabai,
sabai.
That’s better.
Happy faces.
Thank you PSC.
At last, something to
drink.
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