Chonburi Deputy Governor Niti Wiwatwanitch this month opened the Human Help Network Foundation Thailand’s new learning center in Pattaya.
HHNFT sponsors, regional police officials and political candidates joined the board of directors, including Chairman Sorasit Soontornkes, Samphan Akrapongpanich, Ewald Dietrich, Unchana Chaiyakul, Sopin Thappajug, Siromes Akrapongpanich and Radchada Chomjinda at the Dec. 14 opening.
In her speech, HHNTF Director Radchada Chomjinda said, “Back in 2015, it was the very first time I was introduced to the hidden problem concerning underprivileged children in Pattaya: the migrant children in the campsites. They are probably the most vulnerable group of children due to the fact that they have no access to any of the basic rights stated by the UN, not to mention education or medical care.
“The scenes of migrant children lying on the pavement, picking up garbage, begging on the street and even being offered to foreigners in exchange for money were unbearable to me and urged me to seek any possible way to help them.
“Soon after, I had the chance to know ‘Sanook Daycare’ and its operation for this group of children. This inspired me to establish the ASEAN Education Center in 2016 with great support from the Rotary Club of the Eastern Seaboard, Rotary Club Dolphin Pattaya, and Martin Brands. The first three years of AEC were a great success.
“De Vaan Goosen secured the AEC operation budget in 2018 and ensured that all underprivileged migrant children would be able to have their stomachs full and their potential developed until 2022.
“In the middle of 2019, a polite gentleman came to the office with a German newspaper in his hand, asking to meet me. It was a German gentleman by the name of Hubert Grevenkamp. He was passionate about the AEC project and asked me about the idea I had before making the first donation of one million baht to do something worthwhile for the children. Back then, I was trying to raise funds to make proper learning space for migrant children because they were highly exposed to the pollution in the rented shack they called ‘school.’
“After that, the Human Help Network Germany kindly contacted Mr. Grevenkamp, asking to assist with funds. But miraculously, Mr. Grevenkamp decided to solely sponsor the construction of the new ‘HHN Learning Center.’ He had but one condition, that the whole project must be completed by the end of 2020.
“We were truly blessed that during an entire year of construction because we received generous support from benefactors such as De Vaan Goosen, Khun Pam & Khun Ashely, and Mr. Edy Schefmacher, to rent a small piece of land to build a temporary learning shack to ensure that the children could continue their studies.
“The project director, Mr. Siromes Akrapongpanich, managed to squeeze down the building design process from eight months to eight weeks and officially started construction on the center on January 15th, 2020. The center was completed on December 25th, 2020, the best Christmas present any migrant children could have ever asked for.
“The 3-storey building was built at a total cost of 18.7 million baht, has 1,296 sq.m. of utility space, and can accommodate a maximum capacity of 200 children with fully equipped facilities such as music studio, computer room, first aid unit, etc. In the future, the center will also provide non-formal education and weekend classes for underprivileged Thais.
“None of this could have been possible without the generous support from all the benefactors right from the very beginning – the late Martin Brand, Rotary International, De Vaan Goosen, Hubert Grevenkamp and many more.
“We believe that this Learning Center will take us one step closer to solving the inequality problem in our society.”
 |
 |
 |
