Women With a Mission (WWM), a Pattaya-based charity organisation, has been working with the Children’s’ Development Training Center (CDTC) for more than four years. The CDTC school and boarding house is located outside of Mae Sot on the Thai Burmese border and is both home and school for over 250 Burmese children of mostly Karen extraction.
WWM has been supporting the school and the students by funding teachers’ salaries and learning materials, and assisting with the food program in order to feed this large number of child refugees. Funding is also provided to assist in several programs to build self-sustainability for the school and boarding house.
The classrooms, after constant use for years, had fallen into disrepair.
Funds are always stretched, with priority going towards food and education; however, by the end of the last school year the classrooms, after constant use for years, had fallen into disrepair and needed urgent attention. Thatched walls were falling apart, desks and chairs broken, and many other defects.
WWM were struggling to find the additional funds required. However, Visteon Corporation, an automotive component manufacturer located on the Eastern Seaboard, stepped forward with an offer of assistance. They helped provide funds to replace thatched walls with proper structural walls dividing the classrooms, paint for the new walls, and a ceiling fan in each classroom. Through the generosity of Visteon the school now has classrooms better suited for a learning environment. WWM would like to publicly thank Visteon for their wonderful support in this project.
Visteon Corporation stepped forward with an offer of assistance.
However, the struggle for adequate funding for the school still goes on for WWM. Within the past few weeks, with very little notice, the funding assistance to buy dry food rations (rice, yellow beans, etc.) was cut to CDTC and other refugee schools in the area. WWM has sent out a new plea for help, and thanks to the generosity of WWM supporters and readers of the Pattaya Mail, they have received enough funds for 56 of the 266 students, but that still leaves a large funding gap to feed all the children. The cost of dry food rations for each child B320 per month, and WWM are trying to raise the funds to cover the next 8 months through to the end of the school year. This is B2,560 for each student.
If any of Pattaya Mail’s readers would like to support this food assistance program, or make a general donation to assist their ongoing activities, WWM would be very pleased to hear from them.
Call to speak with Bronwyn Carey – 089-898 0658; Kylie Grimmer – 087-482 3520 or Rosanne Diamente – 081-865 0714. Alternatively, email [email protected].
