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The
Need is Great...The Rewards Greater
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New
Offices In Tanzania
Please
help us in welcoming our Tanzania team into
their new offices in Arusha! After a frenzy of
last minute packing they settled down into their
new buildings in late April. The new offices are
located on two fertile green acres and bordered
by the Themi River and an old growth eucalyptus
forest to the east. The offices have an
incredible view to the west of Mt. Meru
(especially wonderful at night as the sun sets
over its majestic peak). The complex is
safeguarded by two night guards and contains the
administration offices, program coordinator and
director’s offices, reception room, a kitchen,
and trainers’ offices.
Upon first
arriving at the new offices you are welcomed by
a shaded banda (an open sheltered hut) at the
front gate and a gorgeous entry way which leads
directly to the director’s office and reception.
Luscious green lawns surround the office
buildings and are accompanied by a spacious
gazebo that offers shade during meetings and can
hold up to 100 individuals. Nearby is an
enclosed tile verandah that serves as the
perfect setting for more intimate groups and
trainings. Banana trees shade the lawn,
providing a great place to sit for lunch or
relax with a book following a long productive
day.
We are especially excited about all
the fertile land we have surrounding the offices
and look forward to cultivating different
projects on it. Currently there are banana trees
on a 1/8 acre of our riverfront property;
needless to say everyone is looking forward to
snacking on fresh fruit. On another 1/8 acre of
land we are beginning to plant three new
demonstration garden plots. We will be using
these to develop and showcase new sustainable
agriculture techniques and to help teach our
various visitors the benefits of these.
I
hope all of you will be able to come visit the
new offices soon and see them in their entire
splendor. Until then take a minute and look over
the pictures and leave a comment for our
Tanzania staff on our Twitter or Facebook. Share
with friends!
You are very welcome –
karibu sana. |
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Thailand
Buddhist Immersion Program
With
GSC you can choose to volunteer with our
Buddhist Immersion Teaching English Program in
Rajburi Province, Thailand. The program takes
place within a beautifully landscaped 33-acre
park-like wat complex. The various marble
walkways, bridges and temples are speckled by
the brilliant orange-red robes of monks going
about their daily routines. Each morning you
will begin your day amid the blissful silence of
the wat as you prepare to teach English to
novice and senior monks as well as local
community members. In between your teaching
activities you will have the opportunity to
meditate and reflect by the cool still waters of
the meandering lakes and streams that frame the
vivid white marble temples on the complex
grounds.
An average of 100 monks and 60
novices reside on the compound and are joined by
hundreds of Thai and foreign meditation students
that participate in the wat’s varied educational
programs. As a volunteer you will not only teach
conversational English to beginner students but
you will also act as an adjunct English teacher
for senior monks studying at the on-site
accredited college that provides Bachelors and
Masters Degrees in Buddhist Administration
GSC program staff includes an
experienced EFL head teacher and three English
speaking monks on the premises. The staff will
assist you in your charitable works and answer
any questions that may arise in your time in
Thailand. You will have the opportunity to
choose your level of immersion in Buddhism while
teaching and volunteering on the temple grounds.
You can choose a moderate program where you will
be following and learning the rules of Buddhism
or you can opt for a more intense program where
you take on the rules and activities of resident
monks.
Past participants have especially
appreciated the mentoring and meditation
instruction of Phra Bart, the program
coordinator. Phra Bart is a retired American
college professor and international development
professional who has been living at the wat as
an ordained monk for the last eight
years.
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Introducting
our new Cambodian HIV/AIDS and Orphanage
Programs
We
are very excited about the June launch of our
Cambodian HIV/AIDS and Drug Abuse Prevention
Education Program. Our program will be working
with international schools and local NGOs in and
around the beautiful and historic capitol city
of Phnom Penh. The program will build on the
best practices of our 15 years of HIV/AIDS
prevention education work in E. Africa and our
recent work in Thailand. While Cambodia has
reduced the incidence of HIV/AIDS in the adult
population, there is very little prevention
education being provided to youths. Local
schools and NGOs have asked us to add the drug
abuse prevention component to our work. We
already have several well qualified volunteers
registered for the program launching in June
including a registered nurse and an alumni of
our Tanzania program.
Our expanding work
with local schools and NGO’s has created the
opportunity for volunteer nurses and other
health professionals to provide much needed
health check-ups for impoverished students at
schools around the capitol area as part of our
International Health Program. Our Orphanage Care
Program volunteers will be assisting several
orphanages including one serving children
infected with the deadly virus and those
affected by it. The Community currently houses
over 60 children and 25 adults. Some are orphans
who are not HIV+ but who have lost their parents
altogether to AIDS. Our Teach English Abroad
Program participants have the opportunity to
assist at several schools along with our
in-country coordinator, Sophy Tun. Sophy has a
college degree in EFL and has been working in
this field for several years.
This is the
account of one volunteer at the wat:
The
Little Girl that Stole My Heart
On my
second day at the wat I was walking towards the
children having breakfast and I noticed this
little girl sitting by herself eating a mini
packet of chips talking to herself (one of my
favorite pastimes) - as I walked closer to her
she looked up and smiled. She had the smile of
an angel. She then put her little hand on the
space next to her as to say "take a seat" which
I kindly accepted. She continued her
conversation; occasionally she would tap my leg
and ask me to look at what she was pointing at
-- at nothing -- then start laughing. She would
at times engage in a conversation with me, I’d
speak English and she'd answer in Khmer and vice
versa. Regardless of the language barrier we
knew what we were talking about, at times she
would continue her conversation with herself.
Some people would call this "crazy" but I found
it adorable
So after a few minutes of
conversing and observing she stood up and
reached out her arms as to say "I want a hug"...
so I picked her up and gave her a squeeze. From
that moment on we were inseparable. I fell in
love with her instantly. We had some kind of
connection, a bond, a very special bond - it’s
hard for me to explain but it would be as close
as a mother's bond with their own child. I'm
crying inside as I write this because I knew I
would miss her so much when I had to
leave.
That evening I asked her story....
The day she came to the wat 5 months ago
-- her mother just died of HIV. Her Uncle took
her and her two older sisters to the wat to get
them tested. The 2 older sisters were negative
and unfortunately she was positive. Her Uncle
said he would take the other 2 girls but didn’t
want her because she is sick and can't care for
her as he would not be able to afford all the
medical treatments she needs.
In one day
she lost her mom, found out she was sick, lost
her two sisters and was abandoned. You can just
imagine the grief and confusion she must have
been going through. I found out in her first few
months at the wat she would always be sad and
sit by herself, never playing with the other
kids. She didn’t come out of her shell until
volunteers came and talked and interacted with
her. She still sits alone at times but she now
always has a smile, laughing and playing with
the other kids.
Though it’s sad to
leave...sad to leave to her but I leave knowing
she will be okay. There will be many more
volunteers that will come her way to give her
the time and all the hugs she needs.
She
has changed me; her strength, her smile, her
laugh, her love has infected me.
I long
for the day I can return to Cambodia to see her
again and the strong young woman she will have
grown into. |
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Contact
Us
We
welcome your input, comments and stories. Also,
please feel free to forward this issue to
friends and associates.
To subscribe to
this Newsletter, send us an email at gsc@globalservicecorps.org
with "Subscribe to GSC Newsletter" in
subject.
To subscribe to the GSC HIV/AIDS
Newsletter, send us an email with "Subscribe to
GSC HIV/AIDS Newsletter" in
subject.
Contact us:
Global Service
Corps
3543 18th Street, #14
San Francisco,
CA 94110
Email: gsc@globalservicecorps.org
Tel:
415-551-0000
Fax: 415-861-8969
Website:
www.globalservicecorps.org
Visit our
website for more information on all our
programs, the schedule and application.
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