Slippery roads

Whenever I think back on the first day on my trip to the project area this May, I am struck with fear of the experience, but praising God for His protection. We were to take the bus from Hakha, the capital of the Chin state to Thantlang, a small town. The monsoon rain had filled the road with mud and it was very slippery. In many places, our bus had do manoeuvre around chunks of mud sliding down from the upper bank of the road.

Big rocks blocking the road

After about an hour drive from Hakha, the road was blocked by two big rocks falling down from the upper bank. It was fortunate for us that the rocks did not hit us, and that they were not too hard to break with hammers, iron rods, etc. Finally, after about two hours, the bus could move through the spot. But very soon after, we almost encountered the doom of death again.

Going off the road

After about 35 minutes drive from the first spot, our bus slid on the muddy road for a long time before it finally stopped. It was good I didn’t even realize what had happened. Only when our bus conductor shouted, “quickly get out, quickly get out”, I realized that our bus was almost 45 degree inclined downhill. It was only because the axle underneath the bus was stuck on the hard soil at the edge of the road that the bus didn’t roll downhill to the deep hill.

God’s miracle

The right wheels, both the front and the back, were already off the road. I saw some young men who sat on the top of the bus jump down and then run away from the bus. It was really a miracle done by God to save us. We reached Thantlang two hours later. We took about 8 hours for just 23 miles (37 kilometres). Under good conditions it can be done in 2 hours! (That’s an average of 12 mile/h or 19 km/h!) Imagine the road condition in the rainy season!

New school year in the Chin Hills

It has already been two months since Families Together started the 2010-2011 school year in Northern Chin State. This is how our Project Leader remembers the tiresome, yet rewarding time of travelling in the Chin Hills Jungle.

Not so long ago

It has been two months since I came back to Yangon, but it still remains clearly in my memory almost every detail of the trip as if it just happened a day or two ago. I am happy to tell you why it is so.

A tiresome trip

We have the total of eight preschools and two primary schools, and another new primary school which is partly supported from this year in a small village. The local area supervisor and I were able to reach each village to reopen the schools for the new academic year in the first week of June. As we knew ahead of time, the jungle track we would take on was steep, bumpy, bushy and very tiresome. We were a bit afraid to even start on the more than 10 day foot-journey. As it normally is in the rainy season, the conditions of the first two-three days were indeed worsened by the heavy monsoon rain which in turn caused swarms of leeches welcoming us throughout the bushy track to feed their selves with our blood. We were really physically exhausted at the end of it. But I am happy to say this: the pure, cordial and genuine fellowship of each villager, their warm company throughout our trip, their thankful and blessing words, and their simple but honest and heart-felt hospitalities and entertainments were more than enough to redeem our physical exhaustion. It is really difficult to find adequate words to relate the joy and happiness they shown.

A dream comes through

When we gave small gifts like umbrellas and bags to the children, we saw the same joy in them as in their parents. The improvement of the children was also strong yeast to our emotions. The academic level of the students has really excelled in the last year. More children in the villages can read now than ever before. But more than that, it was indeed our highest satisfaction to see the stability of each family, no longer sending their young children away to cities to have them get education. Believe it or not, some children are taken back from orphanages; some families come back to their village! Thanks be to God for this great mercy practically shown to the poor people in these remote jungle villages. We, along with the villagers, are really thankful to well-wishers and helpers around the globe, whom our Father has been using as His channel of blessings.

More students, more teachers, and more schools

Presently we have ten primary school teachers and 18 preschool teachers for the 151 primary students, and the 296 preschool children in this area in the Northern Chin State. We have more schools in the Southern Chin State in a different project area, about which we have not mention here.

May God bless you,

Project Leader

Families Together

When we personally tested the reading skills of the students, it was really unbelievable too see their improvement. Before the projects were started, it was sadly seen that even the grade 5, 6 children could not read! That was the main reason why some parents used to send their children to orphanages and other child-care institutions in cities to have their children get good educations, but places where there is no parental love and affection. But for this time, it was really interesting to see even a grade 2 child can read! The parents in the villages, therefore, are no longer willing to send their children away from them because their children now get good education in their own villages.

2009 – 10 academic year was closed with most satisfaction ever in the villages. Both the parents and teachers are satisfied. We heard parents’ words of appreciation on the teachers. Students’ attendance was good. Each student academic performance had improved month by month. No student has left the school throughout the whole year.  The students have had real motivation to study hard. We are told now by the teachers that about 80% of all the students pass their exams. All the teachers enjoyed their works, are willing to continue this year also.

The schools have been blessings to the village in different areas: it creates unity in the village; children stay with their parents, some families who had already migrated to other places had resettled back; some parents called back their children whom they had sent to cities for education. In short, the projects have improved the school and the students a lot and make a great impact on the community.

We look forward to another year with development in this village in Chin State.

High Season

These months travelling is easier in Myanmar. The rain has not fallen for a few months and the cool weather in the mountains is a nice change to hot Yangon. The schools take summer break in March, April, and May, so this is the time to invest in the forty-pluss-teachers we have engaged.

Yearly seminars

Every year we invite all the teachers to a teacher training. Usually we have done this in Yangon (see Teacher’s Seminar), but this year we are doing the training in the project areas.

The first seminar started on Monday for our pre-school teachers in the northern Chin State. In March we are holding a seminar in the southern Chin state, and in May we are planning a seminar for our primary school teachers. In addition to the seminars for the teachers, we are also doing a parenting/family seminar for ministers in our northern Chin state project area.

Pray with us

• For the safe travel and the health for those holding the seminars
• For safe travel for all the teachers
• For inspiration to continue education in the various villages
• For a fresh understanding of God’s love (which will result in love to all the children)
• For continual favor with all the village authorites

Celebrating Children

This Christmas, 531 children in various villages in Chin state, beamed with joy as they received Christmas gifts from Families Together. They hurriedly put their new, warm and colourful sweaters on and laughed and talked as they unwrapped colouring books, crayons, pen, pencil, a Christmas card and some candy. Seinadee, our staff travelling there from Yangon with the gifts, weren’t sure what they enjoyed the most, the gift or the celebration we arranged for them. They were all smiles and asked him to make sure to thank everyone who made it possible. So, on behalf of 531 school children out there in the mountains of Myanmar, we want to say thank you to everyone who made this possible!

Cold mountains

Seinadee travelled for more than a week to get to these remote villages and at one point wore six layers of clothing to keep the cold out (the highest village is at 8200 feet above sea level). Yet he chose to stay longer than we had asked him too, just to spend time with each village as they celebrated Christmas with the gift he brought them. I guess that can happen to any of us when we are faced with a people’s simple lifestyle, their struggle to make ends meet, and their gratitude when people from the outside bless them and show love in this way.

Thank you!

Our heartfelt thanks go to all who gave towards the Christmas project -09 and to our co-workers whom we could never have done this without.

Watch the presentation video below.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The project

The Christmas season is a time of celebration and joy among the Christian ethnic groups in Myanmar. Over the last three years we have given Christmas gifts to about 1000 children each year in various Children’s Homes in Yangon. This year we want to help the schools that we support to be able to have a Christmas celebration with gifts, nice food and entertainment.

The gift

Giving a personal gift to each child becomes very difficult as the schools are extremely remote, but we will pack a few boxes here in Yangon and send them to our local coordinators in the project areas. Each child will receive a colourful Christmas card, a Christmas colouring book, and crayons. Colourful cards are a popular collection in the village, as they don’t have many pictures available.

The need

We need about 5 dollars for each child to be able to do this; 2 dollars for the card, colouring book and crayons, 2 dollars for the school celebration, and 1 dollar for transportation and admin. We have 531 children and 44 teachers in our 16 schools, so our total need for The Christmas Project – 2009 is 2875 dollars.

The action

If you would like to be part of The Christmas Project – 2009, you can wire a gift to our Norwegian non-profit partner: Joy Theresa Foundation.

Account number: 4214 06 87132

Account address: Joy Theresa Foundation, Per Toppe, Toppevegen 49, 5136 Mjølkeråen, Norway

SWIFT: SPTRNO22 IBAN: NO91 42130687 132

Please mark the donation “The Christmas Project – 2009″

We appreciate your support as we continually seek to bless the families of Burma.

“The two primary schools are running with full momentum with active and enthusiastic support from the local leaders and parents. No student has left the school since it started in June. Teachers are in high morale, with perfect attendances. We have not heard any bad news about sickness among the students or the teachers, which we normally have seen in the past years. Students’ attendance so far is good. Parents say that the children have already improved and will surely benefit a lot in their schooling. They express that this year is indeed extraordinary for the village people because their children get education in the same level as city children.”

Improved systems

The new systems we developed this June – like regular staff meeting, devotion once a week, weekly evaluation and planning, monthly school community gathering, strict inspection on teachers’ and students’ attendance, monthly tests, and awarding to outstanding students – have been really captivating to the villagers. One leader expressed: “We have a lot of parties these days as parents like to celebrate their outstanding students.”

Seeing results

The schools are a blessing to the villages in different areas: (1) it creates unity in the village; (2) children stay with their parents (some families who had already left the villages have resettled back; (3) some parents want to take back their children whom they have already sent to cities for education.

In short, the school projects are improving village life, equipping children, and making a great impact on the villages.

We arrived at the first village on May 3; we were warmly welcomed by the local leaders and teachers on the way. It was very interesting to see that every one who was in the village the time we arrived greeted and blessed us with their endless words of thanks. Our material supports had already arrived at the village before us and thus the children crowded us with happy faces and great excitements.

We had the meeting with the leaders, pastors and teachers of the village the same night. We asked them some questions as we prepared. The next day we had a grand opening service with the community feast. We photographed all the children teachers and the school. Some men told me that the day was one of the few most significant days in the village history. Children jumped, danced and shout with joy, parents were smiling; leaders were thrilled to say their words of thanks; teachers were swift enough in their works. It was really a happy day indeed for us also.

This school has 58 students. There are three hired private teachers and two government teachers. The village has a school committee who will be responsible for the smooth running of the school. We appointed one man as a village school supervisor who should attend the school at least half day a week to encourage and closely inspect all the works of the teachers.

The next day we went to the second village. We did every thing similar as we did in the first village. They butchered a cow and celebrated the opening service of the schools with grand community feast. The joy and happiness they had were inexpressible. People said their endless words of thanks. The youth group came up together for the works of the school, fencing and cleansing it. The children danced and jumped with their new umbrellas which we distributed. To their wish, the rain came the afternoon and they all got out to the open ground with their new umbrellas. What a fun day it was!

This school has 90 students. There are four hired private teachers and one government teacher. The village also has a school committee. One man was appointed as the school supervisor as in the first village.

Both in the two villages, we told them not to depend totally on us for the development of their schools, that we are just helping them to stand and work for their own development.

We believed that the villages benefit a lot in different areas from this project. It relieved the parents a lot in their expenses for their children education, of course they could have never done like this before; it give great excitements in their hearts; it also give them unity in other areas of their village development; makes families stay together, village populations stronger.

In May we conducted our third Teacher’s Seminar for the teachers in the Families Together project. The teachers came from their villages and spent three weeks in Yangon. A total of 21 teachers received teaching in these three weeks, and next year we are preparing to conduct two seminars.