Recycling Workshop

 

Here at Freedom House we recycle a lot. Nothing will end in the trash can. For everything we'll find a next purpose.

Back at home, for us that's Holland, we wouldn't think about saving a broken parasol. Why save it if you don't use it anymore...? Just buy a new one! During our trip trough Thailand we already saw all the "trash" people keep under their houses. They save e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g, because it might be useful in the future. First we thought "why don't they just throw it away, it looks awful" especially at holiday bungalows. Now we know they really might use it again.
I, as a teacher primary school, do feel now a little bit ashamed as I think of all the papers and things I have thrown away back home, just because I didn't have a good place to keep it.

We see now that you can do a lot with a little bit of creative thinking. Another volunteer, Madz, for example, was ironing plastic bags. We'll use the hard plastic tonight for making earrings.
Or what about using colorful pages from magazines to pack presents from the shop?

If you save a lot, you need a lot space to keep it. Because there was almost no more space and we wanted to teach the students about recycling, we decided to have a workshop about it.  So last Tuesday, 10th of November there was a recycling workshop by CCT.  We showed the students what you can do with trash that you normally will throw away.  One of the volunteers explained what recycling is about and how it works.  Then the students had to write down why they think recycling is important and how you can use trash again.
There were many good ideas, like "putting all groceries in one bag at the market keeps our environment clean".

Before the student started to make things from empty bottles, cans, paper boxes and many other things we showed some examples because the student are not familiar with these kind of projects.

They enjoyed making things. There were many different and beautiful things made. 
Time went fast. Like they say "time flies if you're having fun".

We hope the students are now inspired to use things again and again...

Dorien and Judith, current volunteers (six weeks)

Putting Studies into Action

University is great. It educates us, it gives us the credentials to work good jobs and do great things with our lives, it looks good on our resume. But how long can you sit in a classroom in the middle of nowhere Ohio and actually learn about the conflict and strife in Africa, or Mecca and Israel, two of the holiest places in the world for Muslims and Jews, or about the horrible situation in Burma? How can you really learn about these things when you are so far removed from them and across the globe from them? Last year, sitting in my nice, heated dorm room as the snow fell outside of my window onto the beautiful Kenyon College campus, I had this realization. I am a history and religious studies double major learning about events that seem so distant to me. I had to get out, I had to study in a different country and experience and witness the religion and history of a country first hand.

I sent out my study abroad applications to Israel and Thailand - two places I had visited in the past, but only briefly and as a vacationer, but both places I loved. In Israel I could study my own religion and be engulfed in the incredible spirituality that makes Israel such a Holy land, for not only Jews, but many other religions and people as well. In Thailand I could study a religion different from my own, one I knew little about. I would also be exposed to more volunteer opportunities, really getting my hands dirty and having the experience I wanted. There is also such an interesting history of Thailand - not only is the culture so deeply rooted in past history and traditions, but I also find it fascinating how Thai history is so closely related to other countries close-by. Obviously, I ended up choosing Thailand and after telling my program I wanted to be placed somewhere teaching English, I was ecstatic when I learned I would not only be teaching English, but I would be teaching English at an educational center for Burmese Refugees. Embarrassingly, I knew little about the situation in Burma. I asked my dad, a history and politics bluff, for some information and together we did research on the issues there. Incredibly saddened after doing this research, I hoped that by taking a Burma/Myanmar politics class while studying here in Thailand, learning about the social and political issues in Thailand, and volunteering at Freedom House, I would not only learn about the situation through academics, but I would truly realize the situation through working first hand with those who had and who continued to suffer from the devastating problems in Burma. I also new that instead of merely gaining knowledge about the situation, I could actually effect someone's life, even if it was just on a small scale.

Since I have been here in Thailand, taking the class on Burma/Myanmar politics with a professor who is a political activist who has been exiled from Burma, taking another class on all the social and political issues in Thailand - which of course includes the situation in Burma - and volunteering here at Freedom House, I truly feel like I am gaining something much more valuable than had I been sitting in the library at my college in Ohio learning about things that I could never truly know, unless experiencing them first hand. So here I am, feeling like I can actually give something back to those who I have read books and articles about. Now I do not only know their history, I know them as real live people as well.

I have only been here for two months, but my time here at Freedom House has been truly amazing. I love working with the children - they are bright, beautiful, and above all else, they are children and what child should be denied an education and the chance to just be a kid? Why should their ethnicity or "mother- country" (if you can call Burma that) dictate their ability to receive a solid education? Freedom House is incredible because it does not only give these children access to an education, but it allows them to just goof around, to be children, to have fun. At home, they have to take on many responsibilites, responsibilites that I could never imagine having had when I was ten years old. At Freedom House, they can just be little kids. To me, this is so incredibly valuable.

I know that giving back isn't about making yourself feel good, but I cannot help but feel so lucky and privileged that I am able to have this experience -- incorporating my studies into actual experiences and hopefully touching someone's life.

Here are some photos I took of the children... just being kids!

Ting - bright, artistic and the only boy in class... in other words, the flirt and trouble-maker! He is a great kid.

 

This is Dow - Dow is shy but has so much love and effection for everyone. She is so beautiful and a quick learner

Mai - Mai is very intelligent and her English is really excelling. She is a leader and the other children look up to her. She is so sweet as well.

This is On - On is silly and fun and really enjoys learning. She always brings great energy and excitement to class and her passion for learning as well as art is amazing to watch.















Knowledge + experience = the best education!

-Rachel

Peace Cranes

I have always admired the Japanese tradition of origami - those teeny tiny pieces of paper folded to create beautiful birds, flowers and animals are awe inspiring - but I have never managed to successfully fold anything more intricate than an envelope. That all changed however, when I decided that Freedom House should be the place for an original origami design - paper crane earrings.

Paper cranes represent peace and freedom, especially for children. They are a symbol of the children's peace movement and are folded as a wish for peace. Anybody from any background, living conditions or education background can fold paper cranes - they are fun, easy and can be made from any sort of paper. Many children all over the world have folded paper cranes to represent their voice and desire for freedom.

The peace crane movement began in Japan after the 1945 bombing of Hiroshima. A young girl, Sadako Sasaki, was 2 years old at the time of the bombing and was only one mile from the spot where the bomb landed. As a result of her exposure to the a-bomb she developed and died from leukemia. Before she died she attempted to fold 1000 paper cranes, believing that the gods would grant her wish to get well if she did so.

Since the story of Sadako became known, a campaign to build a memorial for all the children killed by the atomic bomb started and eventually a memorial was built in Hiroshima. Every year, children all over the world fold peace cranes and send them to the monument to represent their voice for peace and freedom.

The symbol of the peace crane - for freedom and peace - is something that all the students of Freedom House wish for. Each crane is folded with a wish for something they desire, and to fashion these wishes into an earring that will be worn from Thailand to Toronto means that their dreams and desires and wishes will spread all over the world.

The earrings Freedom House students and volunteers make are fashioned from recycled paper and each crane is unique. They are available to purchase from the Free Bird Cafe shop and come in two sizes - 20baht for small and 29baht for long earrings. Students are already thinking up new designs they want to make into jewellery that we will keep you all updated on!

Madz

Shan New Year Celebration

Shan New Year was celebrated Nov. 17 this year.  It is on a lunar calendar and is now the year 2104.  So this year at Thai Freedom House we got to celebrate 5 New Year Days!  The traditional Western Jan. 1, then the Chinese New Year, Thai New Year and finally the Shan New Year; they know how to party in Asia! 

Our Shan New Year party was organized by our new assistant director; Nang Yomt One.  She informed us of all the traditional foods that needed to be served and organized some song and dance for the students to perform.  All of the students families were invited to come and a lot of them were able to.  We had a great afternoon and evening of Shan culture appreciation.  A lot of the students commented that it was nice to have a place to celebrate like a family since normally they would be celebrating with their whole village and extended family.  I am glad that we got to share this together as our own Freedom House Family.

A student looking at our Shan culture display.

Some of the students and family members in front of Thai Freedom House

Singing some Shan traditional songs.

Krissy's Thai Travelogue!

After a long flight from Germany to Thailand, I finally arrived in Chiang Mai on the 5^th of September, excited but nervous at the same time. I did not know what to expect, how the work would be in such a different country and how the students would behave, so I entered Freedom House on a Monday with mixed feelings and was surprised when Lisa, the director, came around the corner, with a big, friendly smile on her face! My first day at Freedom House was pretty much a day of orientation. Lisa tried to tell me and Rachel, another volunteer from California, all of the problems of the Shan State and the issues children and adults have to face there everyday.

A lot of this was completely new for me. I knew that Burma had a lot of social issues and that a lot of cruelty was going on there, but to hear that kids at the age of 12 finish school and the boys become soldiers, was really something I had never heard before. Furthermore, Lisa tried to tell us more about the students and their stories. It was really interesting to hear about all that, but it is a totally different experience when the kids and young adults finally arrive for class and you get to know them by yourself!

The younger kids are really energetic and behave like kids do, I really could not believe that they actually have a hard time living here. It was fun to watch them while they were playing and observe the English class for the first time. The young adults seemed to be a little bit shy at first, but also seemed really curious about learning English. After my first day I was pretty tired, but excited to think about working there for the next 3 months!

The first week was surprisingly long, but really good. Lisa told me about the fundraiser on the 26^th of September and so for the last weeks Madz, a volunteer from Australia, Lisa and I prepared a lot of things for the event. I learned to fold little origami cranes (I’m still practicing!) and how to make earrings with them (I loved doing earrings!). I also made paper bags for selling nuts at the event and besides all this I learned how to prepare a class and got used to all the teaching materials at the school.

The first days I was pretty busy with the fundraiser and with helping to prepare English classes for the kids, but soon I was asked to teach the lower class young adults…

I started to talk to John, one of the English teachers, who is teaching the higher class adults and he explained to me what was important to keep in mind. So I started to plan everything for my class on Monday. I never taught before, so I was quite excited to see how it would go. My first lesson was good and I liked teaching a lot. The next weeks, I planned new activities for them and teaching got easier and easier with each lesson.

Even with teaching, I was even more excited to see how the fundraiser would be, as the date came closer and closer. We all prepared the last things for the fundraiser, for example some more masks (because the fundraiser was all about masks and what you connect with it).

By the time we did the last steps for Saturday evening, I got to know a lot of people. The whole time that I’ve been working at Freedom House, I’ve met a lot of people, from all over the world and all are very open and fun. Finally, Saturday came and Lisa, me and some other volunteers who offered their help went to the Jazz Club to set everything up and prepare the exhibition for the night.

The Fundraiser was a great success and it was so much fun. We sold a lot of earrings and masks, which the kids made. The live music was great and a lot of people showed up. Now, I cannot wait for the next fundraiser and while I am waiting I still enjoy preparing the classes, teaching and also enjoy the art classes on Friday and different workshops such as Yoga or learning how to paint landscapes.

Furthermore I really recommend the Free Bird Café. Some people might think that I can have every food and drink for free, because I am a volunteer, but I have to pay for it and I am totally fine with it, because as a non for profit school we really make sure that the donations are used carefully and all sales from the Cafe go to support the school. But anyway, I really love the food there (they have organic food!) and all the smoothies (my favorite one is “black and white”).

I am so happy I came to Chaing Mai, Thailand and absolutely love the decision I made to work here! It is really a great place to be and apart from work also a lot of fun! I will see how the next weeks are going…

See you

Lisa and I at the fundraiser event.

Xoxox Krissy

My volunteer experience at Thai Freedom House

I knew from the first day that I arrived at Freedom House that 3 weeks would not be enough for me. The feeling in that space is amazing both during the day within the Café and at night in the school. On the first night I didn’t know what to expect when the children arrived, I was greeted with Sawadee Ka (Thai for hello) from the cutest bunch of kids. I was extremely surprised at the way the children where presented as I had seen footage of the construction camps and slums within which most of them lived. The students where neatly dressed and the girls had the prettiest braids in their hair. The students take great pride in presenting themselves for class. But it was the big smiles across their faces that amazed me the most.

Now my time has come to an end and looking back, I have experienced and learnt a lot within the past 3 weeks from the Director Lisa, Nong (who works in the café) and all the students at Freedom House. I was lucky enough to spend a day out of Freedom House with Nong. We went to the Zoo which was amazing just to watch how excited she was by the trip. We then went and had lunch at Nimmenhamen (an upscale part of the city) and then to Iberry for desert. This was Nong’s first time in this area of town and we had the most wonderful day. To be able to experience some simple pleasures with her was fantastic. I am now sure that I want to come back to Freedom House for a longer period of time and that way I can bring my son back to share in the experience.

The work that Lisa is doing within the school is amazing and inspirational. Her energy for life oozes out of her and the moment the students walk into the school you can see that they feel loved and cared for. Freedom House is an amazing place and a great learning experience. If you have the time and any experience to share, I highly recommend volunteering.

Here is a photo on me (on the right) having lunch with some other volunteers at Free Bird Cafe.

Watershed: Burma News Update

Two weekends ago, after class on Thursday night at Freedom House, I boarded an overnight bus to Bangkok for the weekend (screening Rocky, dubbed in Thai). When I returned to the street of the guesthouse I was staying at on Saturday, there was a cluster of people clogging traffic that turned out to be a momentary audience for student demonstrators for a Free Burma group. It was the 21st anniversary of the 8.8.88 uprising - the height of the days of protests in Burma (August 8, 1988) and the launch of a massive strike. The uprising swelled across Burmese land into the ethnic minority states, with university students leading the charge, joined by monks, teachers, children, professionals, farmers, government workers, and even some military personnel. It was the beginning of a persistent struggle for democracy that spans longer than my own life, punctuated only by occasional eruptions of dissent from under the military’s blanket of suppression and seasoned with the death, disappearance, or imprisonment of thousands of activists, brothers, friends, wives. The students I saw in Bangkok were Thai, but demonstrating in a tourist-infested area with English signs that quotes from democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi that implored: “Please use your liberty to promote ours”.

It has been 19 years since her party – the National League for Democracy – won in a democratic election and the military junta placed her under house arrest. Tuesday, August 11, 2009, the new court decision was made: Aung San is to be under house arrest for another 18 months, a tidily convenient period to keep her out of the 2010 election the junta is planning. Until then, when the winds may change with whatever events and outcomes emerge from the gathering storm clouds of that election, we might expect to continue receiving truckloads of new refugees turned migrant workers and prostitutes, bartered on the streets of Bangkok.

You can join the international outcry against the sentence and for her release with action messages from sites like Amnesty International: http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/siteapps/advocacy/index.aspx?c=jhKPIXPCIoE&b=2590179&template=x.ascx&action=12656.