The English School of Mui Ne in Vietnam
A group of seven professional Swedish women in Singapore founded the charity organization “Together for Charity” a year ago. They realized that their life situation in affluent Singapore are extremely privileged compared to that of most people in the neighbouring countries, and they wanted to make a difference for those less fortunate.
“We wanted to change the lives of children who are less fortunate, by changing our own behaviours in our daily lives. We also wanted to show others how fun and easy it can be to give a little or a lot to those with less. We wanted to find simple ways to contribute and then make them a part of our and many other people’s lives,” they tell at their website.
The first year they have worked with two projects: The English School of Mui Ne in Vietnam and the Deak Kum Pa Orphanage, Luang Prabang in Laos.
The projects have been chosen on four criteria:
• Asia based.
• Support children.
• Involve Education.
• Be run by someone trustworthy and with strong commitment to their project .
The English school of Mui Ne (ES-MN ) is a non-profit organization committed to supporting the young, ambitious and less fortunate children of Mui Ne village. It was founded in the spring of 2007 by Marcus Robell and Nguyen Ho Lam Vy. Marcus visited Vietnam earlier that year to compete in a surfing competition held in the strong winds of Mui Ne. During his stay Marcus made friends with some of the local children working at the guest house where he was staying. The children told him they were very eager to learn English and Marcus managed to teach them some basic skills in the short time he was there. When Marcus returned to Sweden he wanted to continue to support them in their ambitions, and the idea of the English School of Mui Ne was born.
ES-MN invites children among the poorest in the village to learn English in order to be able to make a living in the future in the growing tourism industry. As they expect these children to be able to support their poor families in the future, they carefully choose the neediest candidates to admit – and always just one sibling from each family.
Deak Kum Pa Orphanage is run by the Lao government. It is home to over 550 children, between the ages of 6 to 17. The orphanage functions as a school as well as a home. Deak Kum Pa is supported by a limited fundraising drive within the Lotus Villas hotel in Luang Prabang, run by Australian Andrew Brown, whom “Together for Charity” cooperates with.
Laos is a very poor country and children who have lost one or both parents have a very bleak outlook for the future. For them the orphanage provides a ticket to a better life. It is these children’s best opportunity to stay healthy and get an education hence a shot at providing for themselves and their families. For some it is their only chance of survival.
“Together for Charity” is based on personal relationships. On their website it is possible to print gift cards, using donations to the organisation as a gift. Together for charity have no administrative costs, except for PayPal’s and bank fees.
