News

FUNDRAISING

Lisa Wehbe is running the 2009 British 10k London run with the aim to raise awareness and money for Chance International through sponsorship and says "Training for this 10k has not been a completely selfless act - every time I put my running shoes on, I am filled with the rewarding feeling that I am doing something positive for this great cause, and of course I'm getting pretty fit too! I also hope that others will feel encouraged to complete their own sponsorship events for Chance International. Try a run, walk, swim, bike ride or anything you can think of! Wish me luck!"

If you would like to sponsor Lisa and help Chance International, please send us an email info@chanceinternational.net

NEWS OF THE CHILDREN

Lisminiar, Lam Assam Village, Banda Aceh Region, Indonesia

This is Lismaniar, aged 10. She is one of 5 children in her family. Her parents work in the brick factory, did not go to secondary school and are unable to help her with her homework. She attends every class, even those which are above her level, but always with her younger sister in her arms.

When we first spoke to her in 2008 asking what she wanted to do when she grew up, she said she had no dreams. This year she asked Natascha Barrymore whether she thought that if she studied hard enough, she could become a doctor.

Excursion to the Mata-ie Hillside Water and Adventure Park, May 2009

We were able to take the children of Lam Asan out on an excursion to a water park. Most children have not left the village for more than three months, some never. All children were victims of the tsunami and most have had no contact with water since that day. Our aim is to try and rebuild confidence with water as well as rewarding them for all their hard work at school. Although very hesitant to enter the water at first, they all ended up having a wonderful time. We had a job to get them out at the end as one would have with a child anywhere in the world.

On the way to the park, the children saw monkeys, the whole of Banda Aceh from the mountain, illegal logging and rubbish dumps, and were given a quick tour of the city. This has appeared in their drawings which now feature: cut away mountains, trees being logged, rubbish on roads and houses not only many stories high, but also different colours (all NGO tsunami houses are one story and the same colour).

This excursion confirmed that not one child in the village can swim. In a village devastated by the tsunami and with a lot of fish ponds we believe it is extremely important to introduce swimming lessons. The logistics and safety factor of taking so many children who can not swim to the beach makes it impossible. However a solution is an inflatable swimming pool in the village where lessons can be conducted.

Child by Child

The mother of a 7 year old deaf and dumb girl asked if we would accept her in our program, as she cannot attend school because of her special needs. One of our policies is never to refuse a child, so of course she has been accepted. She has formed an attachment to Natascha over the last couple of weeks and needs a lot of reassurance and encouragement. Natascha makes a huge effort to give as much one to one time as possible in the school. Even though her mother asked to send her, it is a struggle to get her out of the brick factory. Natascha now goes and collects her from there every day and says "her little face lights up with a cheeky grin each time I come. When she first came last week she could not hold a pen, she had never been taught. Last class she wrote her first A and B alone. her first letters."