news 2011

Global Neighbors Blog

The following is a speech written by Branden Thomas and delivered by Branden and Hailey Miller to students of the Wide Horizons program and students at the Teacher Preparation Centre.

Branden and Hailey are SIAST students ages 22 and 21. Their words of encouragement to these young people truly assures us that our future is in good hands.

Words of Encouragement

A true leader can recognize the flaws of the present and discover the tactics needed to challenge the future. They lead their people to positive change and overtake unhappiness. They develop strategy and dedicate time to teaching all who surround them. You are all leaders.

We are privileged to stand here and look into the eyes of the people who possess all the qualities of a true leader and let you know how truly proud of you we really are. You face countless challenges and hardships and you always choose to carry the positives with you for new challenges to come. There are so few words that can explain the value of your ability to teach and we’re uplifted by the pride and confidence you display which we can say, without doubt, will benefit each and every community you may pass these gifts upon.

In our short time together, you have managed to sing to our hearts and lift each one of our spirits and we are so thankful to have you as new lifelong friends. You continue to bring out the best in us and most importantly, you remind us all how even the seemingly smallest things can make the biggest difference.

We encourage you to never stop leading. Teach the less educated and help the misguided. You have the power to change the lives of all the people looking up to you; protect them from uncertainty. You have the power to unite your communities and teach them to find their inner strengths and their positive outlooks. We want you to always remember how much we believe in you and how much we applaud your unselfish enthusiasm.

We have learned so much from your affection and your patience and we are so grateful for our new friendships. Thank you for opening our eyes even wider. You should feel so proud of yourselves and please never forget how equally proud of you we are. Although the miles separating us seem infinite, we at Global Neighbors and Global Students Helping Students will always be just an email away. We fill fight with you and we will stand strong together with you, forever.

Written by: Branden Thomas

Presented by: Hailey Miller and Branden Thomas

 

 

Sunday December 4, 2011

Our Global Students Helping Students 2011 group has begun our Thailand portion of volunteering. We have been working really hard to make this possible for the past 18 months. It was our first full day in Mae Sot. We went to the Global Neighbors farm and made 100 family relief bags; each containing dried vegetable soup mix, shampoo, conditioner, 2 bars of soap, a towel and blanket. We also organized men’s, women’s and children’s clothing and distributed the supplies at Shwe Tha Zin School. All of the families were very grateful, bowing to us, and the children had a lot of fun with the balloons and candy we brought for them.

In the afternoon we were lucky enough to meet with the amazing students at Wide Horizons. This elite group of 22 students, chosen from over 500 applicants across Thailand and Burma, are trained for one year to become leaders in their communities. After school they have promised a year of service back in their communities to apply the new skills learned to help bring change for the Burmese people. These young adults had a huge impact on everyone in our group. The courage and motivation these students exhibit is inspirational. It was humbling to hear their stories of hardship and life, and see just how fortunate we truly are in Canada.

Calli Tracey

December 5^th

We fundraised to build a new dining hall for Rocky Mountain Two School, and today we assisted the construction crew in lifting the steel roof pieces into place. It was amazing to see these guys work. Even in the blazing sun and heat the construction crew was climbing around all over the roof with sometimes very little or nothing to hold on to. It was very impressive to see how much precision they had with their work as well. A little eyeballing and a few taps followed by some more eyeballing and the pieces were perfectly lined up, which was later confirmed as everything came together perfectly.

I personally spent some time on the highest piece of scaffolding and had a perfect bird’s eye view of the other travelers playing games and singing songs with the kids from the area. It was really nice to be able to see everyone, young and old playing and laughing together. While taking a break from working I walked over to where all the kids were playing and watched a young boy playing with a very simple yet difficult toy, which consisted of a spinning top and a piece of string tied to a bottle cap. He would get the top spinning and with the string fling it high in the air and catch it with either the bottle cap or his hand, where it would continue to spin. I had a great time watching in him show off his tricks and was very impressed by the skill he had, because as you can imagine spinning a top in sand is not the easiest task.

After lunch a small group of us returned to the construction site to continue working on the roof. I think I speak for everyone when I say how proud we are to see the building we spent so much time fundraising for starting to come together, knowing how much the people who use it will appreciate it and use it for many more years.

Jonathon Vis

December 6th

Today was an amazing day for all of us, but for me especially because it was my birthday! I am so happy I got to share this day with the group and with many other very special people here in Thailand.

Today we visited Mae Tao Clinic, which is a free health service provider and training center devoted to providing quality health care to the 6000-7000 displaced Burmese and ethnic people along the Thailand – Burma border. The clinic provided health care to 111,403 patients in 2010, which dropped since 2009 because of the security situation along the border. There are significant travel and security risks for people crossing the border to come to the clinic, but patients still make the journey because they know they will receive the best possible care. We got to tour this clinic and all its different units.

In the surgical unit we met a woman who just had one of her legs amputated below her knee due to a land mine. She has four children and her husband who was sitting next to her in a wheel chair had lost his leg 14 years prior. When asked about their future they said, "Our future is uncertain, but we must do whatever we can to survive. We will take it day by day." Their hope touched us all.

We also visited the maternity unit where there were two baby orphans, ages 2 months and the other only one day. One baby was premature and needed further care at the clinic and the other was born with a chance of HIV, passed down from his mother. Their mothers left them in the care of the clinic because they are unable to care for them. Their futures are uncertain.

We then got to distribute baby packages to the new and expecting mothers. They were so grateful for our generosity. I had a special gift with me to give out, which was a beautiful baby blanket that was made and donated by my boyfriend’s aunt and grandmother. I wanted to give this blanket to someone very special and today in the clinic I met a woman who just gave birth today, December 6th, to the most gorgeous twin babies. I knew then that these babies were meant to have this blanket for we share the same birthday and are both blessed to have a twin to share our lives with. This is the first birthday my twin and I have not celebrated together, but I am so excited to share this storey with her. It was truly a special moment for me and I will always cherish it and these twins in my heart.

One of our guides at the Mae Tao Clinic was a man named Maung Maung Tinn. He is an artist and author of "On the Border", a book of his art and writings, telling the stories of his life and the life of his people in Burma. His work is incredible and he was so kind to take us to a celebration to honor Dr. Cynthia Maung’s 52th Birthday. She is the founder of Mae Tao Clinic and was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. It was such an honor to meet her and to share my birthday with such an inspirational woman.

Our next stop was Agape School, which many children that live under the Friendship Bridge and along the riverbanks that separate Burma from Thailand attend. We were introduced to Dave, the founder of the school, who has dedicated his entire like to helping and providing education to these children. As we were leaving, they approached us with packages of fried rice for us to eat. It was truly beyond us how generous and grateful these people were to be giving us food when they have so little.

Dave took us to the border to distribute supplies to these children’s families. This distribution was very different from the others we have experienced. Never had we seen people argue over what package they received. We learned that they are not only facing poverty, but drug and sex trade is very common in this area and that their homes have been burned to the ground every April. It is hard to imagine the hardships they have faced.

Our last distribution of the day was to over 50 families who live and work at an orange farm. These workers, although much safer than some, are only paid 65-70 baht a day (roughly $2 Canadian). They only have enough to get by and yet they presented us with a large bag of oranges and pop to snack on while we distributed the supplies. Again we were taken back by their generosity. We also got to tour the farm and the fields of orange trees. It was an absolutely beautiful place.

I am so happy I got to share my birthday with some of the most amazing people I have ever met and who have made a huge impression on all of us. The greatest gift we received today was being able to give to over 150 families in need. It was the most special birthday I have ever had!

Renea Cave

December 7th

How often are we so truly selfless in life to be able to look at the freedoms and gifts we have received all around us and simply say "Thank you." We wake up to the furnishings that shield the light from our stubborn morning eyes and watch our clean water spiral down the drain, only to find the following days to be the same. We so often live our luxurious lives with glorified realities that I have grown to know stray even farther from the truth than I could have ever imagined.

I, among the others in our group, was privileged to see hundreds of children at Agape school who had dirty feet and unfit clothing sing to the Lord and to each other to begin their school day. I admire how important learning really is to these selfless infants and young, mature adults. We listened to more than one hundred students shout to some weeping eyes and to ALL of our hearts.

I heard "thank-you’s" from a number of children and was taken back by how astounding some of them could deliver their English gratitude’s. It was then, unfortunately, brought to my attention that impeccable English speaking students often learn the language from their exposure (and involvement) in sex and drug trading. These children are not children. Most, if not all, have been stripped of their innocence in one way or another and hide behind smiles that cover up the most terrifying things that happen when they leave the barbwire fences surrounding their school. But they appreciate us being there and we are only touching the tip of the iceberg with how much there is left to do in order to help; Things as easy as listening, sharing stories of our homes and lives but most importantly, showing them what affection and love can really mean from strangers wanting to make a difference.

I was fortunate enough to get to teach a grade four/five class English at Rocky Mountain 2 today. The respect I felt while they stood for me and waited until I reached the front is something unprecedented to my life. They sat quietly and patiently waited with looks of concern, eagerness and excitement! We played games like Hang Man, sang Old McDonald Had a Farm and drew pictures of our favourite animals. I taught them a bit about Canada and its seasons but the thing I remember the most, was hearing myself thinking of anything I could share that would actually benefit these hard-working students. I tried to be enthusiastic and joyful but most of all, I tried to teach with encouragement and humor. Laughter within Thailand’s migrant schools and refugee camps acts as the shield from their tears and misfortune and I hoped to bring smiles to their faces which evoked the exact opposite. Upon leaving the classroom, the grins that called out "thank you teacher" reminded me of how the smallest gestures hold the ability to produce the biggest rewards.

A few members of our group were given the opportunity to paint and install various things at a center designed to teach accomplished students to become teachers. Learning is going to be the key that will make the difference in Thailand and the potential teachers are so few and far between, literally.

I guess the biggest lesson and most important message I gathered today came from a song sung by the children at Agape school. The river, although small, provides life. It feeds the trees, hydrates the people and the animals and maintains a flow of life. I want to live the rest of my life in that manner. I want to educate people, provide them with hope and belonging and encourage a new way to love. As a river I will be small but have the ability to make some of the biggest impacts. Imagine what we could accomplish as an endless ocean.

Branden Thomas.

December 8th

Today we went to the Mae La refugee camp to take various supplies to the many people living in the camp. The camp has a population of approximately 46, 000 people in a land area that is less than ¼ the size of the city of Moose Jaw. Many of the people in the camp have refugee status and registered numbers with the United Nations. Unfortunately no new numbers have been issued to the refugees since 2005 so any people who have entered the camp since then are unable to be sponsored to leave Thailand and come overseas for a better life.

We first went to a school run by a man named Henry. He is an amazing person who has a Thai passport but lives in the camp to take care of the children. He is a very courageous man and has bettered the life of so many students. There we used fabric paint to create shirts for one another and the idea of the exercise was to make a shirt and trade it with someone else. They are amazing artists as well as singers. They sang English Christmas Carols as well as traditional Karen songs. We distributed scientific calculators to them to help them further their studies. After leaving there we headed further into the camp by motor cycle taxis to take us to a traditional Burmese restaurant located in the camp.

After that we continued to where the veterans live. We took relief supplies that consisted of tooth brushes, tooth paste, a towel and various other hygiene products. In the veterans building they care for a total of 16 people all of whom are handicapped most of them being blind and many of them dismembered from landmines. Some of them have family that live in the camp and so they only spend the day there and are able to go home each night where others are not so fortunate and have to live there permanently.

We then travelled to an orphanage run by two remarkable individuals named Clasper and Arthur. They have taken in Burmese refugees who have lost their parents and made the dangerous trip over the border. Currently there are 148 residents aged 7 to over 23 as well as three of their own children. We went on a tour of their home and into one of the girl’s dorm to see how they make traditional Karen shirts – a task that may take two weeks to complete one shirt. We then assembled into the church where the children sang for us. Their singing was beautiful and sounded like a choir of angels. Even if you are not religious it felt as if there was a greater power in the building at that moment. They sang silver bells and other Christmas songs as well as Karen songs that were so amazing it moved many of us to tears. To have gone through such hardships and sing and be able to touch so many hearts is so powerful. Once they had finished their songs they invited us to see where they all sleep as there are many different buildings each of which sleeps approximately 20 children. My groups of girls were aged 16 to 20 and 19 of them slept in the one open room on bamboo flooring. We brought puzzles for them to do and they had never seen one before and worked together so well to put the pictures together. They also put tanaka on our faces which is a combination of sunscreen and makeup. Usually consists of a circle on each cheek and one on your forehead. Being pale is a thing of beauty. It was so hard to leave these children and young adults as the camp is lined with barbed wire and the only way out is to be sponsored and you cannot be sponsored without refugee status and a UN number and so they grow up there and can only work inside the confinement of the barbed wire fences.

Our day finished at a Karen village where we brought food for the villagers to prepare us another Karen meal, we set up small mats on a wooden floor and put up mosquito nets as the area we were in is a malaria zone. We played cards and also colored with the village children until the meal was prepared.

Saturday, December 10th

Today was especially meaningful and eye opening for me. A few of us went to the morning market to pick up beans, oil, rice and other foods for the distribution later that morning. We all went to the farm to organize a bunch of women’s clothing, men’s clothing, kids’ clothing, shoes and toiletries. Erin and Denton had been warning us about how difficult this giveaway would be, but words are nothing compared to seeing and feeling the desperate and hopeless look in some of the peoples’ eyes. This exchange of emotion took place right next to their innocent children playing right next to what is an imaginable, if not impossible situation for Canadians.

Driving on the winding, bumpy roads of this beautifully green paradise, you could never fathom the shocking result of decades of war and poverty just around the next bend. I am a pretty strong person, someone who is usually leaned on and who seldom does the leaning, this hit hard.

We arrived at the Mae Sot dump and set up our stations in the blazing sun, which was quickly shaded from us with a tarp from the teachers of the school. The distribution was very quick and organized. The family’s came up one by one to receive our donations. Some people looked happy to see us, while others seemed ashamed and timid. I can’t imagine the emotions that you would feel being in their situation. I didn’t know what exactly that situation was until Erin gave me some background info and answered, as best she could, my questions. The situation’s history and reasons still confuse me because there is never a simple answer and resolution.

Burma has been in a civil war for decades and because of the violence and danger within the country, a lot of its people have fled to Thailand. They used to be able to receive refugee status, but for some reason, that has ceased to continue. A lot of the people who have fled are illegal in Thailand and they either have to live in refugee camps if there is room, where you cannot work outside of them and you cannot leave, similar to jail I think, or they can risk getting thrown in jail, or sent back to Burma and live outside of the refugee camps. When they live outside of the camps, they can work and try to make a good life for their kids and family, but it is very dangerous.

If there is no room in the refugee camps, many families have no choice but to live at the dump. They live here so they can collect recyclables and goods that have been thrown out and make money from selling them. Wow, that idea is unimaginable for me to grasp. Having no choice other than living at a garbage dump, make your home out of trash and dig through it all day to sell it for not at all much money to feed your family. Trapped is how I think it feels. I do not understand how a country can create such a dangerous situation to make its own people flee to another country where they have no choice but to dig through garbage to make a living. Wow is all I could think, if my blank mind could be called thinking, this was difficult to process because of the awesome country I can call my safe, fair home.

We left the dump to go for lunch. I don’t think I have ever been so thankful to be able to not only eat lunch, but to go anywhere my heart desired without being in danger. After lunch we headed to Rocky Mountain 2 four our second and last visit. Rocky Mountain 2 is a school for Burmese kids who live near, or for orphans who live there. This is where we helped build a dining hall, a bit in labour and also with the money we fundraised. We were supposed to build a school, but something went wrong and that fell through for now. Last time we were there, some of us worked on the dining hall while others, including myself, played games with the kids. I think I realized how much I love kids and how well I connect with them. I had a couple things to give out to the kids so I was very excited to see them again, little rascals.

Last summer there was a tragic accident out at my family’s lake spot and my 17 month old niece, Lily, passed away. It was and still is incredibly hard each and every second of each and every day. My sister, her mom, is just now parting with most of her clothes and toys and wanted me to give out some personally to a little girl. I had a little girl picked out already. This girl is so adorable with curly black hair and is small enough to fit the dress I had. I walked up to this shy little girl and showed her this pretty red dress and her eyes just lit up. I showed her she can have it and she had to biggest smile! I put it over her clothes and she just stared down at it smiling. I could tell she felt so special and so did I. I thought that it would be really difficult for me to give it away, but it was a great feeling. I made her day and hopefully she will remember it for a long time, I know I will remember that forever.

That evening we met with Mong Mong Tin, a local Burmese artist, for supper. I couldn’t hear much of what he was saying during supper, but after, he spoke to all of us about growing up within the dangerous country of Burma. He explained the violence and being scared for his own life and his family’s lives while running from stray bullets. Just think about that for a moment, having to run and hoping your parents and siblings were not killed. He told us that when he finally decided to leave Burma, he was arrested and beaten because he was believed to be a spy. Eventually he was let go and is now living in Mae Sot, right at the Burmese border where he works at Mae Tau Clinic for Burmese refugees and people and is also painting. His art is so wonderful, the water color paintings are so incredibly detailed and the acrylics could be mistaken for photographs. Not only is he wonderfully skilled, he can express so much emotion and sadness, the same emotion in the eyes of the families from the dump, in the faces and expressions of the people in the paintings. It was a great honour to have met Mong Mong Tin and to have some of his art forever.

I am so thankful to have been born in Canada. My country is a wonderful, safe place and I am proud to call myself Canadian. We have so much opportunity and my whole experience on this trip has humbled me. I appreciate my country, community and family a lot more now. I have seen and been part of something most twenty year olds haven’t and I am definitely going to continue in some way to help others. I think to truly be happy, you must make others happy, put yourself in someone else’s shoes, have empathy and feel. That was my greatest fear for this journey, feeling the emotion of the reality of such tough situations, but it felt good to open myself to it. I had taught myself to block

things out because there are a lot of things that are too hard to handle. I will not do that anymore; to live you need to feel.

Shawna Holmes

 Dec 11/ 2011

Free Day

Everyone was doing their own thing for the day before we had the get together with the students from TPC and Wide Horizons. The farewell was one of the best nights I could’ve ever imagined. The feeling you got from walking into that building was incredible. Once everyone had arrived at the Teacher Preparation Centre (TPC) you got an overall feeling of friendship and happiness!

Once everyone was there, we got up and formed a circle so we could all introduce ourselves. Everyone was so open and happy to meet everyone else.

Once the circle of introductions was done we sat back down and mingled. We also had supper.

After supper the farewell continued. The TPC students started it off with a song. Next the Wide Horizons students did a cultural dance. They had made a goat out of paper and told a story through the dance. You could throw money to the goat and he would eat the money.

Next we were up with our song. Tyrel was on guitar and the rest of us singing. We decided to sing "This Little Light of Mine". We gave out candles to everyone and once we started to sing one person lit the candle and passed it on to 2 or 3 people and those people did the same until the entire room was glowing in the candle light. It was amazing to see everyone catch on to the lighting of the candles and after they were all lit the students and other guests started to wave them in the air as we finished the song.

After our song the Wide Horizons students sang. All of these students are such amazing singers. They blow you away and touch your heart.

After Wide Horizons sang, Brandon and Hailey gave an encouraging speech to everyone. It had a lot of people tearing up and crying.

After all the songs and dances we got one more surprise. The students wanted to sing one more song, the Friendship Song. They got everyone to get up and dance and as everyone was dancing, anyone and everyone came up to you and gave you a high five and everyone joined in. There wasn’t one person that didn’t have a smile ear to ear.

For me personally, this was one of the best nights I have ever experienced and I will never forget the feeling I had, I honestly did not want the night to end.

Nicole Giles

*****************************************************

A true leader can recognize the flaws of the present and discover the tactics needed to challenge the future. They lead their people to positive change and overtake unhappiness. They develop strategy and dedicate time to teaching all who surround them. You are all leaders.

We are privileged to stand here and look into the eyes of the people who possess all the qualities of a true leader and let you know how truly proud of you we really are. You face countless challenges and hardships and you always choose to carry the positives with you for new challenges to come. There are so few words that can explain the value of your ability to teach and we’re uplifted by the pride and confidence you display which we can say, without doubt, will benefit each and every community you may pass these gifts upon.

In our short time together, you have managed to sing to our hearts and lift each one of our spirits and we are so thankful to have you as new lifelong friends. You continue to bring out the best in us and most importantly, you remind us all how even the seemingly smallest things can make the biggest difference.

We encourage you to never stop leading. Teach the less educated and help the misguided. You have the power to change the lives of all the people looking up to you; protect them from uncertainty. You have the power to unite your communities and teach them to find their inner strengths and their positive outlooks. We want you to always remember how much we believe in you and how much we applaud your unselfish enthusiasm.

We have learned so much from your affection and your patience and we are so grateful for our new friendships. Thank you for opening our eyes even wider. You should feel so proud of yourselves and please never forget how equally proud of you we are. Although the miles separating us seem infinite, we at Global Neighbors and Global Students Helping Students will always be just an email away. We fill fight with you and we will stand strong together with you, forever.

Written by: Branden Thomas

Presented by: Hailey Miller and Branden Thomas

Words of Encouragement

December 11, 2011

 

A true leader can recognize the flaws of the present and discover the tactics needed to challenge the future. They lead their people to positive change and overtake unhappiness. They develop strategy and dedicate time to teaching all who surround them. You are all leaders.

We are privileged to stand here and look into the eyes of the people who possess all the qualities of a true leader and let you know how truly proud of you we really are. You face countless challenges and hardships and you always choose to carry the positives with you for new challenges to come. There are so few words that can explain the value of your ability to teach and we’re uplifted by the pride and confidence you display which we can say, without doubt, will benefit each and every community you may pass these gifts upon.

In our short time together, you have managed to sing to our hearts and lift each one of our spirits and we are so thankful to have you as new lifelong friends. You continue to bring out the best in us and most importantly, you remind us all how even the seemingly smallest things can make the biggest difference.

We encourage you to never stop leading. Teach the less educated and help the misguided. You have the power to change the lives of all the people looking up to you; protect them from uncertainty. You have the power to unite your communities and teach them to find their inner strengths and their positive outlooks. We want you to always remember how much we believe in you and how much we applaud your unselfish enthusiasm.

We have learned so much from your affection and your patience and we are so grateful for our new friendships. Thank you for opening our eyes even wider. You should feel so proud of yourselves and please never forget how equally proud of you we are. Although the miles separating us seem infinite, we at Global Neighbors and Global Students Helping Students will always be just an email away. We fill fight with you and we will stand strong together with you, forever.

Written by: Branden Thomas

Presented by: Hailey Miller and Branden Thomas

Work Team February 2011

Feb  14, 2011

Our work tour was up and at it early this morning, departing for the GNCI farm to sort supplies for our distributions.  We gathered boxes of teacher and student packages to take to Prahetta School and Hope School.

 Prahetta is one of the schools GNCI is building new at this time.  Hope is another school we are looking at building as well, as the conditions are very poor.  Hope School is located one hour from Mae Sot and doesn’t receive many NGO visitors due to the location of this school.  This school has 139 children from Nursery to grade 4. 

After sorting all the supplies of clothing etc, we took a tour of the farm to see what crops the farm hands were tending to.  The catfish ponds, which we had filled last year were surrounded by Sugar Cane and Banana trees.  We saw Mango trees which were planted last year as well.  We noticed that these trees were already producing fruit.  As we walked through the fields we watched the farm hands tending to the onion, garlic, green bean and white radish fields.

As we walked further we looked at the stream that usually feeds the water to our fields.  It is an extremely dry season this year and the water has been dammed by the Thai Government to conserve what there is.  We will be unable to put in another crop this season due to the drought.

To help provide a source of water for the next growing season, GNCI has dug two large holding ponds.  

At the back of the property we have a boarding house that provides room and board to 15 students, 3 girls and 12 boys.  These students attend Hsa Thoo Lei and CDC school in Mae Sot.  These school provided a better education for these particular students.  The farm has a cook and supervisor which care for the students.   We met the lady’s and they showed us around the dorm.

Prior to departing from the farm, we went by the Training Facility to see what the apprenticeship students were working on.  They were busy building templates for furniture for a hotel they received an order from and the welders were busy welding.

Our next stop was the Thai School   Ban Hoa Fai , which GNCI is in the process of  building.  It is coming along very well.  This school has 140 students that attend.  We met with Mr. Prakasit, the School Director which is also on the Ministry of Education Board.  GNCI has an agreement with the Thai Education Department that this school will continue to provide education to all races.  We are happy to say this school provides education to 50% of Burmese& Karen students.

 After lunch the lady’s went for groceries for the next day’s events.  The men ran errands picking up paint etc for the chores we plan on doing during the next few days at Hsa Thoo Lei. 

Then it was time to meet with Paw Ray, the school administrator for an update on the 38 schools she manages.  We were lucky to have a few minutes to walk through the halls and peak in on the children while they were in class.  We recognized some of the students we had met on earlier trips and looked forward to end o the day so that we could get acquainted once again.

 

The day was busy and rewarding.  Prior to bedtime we gathered together to finish up the final preparations for tomorrow.