Letter from Banteay Prieb
03
Vol.16
When I stood in front of the whiteboard in that little classroom for the first time, I was only a fresh high school graduate, new to Cambodia, new to Banteay Prieb and even new to my own independence. I could barely speak anything more than “hello” and “ thank you” in Khmer, but I stood there, before fifteen or so the staff members and teachers of Banteay Prieb, as an English teacher. I was worried at the thought of running a language class without being able to communicate with students, but I think I also knew all along that there was only one simple solution to this; I would use photos, drawings, body language, and whatever other ways possible to express myself.
01~ 2014.
Letter from BP BP Focus + Talk Photo Diary BP News
Spending more than six months together, my students and I went through a slow but visible change. Lessons based on pictures, movements, sounds and games and the informal studying environment quickly brought us close. Based on this tight atmosphere, we focused on building basic vocabulary at first, and then recently, we finally began to read and write as well. Through preparing lessons and talking with students in class, I also grew to use Khmer more comfortably. In that sense, I think everybody in the class is a teacher and a student at the same time. My greatest source of motivation for the past few months has been the students’ passion and diligence. The class is offered without any reward or obligation for attendance, but they come to learn every day simply because they are truly interested and engaged. Class cancellation is never good news to them, and even though there is still some time left until my departure, they already worry that there will be nobody to teach them when I am gone. I am in Banteay Prieb as a volunteer, but I always feel that what I receive from people here is much bigger than what I give. The students’ learning attitude will be a great inspiration for me when I return to school someday, and I will not be able to forget their warm embracement of my inexperience in the early days. I would like to tell all my students that I am thankful for their generous love and trust.
Best ragards, Halin Shin
Vol.16 BP Focus + Talk
Introducing the Pig Farm + This is an interview with agriculture teacher Sony and two staffs, Moeun Ko and Hak Heoung, who are working hard in the pig farm.
Date: 2014.03.10, Place: Bench nearby the farm Talk Guests: Sony(S), Moeung Ko(M), Hak Heoung(H)
*What do you do these days in the pig farm? M: We feed and take care of the pigs every day, including weekends. We also attend the sick ones and read books about raising pigs. *How many pigs do you have? S: Ten mother pigs for class and another ten for the farm. There are many more pigs if we also count the piglets. *How long does it take fore piglets to grow up? M: It takes 25 days for them to seperate from their mother and 140 more days until they are ready to be sold. Pigs usually give birth to eight babies at a time.
*How did you find out about Banteay Pireb? H: When I was working as a guard in Phnom Penh, a friend of mine told me about it. M: I used to live in Kampong Cham and one day, the outreach team visited my house and invited me to study in Banteay Pireb.
Vol.16 BP Focus + Talk
*How was your life before Banteay Prieb? M: My family was very poor and I went to school until grade 7. After I studied and found a job in Banteay Prieb, I became capable of earning money and supporting my family financially. H: My family is very poor as well. My house was on an island, so I had to take a boat whenever I wanted to go somewhere. I only studied until grade 4 because the school was too far away from my house. *How did you become a staff after graduating Banteay Prieb? M,H: Usually, students receive empolyment consultation in November, a month before graduation. At the time, my teacher asked me to work here because the pig farm needed more staff.
▶ New Born Piglets
S: Some students enter Banteay Pireb as agriculture students, but there are also many students who transfer to this course because they cannot follow other subjects well. For this reason, some agriculture students have difficulty finding jobs after graduation. *How is your life different from when you were students? M: When I was a student, I didn’t have any income. Now I make money and support myself with it. *When do you feel happy during work? M,H: I am happy when pigs are not sick. * Why do pigs get sick? S: Sometimes, they get sick because their
▶ Pigs in the farm
mothe is sick. The climate change often brings a new diseases as well and they also get sick because of food. (In the pig farm, there is a small storage of various medicines for pigs.)
Vol.16 BP Focus + Talk
*What do you do after work? H: We cook for dinner. M: Hak is a very good cook. * What is your dream? H: I want to go back home and open my own business. I turned 27 this year and I am the youngest in the family. My father is very old, so I want to live with him and support my family. M: Me too. I want to go back home and run my own business. Starting a pig farm requires a lot of money, so I want to begin with a chicken farm first. *Do you have anything to say to each other? H,M: We don’t have anything to say now. S: It’s important to live and work together. Don’t get lazy just because you see others being lazy. I want you to help each other all the time.
*Meoung Ko (Batch 24) and Hak Heoung (Batch 26) both studies agriculture in Banteay Pireb. Now they work as staff members in the Banteay Prieb pig farm. *Sony was one of the first agriculture students in Banteay Pireb. He has been working as an agriculture teacher since 2001.
The pig farm was established to provide current students with chances for hands-on practice and graduated with internship and job opportunities. The profit generated by this farm comes back to Banteay Pireb helping students enjoy a better educational environment. It is funded by the Jesuit Mission Austria. We thank all the teachers, staff members and sponsors for their continuous efforts to imporve the farm.
Vol.16 Photo Diary
# . T h e p h o t o s h o o t i n g d a y
Vol.16 Photo Diary
Students are looking into the mirror before standing in front of the camera for identification photo shoot. Photographed by. Kwanseok Lee
Vol.16 BP News
1. Welcoming New Students Banteay Prieb welcomed 122 new students of Batch 27 on the 8th of January. Five students returned home for personal reasons, but the remaining 116 have decided to continue their studies in Banteay Prieb. Please wish them a happy and fruitful year.
2. 69 students of Batch 26 are now working. According to the outreach team, 25 of the students who graduated last year have already established their own workshops or farms. 9 were employed by Banteay Pireb, 2 by the BP workshops, and another 2 by other NGOs. 2 graduates of Batch 26 works for farms outside Banteay Pireb now, and 3 found employment in other workshops as well. Still 13 more people are working in various places, and 11 are receiving supplemental training for employment. The ramaining 21 are also continuously looking for job with support of the outreach team.
3. Body Movement Therapy A French comtemporary dancer named Celine visits Banteay Prieb every other weekend to run a body movement therapy class. Many students volunteered to join during the first-day orientation held in February and about 40 students participate in the class nowadays. At first, students were shy to learn about their own bodies and make unfamiliar movements, but they are growing more and more active and joyful. Some of them even bring their own music to the class! Banteay Prieb would like to thank Celine for sharing her time and passion with our students.
Vol.16 BP News
4. Picnic on the International Women’s Day On the 8th of March, 29 female students celebrated the International Women’s day in Tmoeru valley with the female staff members and volunteers. Students all dressed up in their most beautiful clothes for this special occation and had a great time swimming and sharing delicious food with one another.
5. New Photography Exhibition in Craft Peace Cafe From March 2 to April 3, Craft Peace Cafe hosts a photography exhibition called “Hidden City” by Arvin Mamhot. A teacher from the Philippines working in Phnom Penh, Arvin has a passion for photography and poetry. Through this exhibition, he would like to show his audience the beauty of the daily life that people often forget to appreciate.
O
ur Lady of Grace
Size: 58cm Color: Brown Price: 200 USD
Special Thanks to...
ROTARY CLUB OF TAIWAN Yeoksam-dong Catholic Church Camboren group from Japan Marie Ea
Uksu Catholic Church S.J. House Community of Japan Kim Yun Jung
Banteay Prieb, founded by the Jesuit Service Cambodia, aims to help those victimized by war, land mines, polio and accidents achieve independence and find dignity in themselves through vocational training and psychological support.
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