Newsletter | December 2023
Potato farmers are already talking about kiwis and mushrooms,
the birth center is almost ready!
Construction of the birth center is almost complete!
After seven months of intensive work, the structure of the building is in place! The builders, who worked six to seven days a week, returned to their families for four weeks in November to celebrate the most important Hindu holidays, such as Dashain and Tihar, together. In the meantime, all the concrete and cement has dried thoroughly. Now all the finishing touches are being done, such as electricity, plumbing and tiling, windows and doors and painting.
Winter is coming, the date of final delivery is highly dependent on the weather.
Agricultural project
The community of Shailung requested us to think about improving agriculture, as we have previously informed you. The first step is to set up the Agricosh project, Agriculture Community Shailung. We work together with the Nepalese organization ISARD (isard.org.np). The focus in this phase is on forming five cooperatives and implementing the basic agriculture program. Last week the ISARD team was in Sailung. The location of the school garden has been determined and the first instructions from the specialists on growing kiwis and apples have been received enthusiastically.
In mid-2024 we will start the two-year SATSh project: Sustainable Agriculture Transformation Shailung, to strengthen local agricultural communities, increase food security, contribute to increasing incomes and increasing crop variety. We are very curious when the first kiwis and mushrooms can be harvested. Overall, the agricultural project will lead to improving the well-being of the community as a whole.
For this project, the Rotary of Kathmandu Mid-Town (Nepal) and the Rotary Uelsen-Coevorden (Germany-Netherlands) have agreed to organize sponsorship through a Global Rotary Grant. Several other Rotary clubs have also agreed to support the application. If you have any contacts at other Rotary clubs who could/would like to support us, please let us know.
Sailung was pleasantly surprising to visit for the first time. The weather was friendly and the GauriShankar range shone brightly. It was great to see how farmers, business people, seed and fertilizer companies have been able to create a successful business model around potatoes and cauliflower. The Ton Memorial Foundation's school and maternity hospital in the village and the involvement of staff in the village from the foundation have created a positive atmosphere in the community. It was great to see little children coming to school, even on a bus supported by the foundation. The school works hard and brings children from the most remote areas to provide quality education. It would be good to introduce agriculture to the school in the region.
An exciting development is the collaboration between Ton Memorial and ISARD, aimed at supporting families in the community through initiatives such as social mobilization, microcredit programs, water projects and agriculture. While potatoes and cauliflower remain the main crops, farmers are eager to diversify by exploring plastic greenhouses for growing vegetables, herbs, kiwis, apples and mushrooms. Our approach includes close collaboration with the community through groups, social mobilization training and microcredit programs. We aim to work together with the community, Ton Memorial School and local government to create a vibrant community in Sailung. Ghanashyam Bivas Neupane
School
More than 110 children now attend the school. Thanks to the many, many sponsors, these children can benefit from the good education that is offered. Sponsorship makes it possible to attract sufficiently qualified teachers.
There has been a change among the teachers:
Miss Minita has gone back to Kathmandu for further training, and Miss Salina has had a baby. Romi Shrestha is a new teacher, she previously worked at a government school and replaces Salina. Teacher Alina Karki, Minita's family, comes to the school by bus. She studied law in Kathmandu and came back to Shailung.
Now that it is winter in Nepal, it is cold in the school. The children sit in class wearing their coats and hats.
Because the school bus runs daily, more children can come to school. However, the maintenance of the bus requires a lot of attention. The costs are high! During the rainy season, the retaining wall of the schoolyard was partly washed away. This wall will be repaired after the winter.
The computer lab has been set up and there is an offer to follow a training course in providing digital education. We save hard for all these things. The order for the sponsored solar panel system was given to a Nepalese company: Ghampower. A nice feature is that the inverter was supplied by a Dutch company.
Visit Sailung April 2024
Our chairman will visit Shailung together with 2 supporters in April 2024. During this trip, the birth center will be transferred to the local government. Furthermore, a visit to the agricultural cooperatives and a meeting with the VDC, the local administrators, are on the programme. We will also say goodbye to a class at school for the first time: Class 5. After the fifth grade, primary education is completed and the children will hopefully find opportunities for further studies. More about this in the next newsletter.
Krishna
“We can't all do big things, but we can do small things with great love”.
Namaste, I am Krishna Shrestha, the principal of KLES Ton Memorial School Shailung.
My dream was to improve education in my village Shailung. In 2016, after completing my university education, I started a class of 18 students in my own home. Education is the key to change and growth. Children are the active members of the community in the future. From the school, we all, teachers and board members, work to raise children to become responsible community members.
My dream went beyond just education. Developing the community required more than just my person. A birth center is now being built together with the community. Further development of agriculture improves harvest results, which increases living standards. Thanks to your support through the Ton Memorial School Sailung foundation, these developments can be realized.
On behalf of the Sailung community and the board,
Happy New Year
Together with the children and the community of Saillung we wish you a wonderful 2024!
With your support we will continue.
