We Give We Share forms a major part of SISB School’s commitment to social responsibility and the communities in which we live and work. At SISB Chiangmai, we have held a number of fundraising events mainly planned and run by our students and overseen by our fantastic WGWS committee.
Before the end of the last term, we asked students, teachers, and families to donate necessary supplies to give to the orphans at Wat Don Chan. In conjunction with this, we also held our Christmas Fair, where students, teachers, and families set up booths with activities or goods to sell and all proceeds were saved for donation. It was a great way to have fun and raise money for a great cause! We cannot thank you all enough for your help in making the Christmas Fair such a success.
Wat Don Chan is a school and temple that takes care of 770 orphans and underprivileged children. It takes 7,000 thb to feed the children every day, and due to the current situation with COVID-19 and travel restrictions, fewer citizens have been able to visit and make donations. The temple has always heavily relied on the kindness of donations, and the decrease of tourists has unfortunately affected them. When we heard about this, we felt we had to take action! This is what drove us to choose Wat Don Chan as our first donation drive of the 2020-21 academic year. As a school that strives to raise global awareness, as well as a community mindset, we felt it was very important for our students to understand that some students might have fewer resources and privileges than others, and to begin finding ways within themselves to help those in need.
Last week, a few members of our staff took one primary student from each grade, from P2 to Grade 8, to the temple to help us make the donation, as well as to raise awareness about children who may not have as much as we have and allow them to see where their hard work was paying off towards. This was very important for us to learn and was an eye-opening experience for the students. It was humbling and rewarding for the students and staff who came along to drop off donations. To be able to help teach the students while contributing such a great amount made us on the WGWS committee, and all staff at SISB Chiangmai, feel very proud and hopeful for the future of all of our budding philanthropist students.
Overall, we were able to donate the large number of supplies we collected to Wat Don Chan along with a cheque for 30,000 thb! This will make a huge difference in the lives of the orphan children who live and are educated at the temple. On behalf of SISB Chiangmai and our WGWS committee, we would like to thank everyone who made a donation and helped us achieve this wonderful success. We could not have done it without you!
Written by Amanda Bledsoe
Teacher's Notes 