Newsletter 28 September 2020
Thank you!
But will you help again, please?
Readers will recall that we requested financial support to set up a Food Bank for the students in the Fishtail Fund. Many poor families are without a source of income, and we felt even this smal l contribution was worthwhile. You sent us £2,460 in all, which was more than enough to fund the first two Food Banks. Thank you to everyone who helped.
The second Food Bank: September 2020
Our Rotary Club Trustees in Pokhara were faced with the considerable challenge of staying safe (both them and the students) while handing over about 35 worth of basic foodstuffs to each student family, plus sanitary supplies for the girls. Some students came to a central collection point, in some cases walking for over two hours in each direction and lugging heavy bags of rice on their way home. Rotari ans took other supplies by vehicle to more distant villages,
where the students collected their food from the roadside.
We have sent a certificate of thanks and congratulations to members of the Rotary Club of Pokhara Fishtail , who took considerable personal risks in completing the We are planning a third Food Bank at the festival of Dashain, to allow the poorest families enough food to celebrate a little. If we have the resources we may include a small gift to each student: writing materials perhaps. Each food bundle costs around £35, so with 30 students we are short of our target by around £500. If you would like to help by sending a contribution, payment details are below. We must point out that the cash sent to support individual students is kept distinct from the Food Bank appeal.
A new Fishtail Fund student
Rabindra Shrestha is in Grade Nine. He lives in an orphanage in Pokhara. His father died of alcoholism. His mother and grandmother live with three other children in a single room and reluctantly asked for support for Rabindra. He now lives in an orphanage in Pokhara supported by members of the Rotary Club. He is a very positive character in spite of everything: loves football, cricket and cooking. He hopes to become an engineer. He has joined a vocational course this year in civil engineering. He is an academic high-flier. His last (grade 8) exam results make inspiring reading:
Nepali – 2.8 English – 3.6 Mathematics – 2.4 Environment – 2.8
Social and population – 3.2 Health and physical science – 3.2
Moral Education – 4.0 OBT Occupational Business Technique – 4.0
and Computer studies – 3.6
So his final exam score is around 3.25 out of 4 which is equal to 82.2%. How many UK schools teach Moral Education or Environment or Occupational Business Technique?
If you would like to sponsor Rabindra for the next 4 years, please let us know.
The situation in Nepal
By the end of September 2020, global deaths from the coronavirus passes a million, an “agonising death toll” that has doubled in the past three months largely because of rising fatalities in the United States, India and Brazil. On the same day our colleagues in Nepal reported just 481 deaths. Though sad, this is a encouragingly low total compared with India’s mass deaths, especially as Nepal has a long and porous border with India.
As in the UK, a specific problem is the missing exam results between school and college (Year 13 in the UK) Some Fishtail Fund students are hoping to get into college, but the situation is still fluid. Perhaps Nepal will copy the UK solution and use teacher assessments, if any exist there.
Death in the village
Readers who have followed the progress of the new school buildings at Prithvi Rupa will recall that one reason for seeking a new location on the hill, is the dangerous and loose slope of soft earth and stones which threatens the end of the old site. Sadly, a student from Prithvi Rupa has died in a mud landslide in the recent monsoon rains, and two families lost their homes. Meanwhile the two new schools on the hill are almost complete. The first site is in full use and the second will soon be occupied.
Supporting the Fishtail Fund:
By Cheque: Payee Name: Rotary Club of Dronfield Fishtail Fund Please enclose the purpose of the donation: Food Bank 3. Post the cheque to: The Treasurer of the Rotary Club of Dronfield 31 West Croft Drive Inkersall, Chesterfield S43 3GA
By Bank Transfer:
Acct Name RCD Fishtail Fund
Acct No.: 00027636
Sort Code: 40-52-40
Reference: Food Bank 3
Gift Aid: If as a taxpayer you are willing to complete a gift aid form to support a 25% boost to your donation, then please complete and return the attached form if you have not done so previously.
Very many thanks
David Lumb
Coordinator Fishtail Fund