De werkzaamheden in Bardia gaan door.

Beste lezers,

Drie weken na mijn thuiskomst ben ik weliswaar terug in mijn Nederlandse leven, maar tegelijkertijd ook nog veel met hoofd en hart in Nepal. Alle ervaringen die moeten bezinken, mijn knie die nog steeds moet helen, maar bovenal de contacten met mensen daar en met degenen die binnenkort de draad oppakken waar ik deze heb achtergelaten. Iris Somers, derdejaars Pabo-studente, heb ik vorige week ontmoet. Een vlotte enthousiaste en bezielde jonge vrouw die zich op alle fronten voorbereidt op haar internationale stage van tien weken in Bardia. Ik heb haar voorgesteld aan een aantal personen met wie zij te maken krijgt en inmiddels loopt het contact al als een geoliede machine. Gisteravond een uitgebreid overleg met de andere kant van de wereld, Jacqui en Anjo in Australië. Jacqui zelf vertrekt over twee weken naar Bardia, Anjo volgt misschien en eind april zullen Jacqui en Iris elkaar daar ontmoeten, waarna Iris haar kennis en vaardigheden voor langere tijd kan delen met de docenten en leerlingen daar. Ze kijkt er erg naar uit en ik op mijn beurt ook, om haar verhalen te volgen via een nog nader te ontvangen blog-site.

Voor wie mee wil lezen, ik deel deze zoveel als mogelijk.

Hieronder vinden jullie de laatste nieuwsbrief van Bright Futures of Bardia, waarin veel over de periode van mijn aanwezigheid.

Ik wens iedereen hoop, vrede en vertrouwen, dat het goede het kwade zal overwinnen... we leven in een rare tijd, maar laten we vooral al die kleine mooie gebaren van mensen niet uit het oog verliezen en ons steentje bijdragen, waar dan ook.

Liefs, Mieke

View this email in your browserNEWSLETTER FEBRUARY 2022Namaste

(“The divine light in me bows to the divine light within you”)

I first heard the word ‘Namaste’ I had no concept of what it actually meant. I wanted to share in case you didn’t either, and I wanted to honour each and every one of you, and this seemed an appropriate way.

And I am bursting to share that I have some absolutely sensational news.

After 2 years and 2 months I am finally heading back to Bardia. Airline tickets and visa in hand. April 2022 I will spend in Bardia and simply cannot wait. Over the coming weeks we will share all of our plans and some exceptional ways how you too can actually be a part of the journey, even if you cannot physically be there. On that note, if you do want to come please reach out and we can chat about making that happen!

After someyes,no,open,close action from the Nepalese government over the past few months the kids are back in school again, and it appears that should now be the last closure. We all hope so. Fingers crossed!

Over the coming weeks our teachers, and newly appointed Safeguarding Officer, Amrita Chaudhary, will focus on settling all of our students back into the classroom routine, providing the necessary psycho-social support during this transition and following up our students to ensure everyone is back with us.2022 has got off to a magnificent start!

Here are the key highlights:

We had one of BBAS school’s long termsupporters,Mieke Simons, who has become a member of our BFOB team in the past few months, spend over one month in Bardia. Mieke flew out from the Netherlands after Christmas and bless her, was greeted when she arrived in Nepal with thenot sotreasured‘Rona’ (Covid19!). After a week in iso, she set about getting her hands and heart into the project. She hadn’t visited the school for over 3 years and was blown away by the changes. Whilst Mieke was there, the students were in and out of school due to changing government regulations, and yet she managed to achieve SOOOO much during her stay. We are so incredibly appreciative of what she was able to make happen including:

• creating aspectacular Rainbow Project where a large number of students created truly beautiful and inspired artwork whichis now arranged together telling a beautiful story of love, light and their journey through Covid;
• undertaking the huge task of rolling out our student and teacher evaluation survey, conducted in all classes of the high school. This is the first step for us in our drive to raise the quality of teaching within the school;
• waving her magic wand to move the library into the new building, labelling, setting up systems and organising the shelves so that all the books are arranged and accessible for students;
• provided materials regarding anti-bullying and violence to our school Safeguarding Officer, Amrita Chaudhary, to assist her in facilitating open conversations about such topics which are often considered taboo in the region;
• collecting laptops from her friends to add to the school computer laboratory so that children and teachers;
• purchasing new whiteboards for the remaining classrooms and oh so much more...

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Mieke also welcomed her friend Cornel van Buuren, another supporter from the Netherlands, who spent some time in Bardia together with Mieke. He arrived with a suitcase full of Rapid Antigen Tests and masks for the local health post which were very well received. During his time in Bardia, Cornel accompanied our science teacher to the closest large town,Nepalgunj,and generously purchased some very valuable science equipment that will be put to very good use in our nearly complete science building. He also financially supported the repair of the school water filtration system, ensuring our students and teachers again have access to clean filtered water.

We cannot share a sufficient abundance of gratitude for such valuable contributions from both Mieke and Cornel at such a vital time as the school reopens and things are back full swing.

It would also be remiss of us not to include a huge shout out to Mina Mahatara for her invaluable support of Mieke during her entire trip. Mina was a student of BBAS in previous years, as were her sisters. Mina is now studying Computer Science in Kathmandu, however took time out of her studies to join Mieke for the duration of her stay in Bardia. Mieke tells me that without Mina’s support none of this would have been possible. Most of the images in this newsletter are thanks to Mina!Other updates:

• It's been a tough, pandemic riddled couple of years, but our team in Bardia has emerged stronger and more resilient after tackling the challenges of the last two years. We are looking to further bolster thecalibre of teaching at the school. We have started with the surveys that Mieke facilitated as a pulse check with students and teachers after the previous 2 years of closures. We will also be announcing soon the NGO whom we will collaborate with to undertake an independent baseline study and needs assessment of our teaching and management systems and capacity to identify the gaps. This will set the foundation for the training we will implement later in the year. We will alsohire 1 or 2 English teachers.We are excited that we will have some new faces joining us, and cannot wait to see what our team will achieve this year with the new training and support we will put in place.
• We are also finalising the completion of the Science and Technology Block. It is 90% complete, we are in the home stretch. By the time I get there in April it will be totally complete, painted and occupied. It feels incredible to say that. You can seehere the photo taken when I was last in Bardia in January 2020 and the one next to it taken when Mieke was there a few weeks ago. I am blown away, that despite 2 years of pandemic madness we managed to achieve this!

You can see from all of this what a difference a couple of people can make. If you are wonderingwhere you could make the biggest difference right now,I’ll share something here.

Being perfectly raw and honest, I find one of the toughest things is when we ask people to support our work with dollars and they say no. Yes I did just say that. I take it personally. It means my ask didn’t give that person a really clear picture of the impact every single donation makes, big or small.

We genuinely do the best job we can of really demonstrating to you just how far your dollar goes in the work we do on the ground in Bardia, as well as demonstrating our commitment and passion to empowering the local people and guiding the changes hand in hand with them. I truly wish you too could experience first hand the heart filled deep gratitude that oozes out of these kids and their families as they watch these buildings go up and as they sit in dry classrooms at their sturdy desks and chairs, with access to running water and hygienic bathroom facilities, and the teachers who have teaching materials to effectively teach their students. This is life changing work.

Our project is very much about highlighting what the children of Western Nepal already have, and inspiring them, through education to appreciate and own their value and provide them the chance to share it with the world. We are super passionate about supporting the next generation to see their own greatness and embrace life and its lessons, develop the skills and mindset to breathe life into their dreams and grow their ultimate futures. Please consider being a part of these efforts.

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Please donate here to support the building of our final 5 classrooms

and to support our teacher training program.

$6000 builds an entire classroom.

We have hit that target.

$24000 to go.

I would love to kick the build off when I am there in April.

Your support is invaluable.

All donations above $2 are tax deductible in Australia and the USA.

All donations above $5 are tax deductible in New Zealand.

If you are not in Australia, NZ or the USAyou can go to the Global Development Group website in your country and search for our project J1126N Hope for Bardia and donate from there.

If you require further details for a corporate sponsorship package, orif you would like to contribute in another way, please feel free to email us onbrightfuturesofbardia@gmail.com

If, like Mieke and Cornel, you would like to get involved hands on, please reach out to us via email,brightfuturesofbardia@gmail.com.You could even join me in April.

We have incredible opportunities for legacy donations and corporate sponsorships, as well as for individuals who would like to undertake some fundraising activities, again if this is you or you know someone who would like more information please email or message us on facebook.

We love and appreciate each and every one of you!

On behalf of the Bright Futures of Bardia Team,

my sincere gratitude,Jacqui Holth

Founder, Bright Futures of BardiaDONATE NOW

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BBAS Memorial School andBright Futures of Bardia are partners for ProjectJ1126N 'Hope for Bardia’ with Global Development Group (ABN 57 102 400 993), an Australian NGO approved by the Minister for Foreign Affairs.OUR WEBSITE

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Bright Futures of Bardia · 28 Woolgoolga Street · North Balgowlah, NSW 2093 · Australia