Dashain clothes

Some of the money which is donated to the Bright Future project is used to help families. At the time of the Dashain Festival families buy new clothes for their children. Netra likes to help some families who cannot afford this extra expense.

Dreamland Computer School

Dreamland Computer School continues to provide education for local children and adults in the Kopan area. Netra has used some of the Rotary money to upgrade the computers in the Center. Computer lessons are an important addition to the children's education because many schools which claim to provide computer education, only provide access to computers for a few minutes each week. Most computer lessons are theory lessons only.

Bright Future Volunteers

Bright Future Community Center could not continue without the local and foreign volunteers. Netra Basnet has gathered a group of young people who work in the Center each morning. Sanju and Raju are university students who can only work part time, but they make a valuable contribution. Volunteers, such as Liz Dobson, and this year, Bronwyn Russell-Slater, make a big difference with their teaching ideas.
The other group who contribute to the Center are the card makers, led by Santosh.

Netra and his brother Niru share a motor bike. It has made a real difference to their lives as they can complete business much quicker. A trip which used to take half a day by bus can now be completed within a couple of hours.

Dancing at Bright Future Center

Dancing classes have become a part of BFCC. Sweta still teaches some classes, but the older girls run most sessions. The young children really enjoy dancing and Sweta manages to encourage even the very shy children to participate. Visiting groups are entertained at Shambhala resort. Dancing gives children confidence and they feel part of the group. The boys' group included some boys who were learning to dance. The older boys enjoyed helping them.

Teaching Homestay ladies

Liz Dobson, Bronwyn Russell-Slater and I spent many happy times teaching the Homestay ladies who really want to learn. I continued with the class when Liz and Bronwyn left. This program is not really a part of the BFCC project, but it helps the people of the Kopan district. If anyone wants to volunteer to help with this program or any other project linked to BFCC they should contact me or the Rotary Club of Kew on Yarra.

Raising Money for Bright Future Community Center

Bright Future Community Center and the linked projects rely on donations from friends and money raised at the markets. The goods for the markets are donated by friends and a wide circle of people who want to help the children and families in Nepal.
Friends also help sell the goods at the Camberwell Sunday Market and the Saturday market at Chewton. Anyone can donate goods or help us at the markets.

Some ladies in Australia have been busy knitting clothes for babies and these are being distributed around Nepal by trekkers. Netra kept some for the babies here in Kopan and this morning he saw someone he knew with a very small baby. The father works on a building site as a painter and Netra gave them a small knitted jumper.

Important Rotary Links

Another important Rotary link is with Eyes Wide Open. This year they visited the Bright Future Center and spent some time with the children. These visits are always an exciting time for the children. The donation of fans for the library will be appreciated during the summer months.

Link with the Rotary Club of Pashupati has been renewed

The link with the Rotary Club of Pashupati has been renewed which means the money raised in Australia can be transferred by the Rotary Club of Kew on Yarra. This is important as it means any donations to the Bright Future Project can be claimed as a taxation deduction in Australia.
The BFCC project is linked to the clinic, the library, the family support, and the education of over 50 children and 11 university students. We have had to reduce the number of students we are helping because the cost of university education is expensive.
Those students who wish to continue with further university education usually have to pay for themselves. Further education guarantees status, but employment is not assured. Apparently there are hundreds of unemployed pilots in Nepal.

Homestay Lady

Santi is one of the Homestay students. She is 72 years old and is determined to learn English so she can speak with her guests. She invited us to her home for an afternoon snack.

Raju with one of his students

One of our volunteers, Raju, has to return to his university studies in a few days' time. He is a wonderful teacher and has been a great help with the young children, who adore him.

Volunteers in Bright Future Community Center

Saru, one of the Homestay ladies, invited Bronwyn and Liz and me to her home for a meal. We had all spent a week teaching the Homestay group and it was wonderful to see how much Saru had learnt and how proud she was of her ability to use the language.

Volunteering at Bright Future Community Center

An extension of the work at Bright Future Community Center is teaching in the local community. So far the only classes we have managed to arrange have been through the local hotel. The volunteers can have plenty of fun teaching the hotel staff and the girls who work in the shop. There is also a scheme in Kopan for home stays. The ladies who run the Homestays are very keen to learn English. They want to be able to talk to their guests.

Bright Future Health Center

The Bright Future Health Center is being used to deliver vaccinations and simple medicines such as worm tablets to the local children.

Children cleaning teeth

The children were delighted with the lesson. although some found the tongue cleaning a bit strange.

This morning the nurse in the Bright Future Health Center wanted to teach about cleaning teeth. She used donated tooth brushes to demonstrate how to clean teeth. The children were very interested and the nurse wants to continue with other health lessons.