SCIC Members in Northern Saskatchewan are Making a Difference

Global Neighbors in Burma

Global Neighbors is a registered charity based out of Prince Albert that works with Burmese refugees and migrants who have crossed into Thailand due to extreme persecution and hardship within Burma.   Each year Global Neighbors organizes several exposure tours which consist of teams from 12 -20 people from Canada who are engaged in doing service projects that provide housing and education for displaced, orphaned and poor children. To date Global Neighbors has built an orphanage for 180 children, a teacher’s residence, a daycare for 80 children, six portable classrooms as well as hundreds of desks and bunk beds.

Global Neigbors is currently developing 2 agricultural projects. One is in Mae Sot, Thailand, where Global Neighbors has provided agricultural land by way of a long term lease which will allow the refugees and migrants to earn their own money to pay for expenses as well as provide food for the children at the school.  At the school near Pho Phra there are 330 students along with 16 teachers who have a very difficult time to get enough funding to operate their school; but with this agricultural project, the school will be self sufficient in 3 years.  An irrigation system will soon be in place which will make it possible to grow crops year around, and chicken and hog barns will be built in the fall.

The second project is a land purchase near Mae Sot which will be a working farm as well as an instructional site to provide training for students in agriculture. This farm property is some of the best land in the surrounding area, according to the locals. There is a well constructed concrete dam near the farm which diverts water to the land. The farm will produce two or three crops per year of rice, corn, sugar cane and vegetables. There is a large pond which is capable of raising 30,000 fresh fish per year. All the profits from this farm will be used to fund development projects in this area. In addition, this will provide people with a steady income to help with local projects as well as create full time jobs for several people. 

Global Neighbors has hired workers from the Mae La Refugee Camp, and their first order of business was to build a bamboo house for them to stay in while working on the farm. According to David Heppner, founder of Global Neighbors, the men as well as students love their new surroundings. There is a well treed stream around the perimeter which has proved to be a great source for fish, clams, frogs and water snakes.  

The manager, Mr. Thawon is a very fine man with a wide range of experience; he is very good at problem solving as well as organizing the men. He received a phone call early one morning from the "cow dung team", a team of students collecting manure near Mae La Camp, which is bagged in rice sacks and spread over the land before planting. Mr Thawon’s favourite line is" Don't worry, I'll look after it".

Global Neighbors purchased a tractor, which was able to push over several tree stumps with ease. They would have spent a good part of the day to do the same job by hand and are intrigued by the amount of work a tractor can do in just a short period of time.  Global Neighbors is also working at setting up a small office with a computer and filing cabinet, along with storage for tools, as well as a bank account for the farm.

According to David Heppner, there are many challenges as well as moments of pure delight “we have only just begun and have already given hope and a new lease on life for the workers on the farm. I wish you could see their smiling faces and energetic step. Thank you to all our supporters for making it possible for us to help in such a significant way!”

For more information visit www.gnci.ca.

International Development Days in Prince Albert

On March 27th & 28th, 2009, CHAKAM School of the Bible Inc., an Associate Member of SCIC, hosted “International Development Days” in the Gateway Mall, the largest indoor mall in Prince Albert.  The exhibitors used inter-active displays, hand-outs, slide shows, flags, and a showcase of cultural items from various countries. Throughout two full days hundreds of people passed by, talking to exhibitors and picking up information.

Eight organizations involved in international development in a variety of countries around the world set up displays at the event, including:

• Jubilation Program, which is currently working on a fair size housing project for young parents in two squatter communities in the sandhills surrounding Lima, Peru including Barranca and Tres Unidos de Matereni;
• Southern Sudan Humanitarian Action Development Agency, SSHADA, which is developing a Technical Trade School for returnees from the Southern Sudan conflict;
• CHAKAM School of the Bible Inc., working as a secondary partner in Peru, and as a lead partner in SSHADA’s project in Southern Sudan;
• Western Office of the Canadian Training Institute is working in Tres Unidos de Matereni, Peru on the development of an indigenous exchange program between the Lac La Ronge Indian Band, the John Cochrane Band in Cumberland House and three tribal groups in the lower Peruvian jungle;
• Mennonite Central Committee Saskatchewan works in the areas of service, relief, peace, justice and development, and has placed 1,400 workers in 58 countries;
• The Church in Meath Park, a smaller organization doing international development work north of Lima, Peru;
• Carla Olsen, an independent international development worker, showcased her work with the Karen people on the border between Thailand and Burma; and
• The Foundation for Cross-Cultural Education, which gives educational scholarships for primary education, high school education and a certificate in community training to African students, mainly in Zambia and South Africa

The event was partially sponsored through SCIC’s Public Engagement Project Fund. As a first attempt of this nature, it was a successful event which John Fryters, President/CEO of CHAKAM School of the Bible Inc. would like to repeat at least once a year.