Mrs. Lekha Chanaharn
Teacher in charge of EDF Scholarship, Ban Bu (Kurupracha wittaya) School, Muang District, Nakornratchasima Province, Thailand
Years of being teachers: 36 years
Years of being teacher in charge of EDF scholarship: 13 years
 
Poverty situation in rural Thailand is now different from what happened in the past. In the past, even though rural people were poor but they still had a warm family and were responsible for taking care of their own children, but, nowadays, broken family is common in rural Thai community. Parents get divorced, remarried or migrate to work in up country and their children are abandoned to live with the elderly relatives who are too weak and poor to proper take care and be a good guidance for the children. This leads to many social problem in rural areas elsewhere in Thailand, students go to the computer game shop and stay late at night there in stead of going back home and do home works, some become drug addicted and leads to the criminal.
 
EDF scholarship program helps a lot to less fortunate children in my school. Receiving scholarship helps unlock their window of opportunity during their transition ages from children to teenager, which they have to face many risks like I mentioned earlier. If they could complete at least lower secondary school, they will be mature enough to think by their own on which direction for their future should be. Some might decide to go to work after complete grade 9 to afford money to support their family while many choose to further their studies in higher level either high school or vocational school.
 
The impression that I have experienced recently is from one of EDF donor from Singapore, Mr. Belwit Singh. He read a story of a student at my school who live alone with his disabled dad that EDF published in the website and after that he contact EDF to provide immediate support to my student eg; monthly allowances, expense for schooling materials and recently he is too kind to build the new house for the poor father and son. The point is, he has never met my student in person before, which make me so value for his grateful and kindness.
 
I am going to retired in the next few months and I would never forget the valuable experiences that I have had from working with EDF for 13 years. There are too many impressed stories to describe within an A4 page, but only short simple word I would like to say from my heart to EDF and all donors is “Thank you”