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Published: November 21st 2007
Namphong boystown - Rosie’s story
I have been here in the boystown for a week now and have become part of the landscape. The boystown is a children’s home that provides escape from grinding poverty and child labour for boys from the age of 11 until they leave school and get a job at 18 (some are funded to go to college) .
So my first impressions of Namphong Boystown.
I arrived mid afternoon when the boys were still at school so my first impressions were of the site and not the boys. We arrived through the local village of Thai wooden houses, past the paddy fields, where the rice was just ripening, turned off the paved road (where the cows meander unconcerned by cars weaving amongst them), up the gravel drive, through the gates into the centre of the site that is boystown. My first impression was that of a camp. Probably the buildings stirred up for me distant memories of living on army camps as the daughter of a serving soldier in the PT Corp or perhaps too many viewings of the Great Escape and Bridge over the River Kwai - anyway a camp is what
Dormitory
Each boy has a bunk, blanket, pillow, mosquito net and a small cupboard for school books and personal possessions - a small locker wil suffice for everything they will ever own at boystown. I saw.
To my left were the boys’ dormitories, simple single story breeze block building.To the right a tall open concrete building which serves as the meeting hall, garage, play room well virtually anything when the boys need to be assembled together. Like for the party they had to celebrate my being here last Sunday. They played traditional Thai music and to honour - nay humiliate me I was obliged to attempt some Thai dancing - picture Dawn French in tutu amidst The Royal Ballet and it couldn’t be worse. I think they were wreaking their revenge because the day before we (me and the staff) had taught the boys ‘Old McDonald’s Farm’ which they sung in a round as 5 groups with great gusto at the party. But back to first impressions….
The buildings are simple and functional with no adornments, they are set amongst 7 acres of land in which every square inch has a purpose for supporting life here in boystown - vegetable gardens, fruit trees, fish ponds (for eating not for pets), reservoirs and some land set aside for guess what? Yup Football - a passion with so many of the boys here.
As I got out of the car I was greeted by a desultory ‘push off stranger‘ from one of the 4 guard dogs and a tangle of puppies that watch over the site. They were the only sign of life apart from the ubiquitous chickens a flock of which well scared when as a noisy, feathery storm they flew out of a mango tree where had I disturbed their midday rest (only mad dogs and English women go out in the mid-day sun eh?). The chickens we kept at Blenheim Lane could hardly lumber up 6 inches onto their perch let alone fly into a tree so I was taken by surprise by this athletic bunch. Hopefully they are resistant to the Asian flu which killed off the previous flock of chickens kept in boystown.
After being introduced to the staff Nipol, Adisuk and Chek (?), I was taken to the guest house which was to be my home for the next ten days. At this point in my story I would like to have extracted from you maximum sympathy and admiration by telling you how I have endured sleepless nights on a rush mat in a bamboo shelter
The Staff
Staff mending a water leak. The jobs list to keep the home functioning for 60 boys is awesome. with only the company of a thousand flesh eating insect excited by the waft of plump, pinky-white fat cells for company!!! But not so, a delightful well appointed lakeside (lake is also fish pond and reservoir) bungalow has been my home for the past week.
By the time I’d settle into the guest house the boys had returned from school and within 10 minutes were changed out of their smart school clothes and working (as an aside - compulsory school uniform, books, contributions to funds etc is what make schooling prohibitively expensive for so many families in Thailand). The boys have a strict routine in the week - they are up at 5:30 (so I am told as I have yet to witness this!!!) they attend to personal tasks such as shoe cleaning, ironing, making breakfast, washing up etc - no mums to clear up for them here.
They leave for school at 7:30, returning between 4:00 and 4:30 depending on which school they attend. After changing out of their school clothes it’s straight out to work in the gardens, kitchens, wash rooms and so onto until 6 when they have dinner. Free time is from 6:30 to
The guest house
I really didn't want you to see the luxury in which i'm living but on the other hand I want to persuade you to visit this most amazing place and meet these incredible people. 7:00 and then at 7:00 they have supervised studious activities such as maths lessons, English language classes etc and before going to bed at 9:00 pm.
This strict routine has not result in a bunch of quiet, repressed, cowed children - far from it. They are purposeful, disciplined and confident - they smile spontaneously on eye contact. There is no bullying, no display of triumph in success (triumphs they have many of in both sport and academic studies), no loud voices or shouting. They are supportive of each other and even though sport is a major recreational activity it is played with fairness and joy in each other’s success. It so happens that I left England in mid-November at a time when inner city teenagers were killing each other just for being in the wrong street, wrong gang or worse still no gang so of I guess it’s understandable that I am going to wax lyrical about these kids here.
Again at this stage in my story I ought to try and tug at your heart strings with pictures of ragged children eating only rice and grubs for supper so that you would feel compelled to go
View from Guest House
This is also a fish pond and reservoir. straight to the Joe Homan Web site (www.joehoman.org) and make a donation or take on a sponsorship but that would be doing a huge injustice to those supporters of The Namphong boystown who put so much effort into giving these children a chance in life.
The boystown was started in 1989 with a cash donation from Terry Duffy who had heard of Joes Homans’ efforts in India and wanted to do something similar for one of the poorest areas of Thailand. The Trustees for the boystown are businessmen from the Rotary Club in Khon Kaen so they oversee it functioning. The money for the day to day expenses for feeding, educating and looking after the boys comes via The Joe Homan Charity through sponsors in England and Australia. But more of all this later.
I would love to tell you about each and everyone one of these delightful kids but my RSI is kicking in so I’m going to upload some photos and put together in my next blog the story of just one or two boys. Forgive any grammatical errors etc but teh RSI prevents me continually refining this text.
Bye for now
Rosie
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Felicity
non-member comment
The boys
Rosie, this is fascinating. What are these boys likely to do when they leave school at 18 (that seems quite old)? Are the practical things they're learning in helping around their 'campus' likely to be more useful than the formal schooling, or are they really going on to colleges with a view to being teachers or other professionals? Keep writing and snapping. I'm following you avidly! and take care. Felicity