Going Head2Head to Combat Childhood Poverty in New Zealand

Finally, after much searching, I found a wonderful volunteer project in New Zealand. Due to the dates I’m here, and most requirements by local agencies and organizations that I commit six-months to their project, well, it’s been a challenge. So while I didn’t get hands on this time, Paul Dickson from Head2Head Charity was nice enough to take me on a tour of one of their projects and tell me more about the organization which he founded.

On the day Paul and I met he took me to meet the folks at Papatoetoe-West School, an elementary school catering mostly to students (ages 5-11) from lower-income households. It was there that I met 10-year-old Oscar who, along with some friends, proudly showed me the mock-up of a hen-house which he designed. Oscar’s class was challenged to design the perfect hen-house (also known as a chicken coop) and draw the plans. The next step was to go home and gather materials lying around and build their hen-house. Oscar worked hard gathering materials and working, through trial-and-error, to construct his house. His materials included an empty cocoa powder carton, plastic from a water-bottle, wood, a tin can, and discarded plastic tubing. The kids all brought their hen-houses to school, voted for the best design, and Oscar’s won. Once the school can gather the materials, including obtaining some donated lumber, they’ll ask the school’s grounds-keeper to build it to house the hens which they hope to get. Oscar’s hen-house design includes a rainwater gathering system, a comfortable indoor area, and even an outdoor play area with a retractable cover so, as Oscar explains, “the hens can play outside even when it’s raining!” It’s important for hens to play.This is all part of a national environmental studies program, called Enviroschools, which Papatoetoe joined approximately a year-and-a-half ago. With the help of Head2Head Charity, the school now has garden-beds located around the grounds, as well as a greenhouse, gardening equipment, a composting box and more. The kids spend time tending their gardens each week while learning about horticulture. “Kids love getting their hands dirty,” says Paul Dickson, founder of Head2Head Charity.

Head2Head raises money to sponsor deserving and under-supported organizations and projects. It began in 2012, when Paul organized a simple fund-raising walk to combat childhood poverty. Paul was working in the Geo Thermal field when he and some work colleagues decided to organize the 125km walk around Manukau Harbour in Auckland, New Zealand. With the success of the first walk, Paul became hooked on being a do-gooder and quit his job to establish Head2Head Charity. The next year, in order to draft more participants, the 125km was changed to a relay.

Thus far, the Head2Head Walk has raised over NZ$40,000 by over 150 participants. And Papatoetoe has isn’t its only benefactor. Head2Dead is committed to helping with creative solutions to child poverty in New Zealand wherever they may be. The next step for the Papatoetoe-West School, its Garden-to-Table program, will be implemented soon. A kitchen is being built and the kids will learn how to harvest their fruits and vegetables, and prepare and cook them. Not only will they learn about cooking, but also table manners and social-skills. Head2Head could sure use some volunteers to help with this part. As Paul says, “There’s almost no point growing all this stuff if there’s no one around to help teach them what to do with it.” As well as volunteers, donations of kitchen equipment will gladly be accepted.

It’s clear to see the pride the kids take in their gardens. Gardening is just a part of what the kids learn in this program. They also learn patience, a sense of ownership, teamwork, and follow-through.

When I asked Paul what Head2Head needs most he told me, for now, it’s volunteers. While Paul quit his job to establish Head2Head, he takes no salary (other than the 100 hours he’s billed at $10 per hour to cover a small part of his time), as he wants as much as possible to go to the projects. But he’s a one-man show and could really use some helping hands. Donations of cash and supplies would also be fantastic. Hubbard Foods has become a corporate sponsor for the Head2Head Charity Walk but there is room for many more.

Head2Head is the little fish in a big pond of much larger charities. What sets it apart from many is that you can actually see the difference your money and assistance are making. Another difference is that Head2Head is committed to two major issues; childhood poverty and environmental education. It’s a worthy charity which could use, and would greatly appreciate, any help offered.

Want to help out? Contact Paul at Head2Head at this E-mail address: paul@head2head.org.nz

If you want to donate some kitchen equipment to the school, please contact Principal Diana Tregoweth at dianat@pap-west.school.nz

 

 

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A Special School for Special People in Bali

If you’re a regular reader, you know that Rebel-With-A-Cause is part of a larger project called www.DropMeAnywhere.com where readers choose where I travel to without a plan. This time, the readers have chosen to drop me in Bali, Indonesia. It was there that I had the chance to volunteer with a wonderful organization helping to change the lives of some special people. It’s in Ubud, a town in Bali, and it serves a community that can use all the help it can get; the mentally disabled.

It’s called Sjaki-Tari-Us and it’s a school for mentally disabled children and teens. Sjaki-Tari-Us is the brainchild of Thais and Karen van Harte. Thais and his twin brother Sjaki are the children of a Dutch father and an Indonesian mother and, while they grew up in The Netherlands, they visited Bali often as children and adults.

As Thais and his wife Karen had a child, Tari, who was born Down’s Syndrome, they and their friends decided to investigate the quality of special education services while on a visit to Bali. What they found was not great. While there are schools for these kids, the teachers aren’t trained in special ed. and students must meet minimum requirements such as a measured IQ of 55. If they don’t meet the qualifications, they have no opportunity to receive an education.

I visited Sjaki-Tari-Us on King’s Day, a day of celebration in the Netherlands and therefore, a day a celebration at Sjaki-Tar-Us. The early morning was spent in the classroom with five and six year-olds, where they learned how to introduce themselves, how to say the date and worked on writing letters of the alphabet. Beginning in the late-morning, a party was underway with sack-races, ring-tosses and face-painting. Just like other kids, these kids need both structure and physical activity and the staff at Sjaki Tari-Us provides just the right balance.

Thais and Karen founded Sjaki-Tari-Us in 2006 and named it after Thais’ brother, Sjaki, who died in 2002, Thais and Karen’s daughter, Tari, and Us, as in all of us. The first school was located in Singaraja and they soon opened one in Ubud. While the Ubud school is the larger of the two, both schools are still currently operating. The Singaraje school has five full-time teachers, twenty-five smaller children and three teens, while the Ubud school currently has seven teachers, twenty-five to thirty younger students and thirteen teenagers. Interns from Holland work at both schools as part of their university program

Sjaki-Tari-Us provides education to all. Parents can choose to enroll their struggling kids here with the goal of getting them qualified for the special education governmental schools within a few years. If a child does not qualify for the government run schools, they’re welcome to stay at Sjaki-Tari-Us. There is a small, one-time fee for the first school T-shirt and shorts, and then it is free to attend. And if a family can’t afford the initial fee, they won’t be turned down.

The youngest kids – up to eight years old – participate in “Play-Learn Groups” which provide two to three lessons each the morning and include play as part of the educational process, as these kids tend to learn differently than thers. Kids are split into groups depending on their disability and ability to learn and sit still.

The program for teenagers concentrates more on life-skills such as personal hygiene and job training, which they can use working in the on-site restaurant, of which all profits go back to the school. They’re also taught craft skills which are common in Bali and are sold at the Sjaki-Tari-Us gift shop in order to help support the school. Teenagers also have the chance to play sports which helps them socialize, learn teamwork and increase their fitness levels.

Finally, they offer a “Teach the Teacher Program” which educates Balinese teachers on teaching those with mental disabilities. Knowledge is then passed on from teacher to teacher and adds to the wealth of information and understanding about people with special needs.

Sjaki-Tari-Us is supported by the original foundation and the on-site gift shop and restaurant, as well as private donations. While the school is happy to accept school supplies, money is the best gift, as it can be used for a variety of needs from gas for the small shuttle bus which picks up students from further out whose parents have no transportation, to cleaning supplies, to paying the minimal staff in the restaurant, to funding for field trips. And if you’re ever in Bali, they’d love for you to visit one of their schools take a tour or eat at the restaurant. By helping these special people live up to their full potential, the people at Sjaki-Tari-Us are doing important work and all support is greatly appreciated.

To find out more about Sjaki-Tari-Us, and how you can help, visit their website at http://www.sjakitarius.nl/

Also check out their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SjakiTariUs