On the 29th of February BEAM Education Foundation celebrated its 10th Anniversary, an achievement of note, thanks, to dedication, vision, commitment, volunteers, donations and hard work.
First a little about BEAM:
BEAM Education Foundation (BEAM) was founded in January 2010 and is located in Chiang Mai, Thailand. BEAM is a registered non-profit educational foundation. The emergence of BEAM was in response to the rising educational needs of marginalized people, migrants, and refugee youth living in Thailand, most of whom are from Myanmar.
BEAM envisions local, people-oriented, peaceful, and developed communities in Myanmar and Thailand. This can be sustained by empowering local communities through comprehensive education.
BEAM believes that migrant youth have the potential to be a part of the larger community development of Thailand, Myanmar, and the ASEAN nations, but they are marginalized due to the difficulties in attaining access to higher education.
As of the end of the 2018-2019 academic year, 170 students in total have directly benefited from BEAM’s Higher Education Program. Of these graduates, 62.5% are currently studying at universities while the others are working back in their communities as teachers, health care assistants, or in other service sectors. 31 of BEAM’s Higher Education Program alumni have already successfully graduated from 4-year-degree programs at Chiang Mai University, Payap, Thammasat, Khon Kaen, Tak Polytechnic College, Rangsit, Rajabhat, Ramkhamhaeng, Assumption, Asia-Pacific International University, Mae Fah Luang, SolBridge International School of Business in Korea, Hong Kong University, Myanmar International University, and the Henry Ford College, USA. Even more will be graduating soon.
An evening to be enjoyed:
29 February 2020 Location: Community Square of Intranurak Village.
103, Intranurak Village, Viang Ping Road, T. Changklan, A. Mueang, Chiang Mai 50100
The location gives an insight to the evening “Community Square” because it epitomized the event: everybody -- students, the local community, organizers, dignitaries, and VIP guests were having, FUN! One could not help being infected (not with COVID 19) with their absolute joy. One can use superlatives, but they don’t express or match the feeling of an inner warmth and joy by being part of this evening of celebration and recognition.
This was an evening to forget exams, studying, the life of a student, being a teacher, a fund raiser, but rather a time to appreciate each other and say "Thank You".
A truly colourful evening, decorated with laughter, smiles, fanfare, traditional costumes, food stalls offering an interesting array of delicious food, accompanied with homemade local teas, fruit juices together with other stalls selling tee shirts and cloth shopping bags to raise funds for the BEAM Education Foundation.
Of course, there are the formalities of speeches, past students talking of their success and inspiring current students, awarding of certificates in appreciation of various supporters/ fund raisers. (Pictured below is CMIRC P. John, receiving a Certificate of Appreciation for the club.) The highlight of the evening for me was the various traditional dancing, some of dances performed by the current students, to see one of the dances performed by the students go to the following address: https://youtu.be/EQPVgfJP7Jc
All this said and done, one cannot forget or overlook the achievements of, BEAM Education Foundation, ten years have passed thanks to its inspiration, its supporters, students, volunteers, here’s to the next ten years.
A message:
Greetings from BEAM Education Foundation!
We at the BEAM Education Foundation wish to express our sincere appreciation to our partners, volunteers, and co-workers for their loyal support as we celebrate the first decade of working in the field of education for the marginalized populations. Thanks to your dedication and a strong commitment to our Foundation, our Foundation is today a greater network locally and internationally. We could not have come this far without the loyal support and hard work of each member of the Foundation and local development partners.
A wise man said: don’t look back to see how far you have come from but rather look forward to see how far you can go.