By Neeraj Chawla (Class of 2014) – DWBI Coordinator
I was in a room full of focused, motivated and engaged seniors. They were having a conversation regarding their agenda for the following week’s visit to the Mercy Center, while I was quietly hiding in the corner in isolation. I finally decided to attend one of Dreams We Believe In’s weekly meetings during year 11, after hearing about the great work that they had done.
However, as time passed, they were increasingly welcoming to me, as I was about to embark on one crazy rollercoaster journey. Although I initially felt quite left out, despite the hospitable nature of the group members, I knew that this was an opportunity that I could not just turn down. I started to regularly attend meetings – every Wednesday at 11:00 sharp, at the college library. And since then, every Wednesday has brought about increasing responsibility, as I eventually became a student leader myself once I stepped into year 12.
Looking back now, following four challenging years of high school, I can proudly say that I have made a significant contribution to Dreams We Believe In, and have absolutely no regrets. It has been one of my most memorable experiences during my time at NIST.
So what is The Dreams We Believe In Project? Established in early 2010 by a group of inquisitive students, “Dreams We Believe In” (DWBI) has become more than just a service group – it has become our dream. Striving to discover and fulfill the dreams of over 60 extremely deserving children living with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) at the HDF Mercy Center (Klongtoey district, Bangkok), DWBI organizes various activities and events, from recreational visits to the Mercy Center to Dodgeball week at NIST to overnight beach trips to Pattaya.
Three large scale events: Mercy Fun Day, World AIDS Day and the Christmas Party all took place within the last months of 2013, of which I would like to discuss in this piece. All events required a countless number of meetings. All events required great collaboration among the leaders as they prepared and worked tirelessly, during and after school day in and day out.
This hectic period begun with Mercy Fun Day; here, the children from the Mercy Center were brought to our beloved NIST campus during a Saturday, as we organized numerous sessions and activities throughout the day, from group leadership games to cooking pastries to physical recreation, such as swimming and soccer. As well as this, Mercy Fun Day provided the kids an opportunity to paint a mug using their own design. The incentive behind this was that so these mugs could be sold to NIST students during the next event, World AIDS Day.
HIV/AIDS is commonly misunderstood and misinterpreted, and it is while we aim to contribute to the lives of the underprivileged, we also aim to raise awareness among the NIST community. As students, staff and teachers entered NIST, each and every body was given a DWBI sticker as well as the renowned HIV/AIDS ribbon. This set the tone for what was a highly productive day; as well as the sale of the mugs – which all sold out during the lunch period alone – cupcakes were sold and information was posted around to educate the students about HIV/AIDS and the issue in the context of Thailand. After all, the disease is most prevalent in Thailand among all Asian nations, with around 1% of the population suffering, and it has been and will continue to be our job to spread the cause so that DWBI can grow in future years and have an everlasting benefit to those suffering in our backyard.
I was in a room full of focused, motivated and engaged seniors. They were having a conversation regarding their agenda for the following week’s visit to the Mercy Center, while I was quietly hiding in the corner in isolation. I finally decided to attend one of Dreams We Believe In’s weekly meetings during year 11, after hearing about the great work that they had done.
However, as time passed, they were increasingly welcoming to me, as I was about to embark on one crazy rollercoaster journey. Although I initially felt quite left out, despite the hospitable nature of the group members, I knew that this was an opportunity that I could not just turn down. I started to regularly attend meetings – every Wednesday at 11:00 sharp, at the college library. And since then, every Wednesday has brought about increasing responsibility, as I eventually became a student leader myself once I stepped into year 12.
Looking back now, following four challenging years of high school, I can proudly say that I have made a significant contribution to Dreams We Believe In, and have absolutely no regrets. It has been one of my most memorable experiences during my time at NIST.
So what is The Dreams We Believe In Project? Established in early 2010 by a group of inquisitive students, “Dreams We Believe In” (DWBI) has become more than just a service group – it has become our dream. Striving to discover and fulfill the dreams of over 60 extremely deserving children living with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) at the HDF Mercy Center (Klongtoey district, Bangkok), DWBI organizes various activities and events, from recreational visits to the Mercy Center to Dodgeball week at NIST to overnight beach trips to Pattaya.
Three large scale events: Mercy Fun Day, World AIDS Day and the Christmas Party all took place within the last months of 2013, of which I would like to discuss in this piece. All events required a countless number of meetings. All events required great collaboration among the leaders as they prepared and worked tirelessly, during and after school day in and day out.
This hectic period begun with Mercy Fun Day; here, the children from the Mercy Center were brought to our beloved NIST campus during a Saturday, as we organized numerous sessions and activities throughout the day, from group leadership games to cooking pastries to physical recreation, such as swimming and soccer. As well as this, Mercy Fun Day provided the kids an opportunity to paint a mug using their own design. The incentive behind this was that so these mugs could be sold to NIST students during the next event, World AIDS Day.
HIV/AIDS is commonly misunderstood and misinterpreted, and it is while we aim to contribute to the lives of the underprivileged, we also aim to raise awareness among the NIST community. As students, staff and teachers entered NIST, each and every body was given a DWBI sticker as well as the renowned HIV/AIDS ribbon. This set the tone for what was a highly productive day; as well as the sale of the mugs – which all sold out during the lunch period alone – cupcakes were sold and information was posted around to educate the students about HIV/AIDS and the issue in the context of Thailand. After all, the disease is most prevalent in Thailand among all Asian nations, with around 1% of the population suffering, and it has been and will continue to be our job to spread the cause so that DWBI can grow in future years and have an everlasting benefit to those suffering in our backyard.
Finally, the DWBI Christmas Party, arguably the most hectic event of all was one that really allowed us to connect as students with the children. A Christmas tree was displayed at NIST, with each of them writing their ideal gift for Christmas on a card – students and their friends would look around and help buy a present, of which we ultimately unwrapped during the party.
The Christmas Party took place at the Mercy Center, and aside from the gift unwrapping, we served a full lunch, allowed the children to design their own desserts and cookies, decorated a Christmas tree with ornaments together, and played group games throughout the day. Personally, such an experience was arguably my so enjoyable because I was given the privilege of dressing up as Santa, providing each child with their respective gift. But I could see that the look on the children’s faces were priceless; and it is their appreciation that comes along that motivates every single member of DWBI to push through each event, no matter the stresses that come along with the organization process. Throughout the year, DWBI connects NIST students with the local Thai community, addressing evident but often ignored issues, while providing a highly worthwhile experience – and that is why we continue to grow every year.
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