Singapore Management University

About the project:

Wings Project
Time : 27/4/2014 – 11/5/2014
Place: Phuong Thinh Commune, Cao Lanh District, Dong Thap Province.
Participants: 37 students of SMU (Singapore Management University); 5 Vietnamese volunteers and others members of ECO Vietnam Group.
Achievements:
- Completing a EVG love house
- English Teaching
- Finance Teaching for local youth
- Constructing 1km road
- Culture Night
- House visiting

Meetings – Tonight, we are young.

Although we are prepared to not sleep before midnight during our project, the actual feeling of having minimum sleep was really a test to us mentally and physically. It was 5.5hours of sleep on the first night. 4.5 hours of sleep on the second night and 3.5 hours of sleep on the third night. Sometimes, we could not even recognize our faces in the mirror, what was all these hard work for? It was the legendary Reflection Night, with the Sing-team and Viet-team, ending off with the leader meeting.

Tears – What is pressure?

I was crushed under pressure for the very first time in my life. Mr Harry was not there, he was my helping hand, my support for every mistake I made in the previous projects, but he was not there. This was my first time being a project manager, and I can feel the huge responsibility on my shoulders. I had to deal with Sing-team when they called off the Finance-class for the local youth, I had to deal with both team to break the ice and overcome the invisible wall, I had to fix thing right. I asked myself, ‘Why did I have to do all of this? Why should I take all of this pressure for nothing?’ I answered that question myself, ‘It is because I am young, because this is my community, I wanted to grow, to learn, and to give as much as I can, since life is short.’
Nevertheless, I realized I was only 21, and suddenly I felt powerless. I cried, cried for every little hardship I have to deal with daily. However, many told me to persevere on: “No pain, no gain.”

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V team Members – Warm from inside

I am lucky to be in this project, I have an amazing team. We supported each other, we care for each other. No matter how stressful it was during reflection time, they still paid attention to their teammate, they helped whenever and wherever it was possible. We were a strong team. I felt so warm inside despite the rainy season then.

Sing team leaders

I was impressed by their leader, 4 different individuals, 4 different characters, but they had something in common which truly inspired me: detail planning, fantastic leadership and being meticulous to every team member.
It was the dry season in Phuong Thinh, and water supply was cut off from us every night. There was once, the 6 of us stayed up late till 3am just to discuss the solution for bathing.

5. Last project night

I always enjoy Culture Night at the end of every project. We danced around the camp fire along with stream of music. I felt young, I felt alive. THIS IS LIFE. It is now or never, I am not going to live forever, I just want to live when I am alive.

I want to join project like this, time to time, just to feel young forever.

By the end of the month 11, when project “Step up” had just ended, but other projects have also started, EVG go on with the journey of meaningful projects!

In the past week, from 27.11 to 2.12 Gia Bac was pleased to welcome Vietnamese students and the Saint Andrew’s Junior College (SAJC) – Singapore and the Singapore Management University (SMU) on project READ, Gia Bac, Di Linh district, Lam Dong. Our project’s objective is to build native libraries for students in Gia Bac to improve education , enabling them to enhance their knowledge. This is also the beginning of the project construction plan “community center” for GiaBac long term support.

Frist activity was to visit and learn about the area they would work in the coming days.

On the next working day, these volunteers knitted bamboo doors for libraries; building walls from local soil. With the goal to be environment friendly, preserve ethnic culture, the material for library construction were taken from Giabac nature (bamboo, local red-soil mixed with a binder).

Knitting not only requires technical level, thoroughness and ingenious, but it also takes too much time. On the first time everything was completely new, but the problems encountered errors, mechanical errors motifs remake to be removed, or injured by sharp bamboo but in a day when they’re done properly a sample bamboo just as guidance. It contributes to retaining cultural of ethnic K’Ho, Gia Bac

Also in recent days, with the program “House for Hope”, in order to separate the kitchen from the main house, ensuring health and safety in cooking, these volunteers would have to work together very seriously hard to catch up and complete kitchen.