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News About our Foundation Click on the links below to download our latest newsletter. Click here to send an email to join our newsletter mailing list. The stories in our newsletters are included in the newsreel below. August 2009 Newsletter (.pdf) April 2009 Newsletter (.pdf) December 2008 Newsletter (.pdf) ถาษา ไทย Thai language version (.pdf) June 2008 Newsletter (.pdf) ถาษา ไทย Thai language version (.pdf) | |
 February,
2010: Cooking at Coconut ClubCoconut Club students learnt to cook 'tin foil fish' when the Harries Family joined us from Hong Kong for a week. The children chopped garlic and herbs and made little parcels of their fish which they shared with other residential students at dinner. We're all looking forward to the Harries's next visit!  Absolute February Birthday PartySaturday 13th February 20 very excited children climbed into two mini busses bound for Absolute Patong Ville. The students had a brilliant time swimming, eating party food and cake and watching the clown magician. Yet again, thank you to Absolute for organising such a great day out and for their staff for giving up their weekend to make this very special birthday party a huge success.  January,
2010: Turtles at the MarriottCoconut Club students had a great day at the Marriott! First, they participated in JW Marriott's Kid Sole - helped by the amazing Kid Sole staff including Nit Noi, Turkey, Gee and Pee. Students tried juggling, bicycling, trapeze work, mini trampoline, and giant trampoline. Lunch was at the noodle bar, where students got to make their own meal and eat delicious chocolate cake. In the afternoon, we went to the Mai Khao Turtle Foundation where we learnt about turtles and the students made posters.. A fantastic, informative, fun day! Thank you so much JW Marriott.  January Birthday Party at Coconut ClubTake face painting clowns, amazing balloon animals, pass the parcel, plus our friends from Rockfish with a brilliant party game and a guitar to sing happy birthday add a huge cake from Les Anges - and you get 30 very happy birthday children! A huge thank you to all the donors and volunteers who make these very special birthday parties such a success.  January,
2010: Tie Dye T-shirtsWhilst visiting from Hong Kong Isabelle-Marie, Adam and baby Alexis came to Coconut Club. They brought with them T-shirts and students tie dyed shirts one Saturday afternoon; the children were amazed when they took out the knots to find the patterns they had made. Other students got to stencil shirts with cats and dogs which was great fun. Thank you guys!  January,
2010: PIMEX Boat Show PhuketThe organisers of the PIMEX Boat Show in Royal Phuket Marina were kind enought to give the Foundation a free stand at the Boat Show. Phuket Has Been Good To Us Foundation staff and volunteers were able to say hi to old friends and tell many new people about the amazing work we are doing in Kamala and Kalim Schools.  December,
2009: Absolute Birthday PartyOne Saturday afternoon in December all of the children with a birthday in December and January piled into Absolute mini buses and excitedly watched the beautiful beaches of Kamala and Patong pass by through the windows. In no time we arrived at Patong Absolute Ville in Patong, where an amazing scene awaited them. Balloons created an archway into the swimming pool area - more balloons were hanging from the walls, others were filled with water and were floating in the huge pool. 
A great time was had splashing around, practicing swimming under water and bombing each other with water balloons. But there was more. There were clowns and magicians to entertain; the looks on some of the childrens' faces when the ball appeared from nowhere was great to see. There was also a huge birthday cake for the after swimming munchies. Happy Birthday to some very happy Coconut Club students and thank you so much to Absolute for a great afternoon out!
 December,
2009: A4Art ExhibitionIn August residential students produced some amazing art at the Coconut Club silk screen workshop. On Wednesday 9th December some of their best paintings were on show together with donated art from generous local and international artists. A huge thank you to the artists who donated their work; all of the money made from sales will be used to ensure the Foundation can continue to change the lives of children in Phuket. A big thank you also to Wine Connection, Royal Eastern Beverage Company and Absolute Vodka who sponsored the drinks on the night. If you weren't able to make it on the night - some of the art is still on show in the foyer of the Sheraton at Laguna..  November,
2009: Birthday Party at Coconut ClubResidential children with a birthday in October or November had the best afternoon at Coconut Club on Saturday 21st November. The students invited two of their friends to join them for a fun filled afternoon. Yet again, many thanks to Banyan Tree for providing cake and party food, to Rockfish Restaurant and their staff for party food and games and to Bodega for the geat face painting. Welcome, for the first time, and thank you to Laguna's Banyan Tree Management Academy Staff for the birthday treats, gifts and games.  November,
2009:Coconut Club Swimming LessonsPhuket International Academy (PIA) hosted their first Coconut Club swimming lessons on Saturday 14th November. The lucky students were amazed when they arrived to see just how huge an Olympic pool is. Thank you for the amazing lessons PIA staff - one student, swimming for the first time, was able to swim the full length of the pool having just watched his brother to see how it was done.  November,
2009: Playing Conkers at Coconut ClubVolunteer Kathy brought conkers all the way from the UK and introduced Coconut Club students to this great game! The students drilled holes in their conkers and strung them on string. They then took it in turns to hit their opponent's conker until the winner's conker broke the other open and it fell off the string. The students, and some of their teachers not from the UK, were initially bemused by this game but soon got into the swing of it.  November,
2009: Making Flower Vases at Coconut ClubVolunteers Cristy and Sarah brought masses of purple orchids to Coconut Club this week. The students were given old water bottles which they covered in paper and decorated with great drawings and flowers to make their very own flower vases. The students were delighted to take these beautiful flower arrangements away with them to brighten their dormitories.
On Thursday 28 May over 100 art lovers gathered at Hung Fat's restaurant in Kalim for 'The Big Picture', an inspirational photography exhibition with works
on show by students and friends of the Phuket Has Been Good to Us Foundation.
March, 2009: Foundation Launches Fan Page on Facebook
The Phuket Has Been Good to us Foundation now has a "fan
page" on the popular Facebook website. The page enables the
Foundation to post photo albums of the
children and their activities in the Kalim and
Kamala schools and with The
Coconut Club. We plan to make other uses of the sites potential
functions in the future as well.
March, 2009: Coconut Club Hold Week-Long Photography Workshop  Earlier
this year, the Foundation was approached by photographer Martha Lutz who was
interested in working with the children to teach them about photography.
It was decided Marsha would lead a week long
workshop with the children of the Coconut
Club. Aged 12-14, the children were given six cameras donated by
Marsha's friends back in the US.
Click
here
to read a recent Phuket Post article (.pdf) about the event. The best of the photos taken by
the children will be printed and offered for sale later this year. See
some of the rest of the photos at the Foundation's
Facebook fan page.
February, 2009: Fundraising Dinner held at Hung Fat's Restaurant in Kalim  Recently, a group of approximately thirty supporters of the Phuket Has Been Good to Us Foundation attended
a charity gala dinner organized by Board members Peter Hamilton and Michael Weinstein at Hung Fats restaurant in
Kalim. The restaurant is adjacent to the Kalim school, where the Foundation is
completing its three year pilot program. The dinner paired the highly regarded French chef Jerome Nutile, with Joes Downstairs' executive chef Aaron
Hooper, recent winner of the King of the Kitchen, Thailand award granted by HAPA (Hospitality Asia Platinum
Awards). Hung Fats is the newest of the four restaurants of the Baan Rim Pa restaurant group, formerly owned
by our founder, the late Tom McNamara. The event raised over 250,000 baht for the children served by
the Foundation. Thanks to all who helped organize and conduct this dinner, your support is much
appreciated. Click here to view an article on this event in the magazine
Traversing the Orient.
January, 2009: TEFL Phuket: Teach, Meditate, Volunteer
December, 2009: Sneakers for Students
In Memoriam: Thomas Joseph McNamara, 1946-2008 |
On Sunday morning, with children queuing up outside hours before the party was due to start the teachers set up Pin the Tail on the Elephant, Pass the Parcel and Balloon Game stations. The children had a fantastic time. We sang Happy Birthday to You and the birthday children received a small birthday present such as colouring crayons and books for the younger ones and shampoos and soaps or sports T-shirts for the older ones. Shafar and Adila donated some amazing birthday cakes which they had bought at The Hilton Hotel. Paul and Bill from The Children of Phuket brought along three bikes for all of the residential children to share.
Students can 'sign them out' any time after school or at the weekend to ride
around the school grounds.
May, 2009: The Big Picture
- The
Foundation's Fundraiser at Hung Fat's
Earlier this semester, Stewart Keith of TEFL Phuket
approached the staff of PHBGTU with a unique partnership idea: new volunteers
every month in exchange for training hours at our schools. TEFL Phuket, located
in Kamala, issues Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) certification,
for students who complete the classroom hours and spend twenty hours practice
teaching or observing. So far, ten TEFL candidates, all to wanting to
experience working in a Thai government school, have created materials, worked
in Coconut Club, and assisted in the classroom. In addition, candidates have
the choice of coming to the course early or staying after its completion to work
with PHGBTU. TEFL Phuket is unique in that it is Thailands only TEFL school
that also offers meditation retreats through The Karuna Center.
The second semester of school, Kamala and Kalim students
participated in an exciting competition orchestrated by the PHGBTU staff.
Students, who earned three Star English tickets, won a pair of brand new
Adidas, Nikes, or Asics. The sneakers were donated by Shaun Boulter, organizer
of the Triballistics Triathlon events in Phuket. Laura Gray, head teacher,
explains, Students were awarded tickets for working hard, good behavior, and
independent thinking. Some of them have never owned sneakers before, so it was
real motivation for them to strive for new shoes. Teachers gave out thirty
pairs of sneaker, as well as t-shirts, bags, medals, and trophies. We are hoping
to continue our incentive program, if you have any clothing, sports equipment,
toys, etc, that can be used, please contact us..jpg "Phuket Has Been Good To Us FOundation founder Thomas McNamara")
We are sad to report the passing of Thomas Joseph McNamara in Bangkok on Sunday, November 24 after a long battle with prostate cancer. Tom is survived by
his wife Khun Pensri, daughter Fleur and sons Casey and Pure. A public cremation ceremony will be held at Wat Chalong on Phuket, Saturday 28 November from 11:30-12:30.
Usually at 7 am, the residential students of the Rachaprachanukroh school in Kamala find themselves about to start another day in life limited to living
and attending classes within the confines of the walls of their institution. But on this particular day, 33 extremely grateful children were about to
embark on a day of fun under the sea, compliments of Phukets Scandinavian Scuuba Doo. The day trip was arranged through our Foundation. Senior teacher
and English program coordinator Laura Gray, had arranged for Scuuba Doo director Hakan (Hogge) Larsson to provide the all expenses-paid trip, including
transportation for two groups to and from the school in Kamala to the Chalong pier, from where the children were transported on boat to Coral Island.
Scuuba Doo provided four dive masters led by Khun Tad, who spoke to the children about water safety and environmental issues as they enjoyed fruit on
the way to their snorkeling adventure. 
While our mission is primarily to provide Enlgish language education, we also work to give students a sense of hope, self-esteem and to connect them with
their community, noted Ms. Gray, who was joined by another of the Foundations teachers, Jonathan Higgins. Two Thai teachers from the Kamala school also
were on hand. Following their approximately 90- minute swim and a free lunch, the students were treated to a boat ride displaying the beautiful views of
the waters around Phuket and were given free Scuuba Doo t-shirts before heading back home.
Since its inception in 2005, the Phuket Has Been Good to Us Foundation was housed in the Kalim offices of the Baan Rim Pa restaurant Group. The generosity
of the staff of the Baan Rim Pa group cannot be overstated. But as we have grown over time, it has become necessary for us to stake out on our own and
establish an independent office. Since at this time we operate in schools in Kamala and Kalim, it made sense to try to locate a suitable building close
to our former offices. 
In July 2008, we were lucky enough to have been offerred a space in Kamala, just around the corner form the Kamala school where we
have placed four teachers. We have moved in and are in the process of getting fully set up. We of course welcome any donations of computers, office furniture, equipment
and supplies. See our 
We have entered our second year of operating an English Program in the new Rachaprachanakroh 36 school in Kamala. The school is the 36th in Thailand to be built under the auspices of H.M. the King’s Rachaprachanakroh Foundation, which can be translated as ‘the King and the people helping each other.’ Our Foundation’s program, formerly provided for grade levels 1-3, has been expanded to levels 1-6, for a total of approximately 500 students. The English sections of the school now include classrooms, a library and an office for the growing staff.
The expansion of services has transformed the process of assessment into a major undertaking. 
The Foundation’s first oral tests, at Kalim School, little more than two years ago, were conducted with 120 students.
In contrast, 1500 oral tests will be carried out with 609 different students in the current school year. In addition, the Foundation carries out two written tests with each child every school year. 
The test examines students’ understanding in a number of different areas, including colour, size, quantity, object recognition and use. Two local Thai mothers gave their advice on the suitability of the images used and some minor changes were made to the existing benchmark test in May 2007, in response to feedback from testers. Please go to the Foundation website for full details of progress with each grade. Click on “Progress to Date”
Nicos Coronis is a Greek citizen born in Alexandria Egypt in 1947. He now resides in Athens, Greece, and is married with 3 children. He is the Managing Director of a medium size Greek shipping company operating bulk carriers and chemical tankers. Nicos and his family first came to Thailand about 15 years ago. They soon fell in love with the country, the people, the food and the weather, and have been coming quite often ever since. After the tsunami Nicos’ daughter Chiana came to Phuket with many toys from various schools in Athens. 
After meeting up with Kate and Stephen Cope at the Phuket International Blues Festival, it soon occurred to her that it would be a good idea to hold an exhibition at home in Malta, and donate part of the proceeds to the Phuket Has Been Good To Us Foundation. 
We will also soon begin our programme Teach To Reach, in which we will train Thai-speaking teachers of English in the two schools, and in other schools, in our approach to teaching. The course contains eight modules, and has been funded by the Rotary Clubs of Laguna Phuket, West Shore, Victoria in Canada, and Rotary International. The video, produced by Nuala during her stay in Phuket, will be used throughout the course to demonstrate our methods. The video uses various forms of non-verbal communication to put its message across, and places very little reliance on the spoken word. 
The course will demonstrate interactive and multi-sensory teaching methods, and show the benefit of learning by listening, speaking, seeing, movement and touch. It will contain real-life examples from the Foundation’s current practice, which are used daily at Kamala and Kalim Schools. Teach to Reach will look at behaviour management, and present a variety of strategies for organising and controlling the class, to make full use of the lesson time available. Additionally, the course will focus on how to create a stimulating and welcoming learning environment, which liberates students’ desire to learn, and where interesting materials are used to appeal to their natural curiosity.
If you have ever amused yourself by reading those messages that are miss–spelt, or with letters missing, you will know that humans are capable of recognizing a word when only seeing part of it. We can speed read or skim passages accurately as the signals pass through synapses in our brain. When thinking in this way, the synapses are like little sign posts. Young children have about 10 quadrillion synapses; but this number declines with age. Learning and memory formation are thought to involve structural changes in the brain, specifically at the synapses. So it is important to develop a young child’s brain as well as possible at an early age.