September 12-19, 2011- Giving Back to the Islands…

     Giving back is a part of every culture and country in the world, and there are so many ways to do so.  In the Marshalls, education has become a primary focus of charity organizations and events over the years.  On Kwajalein, there’s a group called the Yokwe Yuk Women’s Club (YYWC), and they give back to education through sales at the Micronesian Handicraft Shop and the Bargain Bazaar, which they staff by club volunteers alone. The money generally goes to buy school supplies for schools throughout the Marshall Islands, including very remote sites and those just a couple of miles away.  There are many others who give of their time during the week or on weekends to volunteer at the schools on Ebeye, teaching math or English, to the 30+ students per class, most of whom do not have a book through which to learn, but instead have to copy down every math problem or English conjugation by hand from the board with their limited supply of paper and pencils.  In addition to the one public school on the island, Ebeye is populated by more than 5 different religious organizations, most of whom have established private schools on the island with over 15,000 people living on 80 acres of coral.  Around 50% of the native population is under the age of 18, so the one public school cannot handle all the children, and the missionary schools help to educate the overflow, as long as you can afford the tuition. Many families cannot afford to attend any school (as the public school charges tuition as well), so there are many children who receive no education at all.  All of this is just a small part of the numerous reasons why education has become such a need in the Marshalls and the focus for most donations and service work coming from outsiders to the atoll. 

     This weekend, the boys and I headed back to Roi (it’s been quite a while since my babies have been to Roi, so we were all very excited to jump on the plane to commute to what has become one of our favorite relaxing “road trip” spots on the atoll) for an ECCF (Enniburr Children’s Christmas Fund) Fundraising Chili Cook-Off Event.  Like Ebeye is to Kwajalein, Enniburr (or Santo as the locals call it) is to Roi-Namur.  This is the island where many friends and co-workers reside, and like Ebeye for Kwajalein residents, it is the closest view for those living on base of real Marshallese life, and so it has become a focus for charity and service as well.  Unlike Ebeye, Enniburr has only one school, the public school, and a much, much smaller population, but similar to Ebeye, there are families who cannot afford the $10 tuition to send their child to school, and so they receive no education.  The ECCF was established, like the YYWC, in order to give back to education, but specifically for Enniburr.  The main focus of its fundraising work each year, including the Chili Cook-Off, is to raise money for the big Christmas Party for the children of the island.  Around the holidays, all the families of Enniburr are invited to Roi-Namur to eat, play, and receive presents (usually backpacks full of school supplies and flip flops) to start off the New Year right.  The Chili Cook-Off has always been the biggest fundraiser towards this effort. Basically, t-shirts, food, and beverages are sold, all proceeds for the ECCF fund, and chili chefs compete for the best chili, charging $10 for each judge who wants to taste test and vote. Oh, and then there’s the pie toss, where employees of the contractors on base put money up in order to throw a pie in the faces of a boss or supervisor or sometimes just a popular friend on the atoll, all for the children’s fund. 

      It turned out to be an awesome day, no matter how much money was made. In fact, the giving began before the event was even finished when ECCF donated $200 to the school to pay for 20 students tuition for the year, so all students on the island could attend! That was the best part in my book because as an educator, I want nothing more than to see all of the children of the Marshalls have a chance at a better life in a way that only education can provide.