A YOUNG Chin girl with a balloon in her hand wandered around, gazing at one booth after another. Judging by her half-smiling face, she seemed a little surprised to be in a place like the Grand Mee Ya Hta. When asked why she did not participate in the activities around her, she said, “I can’t decide which game to play.”

The 10-year-old girl, Ah La, was one of more than 100 young people who gathered to attend the first charity event held at the executive residence on Bogyoke Aung San Road on April 24. They came from either the Yangon Education Center for the Blind in Insein township or the orphanage Living Faith Children’s Home in East Dagon township.

“Although we have donated food and gifts to these young people at their respective places, this time we decided to bring them here. They can meet and have fun together somewhere out of their school,” said Ma Khin Ohnmar Win, the executive secretary of Grand Mee Ya Hta, as she sat in the beautifully decorated lobby lounge.

The four-hour event included musical entertainment, in which the children participated, games and dinner.

Sponsors included SM Tour, Adorn’s Kitchen, Hawaii Ice Cream, Safe Security Service and the Grand Mee Ya Hta staff itself. K10,000 worth of gifts were given to each child

Just outside the building beside the swimming pool many children and teenagers scattered to booths offering various kinds of activities like face painting and balloon popping, while a few young adults rested in chairs.
“It is a great pleasure for them to go out like this. We can’t even imagine doing an event like this on our own. This experience is invaluable,” said U Luke Tui Hing, the founder and the director of the orphanage.

The youth also expressed their appreciation for the event.
“I am very excited and happy to know that many people care about us. It is very different from our school surroundings,” said Sao Tun Oo, a 23-year-old Karen man who is learning rattan weaving, in addition to reading, writing and basic mathematics, at the blind school.

The head mistress of the school, Daw Zeena Dun, said her students rarely have such experiences because the school lacks sufficient funds. Even the entrance fee to a garden for the entire school can be too expensive. And when the school arranged for its yearly outing to the zoo, she had to limit the activities the children wanted to play.

U Luke Tui Hing agreed that it is a struggle just to feed the students a meal with meat once a month, let alone hold a fun fair like this.

“There are people who come to the school and treat the children, but this is different. The environment they live in all the time has been totally changed,” he said.

The students appeared overwhelmed with joy. Some played at the booths, laughing with friends. Others sung on the stage, and some just smiled.
Ah La said eagerly: “I am going to sing. All students from our school will sing both English and Myanmar songs. And I love to sing.”

If you are interested in donating to the schools, call Living Faith Children’s Home at 700 772 and Yangon Education Centre for the Blind at 661 689 or 662 034.