Sometimes a chance encounter made while traveling by bicycle can lead to a life-long undertaking.
Such is the case of Mike Church, 27, whose 10,000-mile bike tour across Europe and Asia with a small group of bicyclists has led to the founding and maintenance of a school in a part of Nepal that is far off the tourist track.
The Mikey Medium English School, named for Church, opened in 2008 with funds provided in lieu of wedding gifts to Church's marriage to Ali Sharp. Since then, Church's parents have helped their son raise funds for the project. Church grew up in Davidsonville, Maryland, and is now a graduate student in Montana.
Interviewed in the Annapolis Capital, Church said:
“It just goes to show you how surprisingly easy it is to make a difference. It's a wonderful thing. My parents and I have supplied the school, but it's not a heroic deed. In the grand scheme of things, it's a minor and painless exercise.”
Chance meeting
The idea for the school hatched during Church's bicycle tour in 2005. Some dispatches from the tour appeared in Slate in 2007 under the heading,“Cycling the Silk Road.”
When the trio arrived in Nepal, they encountered two brothers riding their bikes. A conversation led to an invitation for a place to stay.
While they stayed in their village, one of the brothers said he wanted to open a school and asked them to stay on to teach English. Church and his compatriots didn't stay, but he continued to correspond with one brother, Ujjwa, and encouraged him with plans to open the school.
Parents involved
The forwarded wedding gift funding helped to open the school in Bauniyan, Kailali, to 20 boys and 20 girls.
Church's parents, John and Barbara of Davidsonville, Maryland, also have taken up the school's cause by helping raise and forwarding about $100 a week to the effort. Church's mom is a retired school principal, and the pair are traveling to Nepal in a couple of weeks to bring supplies and help with instruction.
In a letter published on his parents' blog — Grassroots Education Nepal — Church writes about the value of education in rural Nepal:
“The benefits of basic education need not be reiterated here. They are plentiful and convincing. Never the less, here is a refresher. Girls who are educated are better able to protect themselves against HIV/AIDS, marry later in life, have healthier children and have work opportunities beyond the home. Boys who are educated may be able to break a family cycle of hard labor and typically earn more than their non-educated counterparts.”
Donations
Mike Church is scheduled to give talks throughout his Maryland community through the end of the month to raise awareness and funds for the school. The schedule is posted at the Grassroots Education Nepal blog.
You can also make online PayPal donations for the school.
Photo above from Grassroots Education Nepal blog.
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