Venerable means valued and respected due to age. After 26 years of unstinting service to the education of Thai children from poor families, PIWC has earned the right to be, well, venerated, by foreigners and Thais alike around the island.
The record speaks for itself: more than 1,200 students have benefited from scholarships in those 26 years including five doctors with another two graduating this year; dentists, a lawyer, a petrochemical engineer and numerous nurse graduates. Young Thais are contributing positively to PIWC goes Mediterranean Venerated Phuket charity raises money for Thai student scholarship
society because of the start PIWC gave them.
This year PIWC handed out 165 scholarships valued at more than B2 million. Raising such money for scholarships doesn’t come easy. Phuket has many other organisations competing for a piece of the same charity pie. Of Phuket’s estimated 600,000 residents, about 100,000 are foreigners, many of whom are retired with some disposable income.
PIWC’s constitution’s states PIWC objectives are 1: “To unite women from all nations in Phuket and surrounding areas to meet on a regular basis for friendship.” 2: “To make living in Phuket more enjoyable.” And, 3: “To hold fundraising activities for the PIWC educational fund.” Members of the PIWC therefore have been in constant fundraising mode throughout the 26 years to meet that last objective, annually.
To measure the challenge facing the 125 current members, the annual cost of a six year medical degree is B60,000; a four-year nursing course costs B25,000 a year and four years at Rajaphat University B20,000 a year. Other courses, ranging between two and four years, cost from B10,000 to B25,000 a year.
A daunting but, as PIWC has proved over more than two decades, not impossible task. Fundraising activities include monthly luncheons, golf tournaments and an annual large-scale fundraising event. For many years PIWC’s annual ball was the social event of the year, but in more recent years the group has replaced it with specialised events such as the Melbourne Cup horserace party since November 2014.
The next big fundraiser is a “Mediterranean Night” on January 23, 2016 at The Pavilions in Cherng Talay. Each of the 11 tables will be named after a country bordering the Mediterranean Sea (Monaco, France, Italy, Greece, Malta, Spain, Slovenia, Turkey, Cyprus, Morocco and Egypt). So get out your sewing machine, or trip the light fantastic to a costume shop and turn up on the night with a Bonjour (French), Olá (Spanish), Merhaba (Turkish) Ciao (Italian) or whatever “hello” you fancy to your friends. DJ Garry Holden from Phuket Vibe will spin the discs.
Proudly supported by The Phuket News, Mediterranean Night will take place @ The Plantation Club @ The Pavilions, Cherng Talay. January 23, 2016, 6:30pm. Cost: B2,500 per person includes Mediterranean buffet and one beverage. Ticketing and information: info@PIWC-Phuket.com. Carole Dux: 08 5782 1332