Running the FFC Dhaka, Bangladesh, homes costs from $15,000 to $20,000 Canadian per month. Expenses are for food, rent, salaries for local staff, education and medical, and all other related expenses for the 143 children living in the homes.

We have two "baby homes" in Dhaka. All the children in these two homes have been completely abandoned and are considered to have no families. Most were brought in as tiny, high risk babies, and they are mostly girls. FFC has opened a school on the premises for the Baby home children . This is expensive, but necessary. FFC wants the children to learn English and computers, along with academic subjects, so their future will be brighter, and the staff benefit as much as the children. Many staff came to FFC as destitute mothers and had no place to go; most of the rest of the staff are poor or are needy and are supporting large extended families with their FFC wages. All staff are paid a fair local rate for their work.

We have 32 children with special needs. We have children with all different needs both mental and physical. We provide the children with physiotherapy 2 times a week to those who require it. We have a therapy room within the home. We have one nurse in the special care floor taking care of their needs as well as the other children. We also have another nurse in our other house on the floor of the babies and the infants. There are very few places in Dhaka that cater for the needs or well being of special care children. We have two teachers specially trained in special needs children who teach the children at the home.

Thanks to a funding grant from the Retired Teachers Association, FFC has been able to set up a Montessori classroom for about 20 students. Some of them are seen at right. And what has transpired since the classes began is amazing. The children from the orphanage have learned to respect the order and routines of the class, to take turns, and to trust that they would have a chance to do what other children were doing. One of their favorite activities in the early days was to sing the Continent song and to work on making maps of the continents. They seem to enjoy it so much that when it was time to go, many would protest that they wanted more work time. The first Montessori classroom in Bangladesh has also attracted interest from the community, and recently two outside students were enrolled.

Shown above is Howah, one of the eight deaf students at the college supported by FFC. Howah has 3 sisters and 2 brothers. Her father is not well enough to work and the brothers are rickshaw pullers, but her mother was determined her daughter would attend college and fought hard for her to do so. Howah is also very accomplished.

At right, some examples of their work. (Click for larger picture)

Education In Dhaka

We have a school within the home that caters for nursery to class 4, and children in Class 5 to Class 9 attend outside school. The school provides computer training for all of our children. We have 3 children currently attending BKSP where they are training in gymnastics along with their normal education. This is mainly a Bangla medium School but they also learn English. We recently received funding for coaching five of our students attending class 9 at a local coaching center. Our kids regularly visit the American International School. They interact with the students there, and games and programs are organized for them. We have a deaf girl who is studying in the National Deaf Institution, at Bijoynagar, Dhaka. There are two teachers specifically trained in the area of special needs to teach our special care kids, and we have the special care school in the new house.

The Art Students

Mowshamy was one of our FFC girls who came to us when she was a toddler. She is profoundly deaf, and a very smart and determined young lady. She discovered she was very artistic early on in life, and we steered her towards the jewelry-making course and art. When she graduated from grade 10 at the school for the deaf in Dhaka, we found a small art college for her to attend. Mowshamy is now married and living with her husband and family. While registering Mowshamy, we were told that other deaf art students would love to attend the college, but did not have the money for the fees. It was decided that FFC would pay their fees plus the cost of their art supplies, and try to sponsor the school with books and perhaps a translator for sign language. We also purchase some of their work for resale.

The school children at FFC Dhaka wrote their first term exams, from April 21st to May 6, 2010. The exams were held in the newly renovated and painted school floor. The occasion was quite official, and the students were provided with exam hall entry cards and carried in their own exam accessories like all the other schools in Dhaka.

At right, the students can be seen in the new classroom writing their exams.

The next few days will be exciting for the students, as they will be busy occupying themselves in the library, playing board games, cleaning the school, cooking and sewing, while the teachers will be working on the exam papers.

As the students were very tired at the end of the exams, they were lucky to be able to spend a day enjoying some happy moments and playing at the American School in Dhaka.

The FFC school now has a computer lab that was recently reorganized, and equipped with five new computers that were bought with a grant from the Sompan Foundation. The school students, shown at left working in their new lab, are enjoying their computer classes much more now, along with the new computer teacher.

The students are shown above in the playground at the AISD school.

According to the latest emails from Dhaka, the exam results are now in. The photo at left shows some of the Dhaka students proudly displaying their test scores (with the possible exception of the boy on the far left). For more pictures of the students and their exam results, click on the photo at left.

Minami is shown above helping the Special Care students as they work on drawings, and at right Minami and the Special Care children show off their completed art work.

Special Care Volunteer

Another volunteer has arrived to help at FFC Dhaka. Minami, who is from Japan, learned about FFC from our website. She will be staying until September 13 in order to work with the Special Care children.

Marilyn's Art Classes

Marilyn Hawkins, a sponsor and adoptive mother of two Indian children, travelled to Dhaka to give art classes to the students at FFC Bangladesh. On the first day the itinerary included a trip to the Botanical Gardens. Marilyn and twelve staff members and students, including two special care girls and their Ayah, set off at nine in the morning. In Marilyn's words:

We drove for about forty-five minutes. Past the river, and we could see all the big and small boats going up and down. I had candies and granola bars, and Shilpy had bananas and biscuits. We loved the clean air and the cooler temperatures, the rose garden, the orchids and firs, the bamboo, eucalyptus and palm trees. Halfway through the tour we sat on the grass in a circle and I passed out watercolour pencils, paper and brushes. Everyone picked a flower from the ground to draw and paint. That was very successful - some girls said they could not paint, but everyone tried to do something.

We took a different route back, but not by the river unfortunately. On the way I bought everyone soft drinks and samosas, while Shilpy bought ice cream. The one who had the best time of all was little Labony, from Special Care. She had a smile on her face the whole time and she kept running off in all directions. Her poor Ayah had to keep chasing her and bring her back to the group. When we got back there was a beautiful lunch ready - chicken and potato curry, onion soup and rice. Sorry I'm so long-winded. It was a wonderful outing!

The next day Marilyn started her art classes with the students. Her email continued:

I just got back from my first teaching day at and it went really well. I had about sixty students, seven teachers, and one sixteen-year-old Bengali-American girl volunteer named Rupa. The kids were great! Thank goodness I had the exact number of file folders for their portfolios; although not for the seven teachers and one helper. My two sponsored chidren, Rashida and Shakil were in my second period class. I may be biased but I think they are both excellent artists, especially Rashida. I kept trying to give the teachers tips as to how they could motivate, incorporate art into their teaching and collect resource materials to stimulate their kids. They were full participants, in fact they didn't want to stop when it was time to pack up. It seems everyone had a good time, including the teachers who were the last to cleanup.

Click on photo at left for more pictures from Marilyn's art classes

In the photo above the students can be seen receiving instructions and materials from their teacher, and at right they are shown displaying the results of their efforts.

Click on photo at right for more pictures of the Sewing Classes at FFC Dhaka

Sewing Classes

Among the skills taught at the Dhaka School are sewing and embroidery. These have also become two of the favorite leisure activities for the students, and they enjoy designing and working on their creations.

Sports Day

The students of FFC Dhaka have had their school sports day. There was a wide variety of interesting events for all participants, such as a Chocolate Jumping contest for the Montessori children, the Needle-Yarn Matching competition for the Special Care girls, and a foot race for the Special Care boys. At right, the Montessori children can be seen running a race.

The Ayahs were included in the event and faced off in a game of Musical Chairs, while the school teachers took part in a Pillow-Passing contest. Prizes were handed out to the lucky winners in all events. In the photo at left, the Ayahs are shown during the Musical Chairs game.

Click on photo at left for more pictures from the Sports Day at FFC Dhaka

Above, Sanjida is shown with a drawing she made, and at right Sanjida is being greeted by some of the other school students.

New Student At FFC School

FFC has long had a policy of allowing poor but deserving students to obtain an education by paying part or all of their tuition fees. The most recent example is Sanjida, the grand-daughter of the FFC school caretaker Rahima, whose mother has served as an Ayah at the FFC school for the last ten years. Sanjida's own mother is now dead, and she was physically abused by her step-mother, who also put an end to her schooling. Our school caretaker Rahima brought Sanjida to her home, and asked for help in getting Sanjida admitted to the FFC school. Sanjida took several entrance tests, and she was considered to be perfectly suited for the kindergarten class.

In the recent first term exams at the FFC school, Sanjida did very well, and finished first in her kindergarten class. At left, Sanjida is shown with her certificate of exam results.

At right, Ami is shown arriving at the Dhaka school and being greeted by the students. She was given a tour of the school before getting down to work.

Ami held an introductory workshop with the teachers, and the subject was Inquiry Based Learning (Opening Up The Mind).

Earlier this year the school held an assembly at which the students were able to speak about their school and what they would like to see in the future. Some ideas that were raised included a garden, a cultural show, arrangements for playing basketball and picnics. They are happy to see that their school is changing day by day.

At right, the students are shown attending the assembly.

Valentine Day Visit

In February, Eliza Rahman reported that the students at the FFC school in Dhaka celebrated Valentine's Day. Some of the students received their uniforms from Mrs. Anwara, who also prepared snacks for them. The students are shown at left, wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's Day.

The day was also marked by the arrival of Ami. Ami was one of the war babies adopted from Bangladesh through FFC in 1972 by Donna and Del Wolsey of London, Ontario. Ami is now a teacher and has been teaching overseas for several years. She is currently stationed in China at the American International School, and was able to spend a week visiting the FFC school in Dhaka.

At left, Ami is seen during her presentation to the school teachers. The teachers enjoyed the session with Ami, and found it to be very helpful. A session was scheduled for the teachers and students to be held the next day.

Another example is Marieke, an experienced Montessori teacher from the Netherlands, who was working in Dhaka and also happened to read about the FFC project on our website. Marieke offered to help at the school for a few days, and teamed up with Muriel Hemmes who had just returned to Dhaka in November. They worked together at the school with the children and managed to get a lot done. Marieke is seen at right, working with children in the classroom.

Volunteers In Dhaka

The FFC projects have often benefited from the timely help provided by volunteers to the sites. In late November, Foong Peng, who is a Special Education teacher from Singapore, came across the FFC website, and after learning about the Dhaka school offered her help to the staff and children. She had originally planned to stay for a week, but ended up spending three weeks working with the special care program. She did great work, and her efforts were greatly appreciated. At left, she is shown working with one of the special care children.