Founding Ton Memorial School Sailung
November 2018
preface
Before you lies the policy plan of the Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation. This foundation was established and notarially registered on November 9, 2018 and based in Utrecht.
The foundation focuses on (supporting) projects to improve the social and economic situation in Sailung, Nepal, and in particular on enabling and improving education there. In this policy plan you can read why we created this foundation, what we stand for and how we look to the future. You will also find practical matters such as finance and the board of the foundation.
Establishing the foundation
Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation bears the name of Ton van den Brink. His bond with Nepal came about after close friends adopted two children from Nepal to the Netherlands. After his first visit to Nepal in 2014, the love for the country, the mountains and the people grew. In March 2018, Ton left for a second time to Nepal for a trekking tour through the mountains.
Ton, together with his traveling party, one of the adoptive parents, would also visit a school in Sailung. Ton wanted to work with the adoptive parents, family and friends from the Netherlands for the further support and growth of this school. Unfortunately Ton was unable to finish his second trip to Nepal. On March 20, 2018 he died in the mountains of Nepal that he loved so much.
We continue now in his name and from his great heart.
Nepal and the Netherlands
During his first visit to Nepal, Ton visited the biological family of the boy and girl adopted by his close friends from Nepal. A special meeting after which continuous contact was maintained between the family in Nepal and the Netherlands. Friends and family sponsored the Nepalese brothers and sisters of the children who are growing up in the Netherlands. This sponsorship money mainly benefited their education.
One of the brothers; Krishna Shrestha, a 26-year-old man who had just become a father of a daughter, was trained in Nepal, which gives him the power to provide education. He has decided to work to improve education in his hometown.
Krishna has now set up a school in Sailung, partly with (limited) resources from the Netherlands and partly with local support. This is the school that Ton wanted to visit during his visit to Nepal. About 40 children currently receive education.
Krishna visited the Netherlands for five weeks in 2016 and during this visit he also studied Dutch education. In those weeks he spent a lot of time with Ton. After Ton's death, Krishna named the school after Ton and held a beautiful memorial ceremony with the children.
About Sailung
Sailung is an area around Mount Sailung (3200 meters), in eastern Nepal. It is located in the foothills of the Himalayas. In general, life in Sailung is quite good due to the agriculture, livestock farming and forestry that are possible here. Many people find their work in this. There is a great exodus of young people to the city. Education is of a very low level, illiteracy is high and many children are not educated. Adults cannot read and write, which limits their daily lives. The residents of Sailung are committed to improving their standard of living. They pay attention to hygienic (drinking) water, electricity and the development of the area.
Mission vision
Our mission
Currently in Sailung there is limited access to education of a very limited quality. About 40 children now attend the school founded by Krishna. The Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation wants as many children as possible from Sailung and the surrounding area to have access to the high-quality education offered at the school of Krishna Shrestha.
Our vision
Our wish is to improve the social and economic situation of children and adults in Sailung. We believe that education provides a good basis for this. By giving children and adults access to high-quality education, they will have opportunities to develop further and to contribute to the further development of Sailung.
Objectives
Our goal
Our goal is to support, improve and develop education in Sailung, Nepal.
We do this by actively supporting the 'Kids Learning English School, in the memory of Ton van den Brink' in Sailung, founded by Krishna Shrestha.
What do we want to achieve?
Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation wants to take care of the following to promote good education and maintenance of the school:
Strategy
Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation will work in close contact with our contacts in Nepal to establish good education and maintain the school in Sailung. The foundation will provide means (both money and goods) with which the necessary materials and teachers can be paid in Nepal. In principle, the foundation operates from the Netherlands. The contacts in Nepal are responsible for the local implementation of plans and the use of donations from the foundation. Our working method is twofold:
Current situation
Since its foundation, the Ton Memorial School Sailung foundation has been involved in the following matters:
The Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation has already received several donations. These donations were given after Ton's death. It has been his family's wish to donate to the foundation. All donations already received will be used for the school in Sailung.
Activities
Due to the distance between the school in Sailung and the foundation in the Netherlands, there will be continuous communication between the school board, other contacts in Sailung and the Netherlands. It will be determined in consultation which priorities there are and which short and long-term goals both the school and the foundation have.
Currently the school in Sailung can accommodate about 40 students, has 3 teachers and is housed in a simple corrugated iron building. The priority for the foundation is to facilitate a suitable school building. Construction consultants are contacted in the Netherlands to advise and monitor Nepalese contacts on plans for the construction of a new school building.
In addition to the construction of a new school building, money and goods will be made available to improve the quality of education (eg books, teachers, IT and other materials).
Finance
The Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation uses financial resources to achieve its objectives, but it has no profit motive.
The financial resources of the foundation are managed by the treasurer. The foundation has a bank account with the ABN AMRO bank. An amount approved by the board will be released from the savings account and transferred to the school board in Sailung. Interest received will be added to the savings account. No investments are made with the money of the foundation.
The foundation receives financial resources through donations.
The donations to the Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation are used to achieve the objectives. A limited part of the foundation's resources are used for general costs, including the management of the website and means of communication.
The treasurer draws up an annual budget and is accountable for the past year in the annual report of the Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation. The board adopts the budget and the annual report.
Raising funds
Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation receives funds through donations:
Some actions or events for the Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation will raise funds for a specific purpose; for example the construction of the school building or the salary of a teacher. Other donations will benefit the actions or projects that the foundation is currently working on. Donors are kept informed about how the donations have been spent via the website and social media.
Board
The board at incorporation of the Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation consists of:
The directors of the foundation are appointed for a period of 5 years and do not receive any remuneration or compensation for their work. The board of the foundation meets at least twice a year to discuss strategy, actions, division of tasks, etc. The members of the board keep each other informed of developments by e-mail and telephone.
The board of the Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation is involved in:
The board members all have a say in the above activities. The board does have a number of specific tasks for each director. The chairman leads the meetings and maintains contacts with Nepal. The secretary takes minutes of the meetings, supports all forms of communication and maintains the website and social media. The treasurer is responsible for the budget and financial management.
The board of the foundation closes every financial year (calendar year) with an annual report that accounts for the policy pursued and which also includes the annual accounts and budget.
Current Organization
The Ton Memorial School Sailung Foundation has been registered with the Chamber of Commerce since 9 November 2018 under number: 73065803.
The foundation has ANBI status with tax number RSIN 8593 40 764.
Bank account NL54ABNA0840364423 in the name of Stichting Ton Memorial School Sailung
The board of the Ton Sailung Foundation consists of a chairman, treasurer, secretary and members.
The foundation can be contacted in the following ways:
