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Project ReportVietnam 2019

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Foreword from theFounder FamilyThe opening of a new Mahrberg Library is always a very uplifting

experience. It is a moment of gratitude for all those who have joined

hearts and hands to make it possible; it is a moment of pure joy seeing

the shining eyes of the children who are eager to read, learn English, gain

computer skills and develop their potentials with natural enthusiasm.

We hope that the Mahrberg Library at the CNCF Sunshine School in

Vietnam will be a peaceful and joyful place for many children who come

from troubled backgrounds in Ho Chi Minh City which often tends to

forget the most fragile ones. Our partner CNCF does fantastic work there

providing a home, medical care and school for these children.

Not only material support brings transformative situations, but also

personal encounters. Our volunteers express that the time with the

children is the most gratifying experience and that the friendship and

teamspirit they experience will forever serve as an example for their

private and professional future.

Finally, we want to present a colorful

bouquet of thanks to the amazing

Mahrberg Foundation Team, our

volunteers, donors and partners and

everyone who shares our vision to make

the world a better place.Fleur and Erwin SpariCo-Founders

FOREWORD 3

PROJECT FACTS 4

REMARKS BY OUR PROJECT MANAGER 6

EDUCATION PROGRAMS 7

LIBRARY 8

VOLUNTEERS 10

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A VOLUNTEER 12

GALLERY 14

A LETTER FROM CNCF 18

THANK YOU, CNCF 19

PROJECT VIDEO 20

What to expect

This paper is intellectual property of Mahrberg Foundation.Mahrberg Foundation, Neuwilstraße 14, 9306 Freidorf, Thurgau, Switzerland

More information at www.mblb.org.

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Children80

Books605

Laptops10

Volunteers20

We bring educationProject Facts

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Word on ourEducation Programs

Remarks by ourProject MAnager

The intention of Mahrberg Library is to give children the opportunity to

experience a holistic way of education and growth through a playful and

interactive setting. Children have the opportunity to express themselves

in arts and music, to learn more about their environment and health,

challenge their limits in sports, learn how to utilize a computer and get to

know new people from other countries so it can help them overcome

barriers in their life. We emphasise on teaching English so the children

can continuously nurture their desire for knowledge through access to

the world wide web, the world’s largest library and ongoing conversation

with our volunteers from around the world. Most of our volunteers come

back from the project with experiences that have changed their attitude

towards themselves and life. This is our definition of what mutual growth

looks like.

Modern technology gives us great ways of communication, even if you’re

thousands of kilometres apart. Using this bridge, our international

volunteers give weekly English lessons via the

internet filled with joyful activities such as

songs, games and stories. As their English skills

improve, the children strengthen their bond

with the volunteers, and our pursuit of a global

network of volunteers and children is one step

closer to its goal.

With the great love and support from our donors, volunteers and

partners, the Mahrberg Foundation was able to launch its 5th Mahrberg

Library project. After several months of preparation, 20 volunteers from 7

countries headed to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. It was an opportunity for

the volunteers to spend their summertime to go to a place they had

never been, and meeting with children they had never met.

Throughout the 11 days in Ho Chi Minh City, the Mahrberg Library

volunteers conducted engaging and fun English lessons, computer

classes, sports activities and educational topics in various topics such as

Art, Music, Outdoor and Health & Environment.

Whether a project is successful or not cannot be said at first glance. Only

when we look back several years later, can we determine the real impact

we made by seeing how the children fared, but for now we can

confidently say that the volunteers had life-changing experiences - and

we know the children had a great time, too.

Our journey never stops. Mahrberg Foundation

will continue to expand its work to different

parts of the world so that the children we meet

can also live a life for the sake of others through

the great examples of Mahrberg Library

volunteers. Nina HarlanderEducation

Tom YooProject Manager

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Library

The most important asset to a

library is its books of course. This

time, we donated 605 books in

English and Vietnamese for the

children to enjoy.

In this day and age, digital literacy

is crucial to a person’s ability to

find a job. Hence, we donated 10

laptops and a screen for our

English classes.

Through the help of our skilled

volunteers, we were able to paint

the wall of the library with fitting

motives which adds to the

coziness of the place.

This library is not only a beautiful

place, but also another corner-

stone of our global network

working for a brighter tomorrow.

A vital part of our project is the library construction and decoration itself.

This time, we renovated part of the main building and re-purposed it into

a library. What took many hours and a lot of work turned out to be a

magical and beautiful place. We present to you the place where our

children can grow, read and play.

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VolunteersJulian Krasznai Philip Kling Namsik Yoo Michael Satler Pascal Igl Marcel Igl

Aleksandra Lazic Luisa Santo Naomi Santo Jooyeon Yoo Alexander Winter Christian Winter

Loris Sturm Pascal Dörflinger Yeonsun Yoo Juliana Fauster Joan-Amadeus Spari Anna Becker

Elias-Maria Spari Alan Bellabarba

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I realized already years ago that I love to spend time with kids and pass on

the things I learnt. By teaching in this particular class, I have proven to

myself again how strong my passion to teach is. The kids arrive in the

classroom and can’t wait to have their English class. By playfully trying

and touching different fruits and repeating the vocabulary, most children

can already articulate at the end of the lesson which fruits they like and

don’t like. A great feeling of success and the highlight of the day!

After the English lesson and a short break, I dedicate myself to the

laptops we brought with us. Showing the children how to use a laptop

and giving them an insight into the basics of computer science opens up

so many possibilities for them that have always been so normal for me.

Our future is digital and due to that fact, I am really glad having the

opportunity to educate them in this field and happy that they can use

the laptops now on their own in the Mahrberg Library.

After a long day full of phenomenal experiments, English lessons and

introductions to computer science, I feel blessed for being part of this

project. In just a few days, I was able to establish such a strong connection

with the children. Before departure to our acommodation I say goodbye

and give some record-breaking high fives to

the kids. It is also very exciting to hear how the

day of the other volunteers went. When sharing

my experiences, I realize that what we achieve

here, really is something special. I cherish all

these special moments and will try to continue

living a life of service when I go back to my

home country. I am so proud of the team!

A day in the life of aVolunteerIt’s almost 7 am and I and I’m so excited about the day to come - I can’t

wait! During the bus ride to the CNCF Center, every single volunteer is

highly motivated. You can feel that there is a special energy between us.

I am part of the science team and have made it my duty to introduce the

children to some fascinating science experiments. We show them a

colourful variety of experiments, teach the computer basics and have a

lot of fun. Arriving at the Sunshine School I am shaken up by the many

high fives and the big energy the kids have.

Now I am more than ready, and the program can finally start! The

children can hardly wait to make music, draw, play games, get to know

new experiments and learn English. Staring with their big eyes, the

children look astonished at our experiments and after a child tells me

that it has never seen anything so spectacular before, my heart beats

faster. After the first three hours full of enthusiasm and zest for action, we

are having a lunch break, where all the children and volunteers eat

together.

Just within a few days, I was able to establish

such a strong connection with the children.

Julian KrasznaiVolunteer

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Impressions from theProject

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Dear Mahrberg Foundation,

On behalf of the Christina Noble Children's Foundation and especially our

beautiful Sunshine Children, we would like to convey our many thanks

and deep appreciation for the refurbishment of our Sunshine School

Library, which is, thanks to your very wonderful volunteers, now a

beautiful peaceful space for the Children to study in, read, and to be

present in the moment.

Many of the Children we work with come from highly dysfunctional

environments where they can witness situations no person should ever

witness, least of all children. With our new library, we can continue on

with what is at the very core of our mission: to ensure all Children in our

care have the opportunity to break the poverty cycle they were born into,

and help them grow into independent self-sufficient adults who can not

only contribute to their own lives and their future generations, but to

their communities and society as a whole.

We cannot speak highly enough of the volunteers. We were especially

touched by how open and engaged they were, they brought with them

great compassion and empathy, alongside great energy and enthusiasm.

Thank you Mahrberg Foundation, it has been a pleasure to partner with

you.

A letter fromHelenita

Thank you,CNCFChristina Noble Children’s Foundation was our main project partner for

Vietnam 2019. Their efforts range from on-the-spot childcare in Mongolia

and Vietnam to the facilitation of education for children. They provide

shelter to those without a proper home and medical care for those in

need. CNCF had already been our partner in 2018 and received a beautiful

library building for their Blue Skies Ger Village in Mongolia. Thus, they

were happy to do another project with us and our volunteers in Vietnam.

It was and is our pleasure to work with CNCF and we are truly astounded

by the work they are doing on a daily basis.

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mblb.org/vietnam-2019

We thank Winter Media for producing the video.

Be touched. Be inspired.