Can you imagine an entire school classroom that is a sandbox? Or how about having a wading pool in class to play in or cool off?  These are just some of the innovative ways that KB & Sushila Basel are using to teach the children who attend Sophia English School. KB is one of our lead pastors in Nepalgunj, Nepal, and he used his background in education to start the school in 2004.  He has developed a curriculum that encourages learning through play, much like some of our Montessori schools here in the U.S. 

 

The school teaches children from pre-school on up to eighth grade.  They have been so successful that the local community has taken notice.  Doctors, attorneys and government officials have been enrolling their own children at Sophia School instead of the state-run public schools.  But what is most exciting is the fact that these kids are receiving a Christian education in a predominately Hindu society!

 

Sophia school has been an integral part of our church network in West Nepal and is able to meet a real need for our village pastors to have a place to send their children for a quality education.  The children who live in villages do not have much of a chance at a good education, and lot of our pastors would not have stayed in their villages to lead their churches if it were not for Sophia School.

 

Since most of the village pastors’ children come from poor families who cannot afford the school tuition, we set up a sponsorship program in 2007.  Sponsorship for one of our pastors’ kids is only $20/month.  Some of the more remote village pastors live far away from the school, so their children have to leave them while they are in school.  Fortunately, they are able to live with families in our church in Nepalgunj.  Since these kids require boarding, their sponsorship is $40/month.

 

Many times, the village pastors have migrated to the city in order for their children to receive an education.  Now they have the option of sending their kids to Sophia School in Nepalgunj, and they can remain in their village to lead their church.  You might be thinking that this is not a good arrangement for the children to be away from their parents, but this is actually a normal practice in the Nepali culture.

 

So not only does the child receive a quality education but the pastor is able to lead his church and care for his children.  And the kids get to play in a sandbox!

 

Thanks for all that you do to help the pastors of Nepal and their children.

 

Shane