Back to school
June sees the start of the new school year in the Philippines. For AOS chaplain Paul Atkinson, this means frequent trips to the local Western Union outlet.
AOS port chaplain Paul Atkinson |
Paul has visited the Philippines several times and knows the country well. He explains that education is highly valued. Filipino citizens who seek work overseas share the dream of providing a good education for their children so that they in turn find well-paid jobs abroad and send money home to support the family. But a good education is not cheap. In addition to enrolment fees, there are uniforms to be bought. Even the poorest school takes pride in its pupils being smartly dressed.
Paul recalls a typical conversation with a Filipino seafarer whose 16 year old son was starting college that day. The father was excited and proud that his son was training to be an engineer. At the same time, he spoke of his worries about finding college fees for his son for the next four years and for his two daughters whom he was also determined to put through college.
AOS chaplains are onhand to listen to seafarers as they talk about their families and their hopes and fears. They also provide practical services such as transport to local facilities. For Filipino seafarers at the start of the school term, this means trips to the money transfer agency. Thanks in part to the number of customers brought in by Paul, Western Union outlet The Money Shop in South Shields was recently awarded a prize for growth. Manager Linda Thomson said
"Paul certainly helped to put us up there. We really enjoy his visits and the Filipino people he brings in seem to hang on his every word. He is obviously really caring and always goes the extra mile for people. We think he's lovely."
Our congratulations to Linda and her staff on their prize. For Paul, it is all in a day's work which he describes as "small things that touch people's lives in big ways".