Giant contrast to 2016

Last March, Ralf and I were in Thulosirubari when the first two of three planned parts of the new school building were inaugurated. The whole village was in a party mood. I looked into hundreds of smiling faces that communicated optimism. Not only at the school, everywhere in Thulosirubari construction work was on. What a contrast to my visit two years earlier! In 2016, one year after the earthquake, the village had still been a field of ruins, the inhabitants had seemed depressed, paralyzed.

Thank you for your big heart!

Third construction phase

“School up!” – as I had the chance to experience last March and the memory of it still warms my heart – is so much more than just an investment in a building that ensures that the students no longer have to be taught in corrugated iron sheds: The new school has become a symbol of hope and a new beginning. It is impossible to forget the natural disaster of 2015, but the people of Thulosirubari are now looking to the future – thanks to your generosity.

And it is this generosity that I would like to appeal to again shortly before Christmas: Please continue donating for “School up!” because we have not yet crossed the finishing line! The construction work on the third part of the building is in progress and must be financed. Here is the bank account again:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

The day draws to an end

Even the darkness cannot prevent construction from continuing in Thulosirubari. For 18 hours, concrete is mixed in the small mountain village 70 kilometers east of the Nepalese capital Kathmandu, transported upwards and distributed, then finally the second floor slab is casted. “Only one machine for mixing concrete was used for the work, the rest was done by physical labor,” writes Shyam Pandit, liaison man of the German aid organisation Nepalhilfe Beilngries. “Special skilled laborers were brought from Kathmandu for the casting.” After the first two parts of the new school building have been used for teaching since last spring, the construction work for the third section is now on the home straight: If everything goes according to plan, the new building with eight more classrooms could be completed in spring 2019.

Great opportunity for the people of Thulosirubari

The third section, on the right one of the two already completed parts of the building

“I am so happy to see the constructioin of the school building”, says Ram Sharan BK, Chairman of the School Management Committee. “It is a great opportunity for us to rebuild the school so quickly after the 2015 earthquake.” On behalf of the students and their parents, Ram Sharan said, he thanked Nepalhilfe Beilngries and the donators of “School up!”. He hopes “that the support will continue until the construction work will have been completed and also afterwards to further improve the education”.

Highly motivated students

The more than 500 students are also delighted with the new premises. “Everyone will feel safe from disasters such as earthquake, fire, storm, etc.,” writes Resina Nepali from Class 10 and promises: “The students will be regularly in the classrooms and increase the hard work after completing reconstruction of the building.” For Sabita Shrestha from Class 12, the fact of being able to be taught in the same building reinforces the feeling of equality in everyone. “The buildings help to improve our education better than before.”

“Our God in Germany”

Working till late at night

Once again I would like to ask you not to let up in your support of our aid project “School up!”, which I launched after the devastating earthquake in Nepal in 2015 with the top climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits, in order to rebuild the destroyed school of Thulosirubari as quickly as possible. We still need money to finish the construction work as planned. “I would like to thank the donators,” writes student Resina. “They are our God from Germany.”

Here once again the bank account:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

If you indicate this intended purpose, the money will end up in Thulosirubari. A thousand thanks also from me! You are great!

Construction side in Thulosirubari (on the right the two already completed school buildings)

“The construction work is going smoothly,” writes Shyam Pandit, who coordinates the projects of the German aid organisation Nepalhilfe Beilngries in the Himalayan state. At the end of last week, Shyam once again visited the construction site of the new school in the mountain village of Thulosirubari, some 70 kilometers east of the capital Kathmandu. After teaching in the first two parts of the building started as well as using the corresponding toilet block, the third and last section of the building is being constructed right next door. Your donations made this possible for our aid project “School up!”, which I founded together with the two climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits after the devastating earthquake in 2015, in order to rebuild the destroyed school in Thulosirubari as quickly as possible.

Please do not let up!

Concreting of the floor slab

The first floor slab of the third section of the new school building has just been concreted. The next step is to build the walls for the second floor. Another toilet block will also be built next to this building. As you can see, we have already come a long way, but not yet reached our destination. Shyam Pandit quotes the contractor as saying that construction could be completed in spring 2019. Let’s wait and see! But of course we can only go on if we don’t run out of money. So, please continue to support “School up!” with your donations. They will be used exclusively for this project if you indicate “Gerlinde and Ralf School” as intended purpose. Here again the bank account details:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

Thanks a million for your support, also on behalf of Thulosirubari’s children, their parents and their teachers. You are great!

Musicians accompany us to the school

This roadblock is not an ordinary one. Five hundred meters in front of the school grounds in Thulosirubari, 70 kilometers east of the Nepalese capital Kathmandu, our journey in a jeep ends. Eight musicians stand in the middle of the dusty piste through the village. When Ralf Dujmovits – the first and so far only German mountaineer who scaled all 14 eight-thousanders – and I get out of the car, they begin to play for us on their traditional instruments. Behind the music playing village band  we ascend the last meters to the school.

Arrival

There a big event has been organized for us. Several hundred students, parents, teachers, local notables and other residents of Thulosirubari are awaiting us for the ceremonial inauguration and handing over of the first two parts of the building to the local school committee – made possible by your donations to our aid project “School up!”. The old school had been so badly damaged by the devastating earthquake in Nepal on 25 April 2015 that it had had to be demolished. At the end of June 2015, I had launched together with Ralf Dujmovits and the Austrian climber Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner “School up!” to rebuild the Thulosirubari school as soon as possible.

Final move in April

The new school building

“What a sight!”, Ralf calls when we approach the yellow painted new building. We high five. In a way, for both of us, a circle closes on this day. At the beginning of May 2015, a week after the quake, the 56-year-old mountaineer had driven with a team of doctors to the worst-hit district of Sindhupalchowk, where also Thulosirubari is located. “Where once was hubbub, is now ghostly silence. The people are standing around staring at the ruins of their homes. They do not even know where to start to clean up,” Ralf had told me at that time, adding that the old school was “just a pile of junk”. When I visited Thulosirubari in March 2016, almost a year after the disaster, the building was already demolished. The more than 500 children and adolescents were taught in corrugated iron sheds. In October 2016, thanks to “School up!”, construction work began. Now the first two buildings with a total of twelve classrooms are practically finished. In some places, the interior painting is not yet completed and some electrical work is still to be done. In April, the classes are finally to move to the new rooms.

New courage found

On this day of celebration, speeches are held for hours under a large tent roof in the schoolyard, and many documents and presents are handed over. Some dances of female students give fresh impetus to the program. The great gratitude that we experience is touching. We look into hundreds of happy faces. “You not only helped us, but also gave us new courage,” says Devi Dulal, chairman of the school committee. Inspired by the construction work on the new school, many Thulosirubari residents have started rebuilding their destroyed houses in the village.

Young audience

“Meanwhile, in Sindhupalchowk, work is being carried out on about 75 percent of the buildings that were damaged or destroyed by the 2015 earthquake,” says Sanjay Sapkota, who accompanied the construction of the new school in Thulosirubari as a technical advisor of the German aid organization “Nepalhilfe Beilngries”: “The government has learned from the disaster and adopted stricter building rules. They only released the financial support for new buildings when people were able to prove that they followed the new rules.” However, the governmental subsidy of 300,000 rupees per building (converted about 2,400 euros) “is just enough for the foundation”, says Sanjay.

Foundation for eight more classrooms

First stone for the next building

Ralf and I also lay a foundation stone on this feast day in Thulosirubari: for the second construction phase of “School up!”. Another building with eight classrooms is to be built, and a second toilet section. “Education is the best and most important input we might get in our youth,” says Ralf Dujmovits in his short speech during the celebration. “For the future of this school, for Thulosirubari, for all the kids here I wish best of luck. You have learned to go through very difficult times – and deserve to have really good times in the future.” Like Ralf, I thank the people of Thulosirubari for the overwhelmingly warm welcome: “I carry you deep in my heart and promise you to continue to stand up for ‘School up!’” Later, when I walk for a few minutes through Thulosirubari before returning to Kathmandu, villagers from all sides greet me – not just like an old acquaintance, but like a friend.

Thanks and a request

Thanks for your support, say Ralf (l.) and I

Ralf and I have received the thanks of the people of Thulosirubari on behalf of all donors of “School up!” – and, of course, also of Gerlinde and the staff of the “Nepalhilfe Beilngries”, who have implemented the construction of the first buildings with all their experience and great commitment. In order for the second construction phase, which will take about one to one and a half years, to be completed successfully, we need further donations for “School up!”. Once again here is the bank account:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

If you write this intended purpose on the bank transfer, the money will go purposefully to Thulosirubari. I will continue to inform you in my blog about the progress of our project. A big thank you to all friends of “School up!”. You are great!

P.S. Thanks also to LOWA for the seven sacks of shoes, more than 200 pairs, which we have distributed to the children of Thulosirubari. And also to AB Sport in Cologne for the footballs, with which the school team will play from now on.

The first two buildings are finished

When I saw the pictures, I found myself almost in tears – for joy! The year 2018 could hardly begin any better. This week I received the news from Thulosirubari that the students have moved from provisional corrugated-iron classrooms, that had been built after the devastating earthquake in Nepal in April 2015, to the first two finished buildings of the new school. A big day for our aid project “School up!” which I had launched along with the climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits more than two and a half years ago!

Yellow colour required

First lessons in the new classrooms

Our goal was to rebuild as quickly as possible the school in the village of Thulosirubari, located about 70 kilometers east of the capital Kathmandu, which had been destroyed in the quake. Several hundred children and adolescents from the mountain region were and are being taught there. In September 2016, the foundation stone was laid for the new school. At the end of December, the pale yellow paint, prescribed by the government of Nepal, was applied, and the construction company handed over the first two parts of the building.

Together we will make the difference

Thulosirubari

“The students and the school family are so happy to get new classrooms in safe buildings,” Shyam Pandit, liaison man of the “Nepalhilfe Beilngries”, writes to me. The German aid organization has coordinated the construction of the school, which has become possible through your donations for “School up!”. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your generosity. As you can see, your money has worked successfully. “Together we can and we will make a difference,” Sunil Krishna Shrestha, the coordinator of the “Nepalhilfe Beilngries” in Nepal for 25 years, writes to me.

Let’s go on!

A third building is to follow

The joy accompanying the success on this first, very, very important stage should give us new impetus. Finally, a third building is to be built on the site, as well as toilets for girls and boys are needed. So we have not yet arrived at the destination but continue to rely on your donations. We are happy about every euro. Once again the bank account of “School up!”:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V..
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

If you indicate this intended purpose, the money will flow directly into the construction work of the school in Thulosirubari. I will continue to keep you informed about the progress of the project in my blog.

Update 6 January: The students of Thulosirubari have sent this message to the “Nepalhilfe Beilngries”: “We still remember that day. It was Saturday, 25 April 2015, when we lost our houses – and our dreams too between the colapsed buildings. We heard that God comes in many shapes. Some came to our place to reshape our damaged confidence. With our open heart, we thank you for your big heart, for reviving our hopes again. And our dreams have now got a new start.”

New school buildings in Thulosirubari (picture from today)

The finishing line of the first stage of our aid project “School up!” is in sight: The first two buildings of the new school in the Nepalese mountain village of Thulosirubari will most probably be ready for occupation before the beginning of winter. The doors are fitted these days,  Shyam Pandit, liaison man of the German aid organization “Nepalhilfe Beilngries” in the Himalayan state, writes to me. The windows are already installed. Subsequently, only the painting is missing. By the end of the month, says Shyam, the contractor wants to hand over the two first building units. Then the construction work will go on.

Carry on!

Doors and painting still missing

A third building is to be built, as well as toilets for girls and boys. So we have not yet arrived at the final destination. Along with the climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits, I had launched “School up!” two and half years ago to rebuild purposefully the school of Thulosirubari, a mountain village about 70 km east of Kathmandu. The school had been destroyed by the devastating earthquake in Nepal in April 2015. Since then, several hundred children and adolescents have been taught in corrugated-iron huts, which were used as provisional class rooms. In September 2016, the foundation stone was laid for the new school.

Your money works

Schoolchildren in Thulosirubari

At this point I would like to thank all of you who made with your donations possible what we have achieved so far. Alone through my donation bike tour “School up! River down!” in September, when I drove with my folding bike almost 1,500 kilometers from the source to the mouth of the Rhine in twelve days, we collected approximately 2,800 euros. You can see in the pictures that your money really works. I ask you to continue supporting “School up!”. Do you want to do a good deed in the Advent season? We are happy about every euro. Once again the bank account of “School up!”:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V..
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

If you indicate this intended purpose, the money will flow directly into the construction work of the school in Thulosirubari. I will continue to keep you informed about the progress of the project in my blog. Promised!

Construction site with puddles

The weather currently makes life tough not only for the mountaineers in the Karakoram. Also in Nepal it thwarts many time schedules. The work on the new school in Thulosirubari has now been slower because of the monsoon, writes me Shyam Pandit, Nepalese liaison man of the “Nepalhilfe Beilngries”. The German aid organization coordinates the construction of the new school building, which became possible through your donations for “School up!”. Along with the well-known climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits, I had launched the donation campaign two years ago to rebuild the village school of Thulosirubari, about 70 kilometers east of the capital Kathmandu, as quickly as possible. The school had been so badly damaged by the devastating earthquake in Nepal on 25 April 2015 that it had had to be demolished. Since fall 2016 the construction work is in progress. Actually, the first construction phase should have been completed before the rainy season.

Now handover date in August

However, according to the contractor, the building material temporarily ran short. In addition, the local elections in Nepal in mid-May, the first in the country in 20 years, delayed the work. The contractor wants now to hand over the new buildings at the end of August at the latest, writes me Shyam. Until then, the toilets and a water reservoir are also to be completed. You can see in the little slideshow below that the construction work continues even during the monsoon.

We have already come a long way with “School up!” but have not yet reached the goal. We need more donations. Here again the bank account of our aid project:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

Already now a thousand thanks for your support. It would be great if you could tell your friends about “School up!”.

Plastering in the new rooms

Yesterday was the second anniversary of the devastating earthquake in Nepal. About 9,000 people died, more than 22,000 were injured, hundreds of thousands of homes collapsed or were severely damaged and thus became uninhabitable. Many people in the most affected mountain regions are still living in shelters. In the village of Thulosirubari in Sindhupalchowk District, about 70 kilometers east of the capital Kathmandu, has been a hive of construction activity over recent months. The donations for our aid project “School up!” have made it possible to start building a new school for more than 500 students, the construction is operated by the Nepalhilfe Beilngries. The old school had been so badly damaged by the earthquake that it later had had to be demolished. In recent weeks there have been temporary supply bottlenecks for constructions material, as well as a lack of water to mix concrete. Since the school ground is located on a hill, the water has to be pumped up or – if the pumps fail – even be carried up.

Soon twelve new classrooms

The second floor plate is ready now

Meanwhile, the second floor plate has been completed. The interior work is on (see the video below). “We are quite excited,” says Devi Dulal, chairman of the School Management Committee in Thulosirubari. “We will soon have twelve new classrooms. We are eager to shift the students from the temporary class rooms to the new building.” Another eight classrooms are still needed to house really all students, and two toilet houses have to be built, says Devi. “We dream of becoming something like a model school for Sindhupalchowk.”

We have already come a long way with “School up!” but have not yet reached the goal. We need more donations. Here again the bank account of our aid project:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

Already now a thousand thanks for your support. It would be great if you could tell your friends about “School up!”.

“Family meeting” in Beilngries

An aid organization like a family – the Nepalhilfe Beilngries celebrated its 25th birthday yesterday evening with a festive event in the small Bavarian town. “I am proud that I have been part of the Nepalhilfe family since it was founded,” said Sunil Shrestha in his speech, bravely delivered in German. The 57-year-old has been coordinating the aid projects of the organization in the Himalayan state for a quarter of a century. Sunil and Shyam Pandit, also an important liaison man, had traveled, along with their wifes, from Kathmandu to Beilngries to celebrate with their German and Austrian friends. “The family should be proud of what we have achieved,” Shrestha said.

Trekking with consequences

The balance is really impressive. Over the past 25 years, the organization has built 28 school buildings in Nepal. 20,000 children were trained there. In addition, the Nepalhilfe is running orphanages, a hospital and an old people’s home. It financed fire engines, water pipes and much more. Everything had started very small. Four policemen from Beilngries – Christian Thumann, Manfred Lindner, Karl and Michael Rebele – gave a lecture on their experiences during a trekking trip to Nepal on 11 March 1992. The revenue of this event in their hometown, 3000 Mark (the old German currency), was the starting capital of the Nepalhilfe. A success story took its course.

Hats off!

Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner, Hans Kammerlander, Ralf Dujmovits and Jürgen Winkler (from right to left)

Soon there was a broad network of Nepal friends, among them famous climbers like Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner, Ralf Dujmovits and Hans Kammerlander or the top mountain photographer Juergen Winkler, who actively helped raise donations for the aid projects. “Ten million euros have come together over the past 25 years,” said Ralf Petschl, the chairman of the Nepalhilfe Beilngries, which currently has 15 highly committed members. “Hats off to all of them,” Sunil Shrestha thanked on behalf of his many compatriots, who have benefited from the work of the Nepalhilfe during the last quarter century.

Only a few tickets left for charity event in Cologne

Construction site in Thulosirubari

The Nepalhilfe Beilngries also plays an important role for the “School up!” project, which I launched together with Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits in June 2015. The donations for the reconstruction of the school in Thulosirubari, which had been destroyed by the devastating earthquake in Nepal, flow to the Nepalhilfe. They also coordinate and supervise the construction project in the small village, 70 km east of Kathmandu. It seems as if the first two buildings sections can be completed this year. At this point, a big thanks to all of you who donated for “School up!”. By the way, there are only a few tickets for the charity event of the DAV section Rhineland-Cologne with Ralf Dujmovits next Friday. So, hurry up!

For those who want to support “School up!”, here again the bank account of the project:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

I will continue to inform you about the progress of the project in my blog. So you can see how your money works. For the children in Thulosirubari!

Plate of the second floor

The relatively dry winter in the Nepalese district Sindhupalchowk has played into the hands of our aid project “School up!”. The construction work for the new school in the village of Thulosirubari, about 70 kilometers east of Kathmandu, could be continued almost without interruption. Meanwhile, the plate of the second floor is practically finished. The goal of completing the construction work (except for the painting) before the monsoon starts in summer seems realistic. The constructors of the new large Berlin airport who have not come to an end for years could take an example of such effectiveness (in Nepal!). Here are some more pictures:

Get your tickets for the “School up!” benefit event!

Meanwhile the preparations for the benefit event on 24 March in my home town Cologne in favor of “School up!” are in full swing. On this evening, Ralf Dujmovits, the so far only German climber who has stood on the summits of all 14 eight-thousanders, will report in an exciting lecture about his mountain adventures. Tickets can be bought online via the Rhineland-Cologne section of the German Alpine Club (DAV). The demand is fortunately high. So do not wait too long, it smells like sold out! All revenues from the event will go into the construction of the new school in Thulosirubari.
We still need more donations to finance the construction work. Here again the bank account in Germany:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

A thousand thanks to all supporters of “School up!” – you are great!

The ceiling of the first floor is concreted

Four are standing around and discussing, one is working. This image is known from public construction sites in Germany. The situation is quite different in Thulosirubari, a small village about 70 kilometers east of Kathmandu. There the new school is being built with great enthusiasm – made possible by your donations for our aid projekt “School up!”. “All villagers are happy to be able to help with the work,” says Shyam Pandit, liaison man of the German aid organization “Nepalhilfe Beilngries” in the Himalayan state. Devi Dulal, head of the local school committee, is also delighted: “This will be a unique building for us. The work on this is very satisfactory for us.” The old school had been so badly damaged by the devastating earthquake at the end of April 2015 that it had had to be demolished. At the end of June 2015, I had launched – along with the extreme climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits – “School up!” to rebuild the school as quickly as possible. In the meantime, the ceiling of the first floor has been concreted. Here are some impressions of the construction site from the past weeks:

Positively contagious

For the people of Thulosirubari the construction work on the new school is a matter truly dear to their heart – and contagious. “Some villagers have begun to rebuild their homes,” Shyam reports. “They look closely at the blueprints for the school and build their houses accordingly.” Almost all buildings in Thulosirubari had been destroyed or damaged by the earthquake almost two years ago, 75 villagers had been killed.

Grab your tickets

Ralf Dujmovits

Even though the school is becoming more and more real, we have not yet reached the goal. We need more donations. As reported before, the Rhineland section of the German Alpine Club (DAV) supports us by organizing a charity event for “School up!” on 24 March in Cologne. There, Ralf Dujmovits, the so far only German climber who has scaled all 14 eight-thousanders, will report in an exciting lecture about his mountain adventures. All revenues from the charity event will go into the construction of the school in Thulosirubari. So, don’t miss it! Online ticket sales via the DAV Cologne is on.
And for those who simply want to support our project “School up!” by donations, here again the bank account in Germany:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

It would be great if you could tell your friends about “School up!”. Thank you so much!!

The building is taking shape

It is certainly no mistake to start a new year with good news: the construction work at the new school in Thulosirubari continues to progress at a high rate. “The contractor’s target is to handover the new finishing of this new school building of Thulosirubari (Gerlinde and Ralf School) by the end of April 2017,“ writes Sunil Krishna Shrestha, the liaison man of the German aid organization “Nepalhilfe Beilngries” in Kathmandu. If the “speedy work” continues, the entrepreneur will fulfill his contractual obligations, says Sunil. Until now, the goal was to complete the construction work on the building (without painting) of the new “Gerlinde and Ralf School” at the latest until the beginning of the monsoon in summer. In this slideshow you can follow the construction progress since early December:

Targeted aid

You can see, our project “School up!” is living. Thanks to your donations, the people of Thulosirubari, a small village 70 kilometers east of the capital, can now look ahead more optimistically. The education of their children is dear to them. They know: It is an investment in the future. We have not yet reached the goal. Please continue to donate and tell your friends of our project to rebuild the village school that was destroyed by the devastating earthquake in April 2015! All funds for “School up!” flow into this construction project, if you specify the purpose “Gerlinde and Ralf school”. I will continue to report on the progress of the construction work in my blog. Here again the bank account in Germany:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

Ralf Dujmovits

Tickets already on sale

And here once again the hint to the charity event of the German Alpine Club (DAV) for “School up!” with Ralf Dujmovits on 24 March in Cologne. The so far only German who has scaled all 14 eight-thousanders will be talking about his adventures on the highest mountains of the world. All revenues from the charity event will go into our project “School up!”. Online ticket sales via the DAV Cologne is on. Grab tickets in time!

Foundation work almost finished

“We are so happy seeing the re-construction – and that the building is designed to resist earthquakes,” says Hari Bikram, the 43-year-old headteacher of Thulosirubari. The construction work in the small mountain village 70 kilometers east of the Nepali capital Kathmandu continues at high speed. “The plinth work has almost been finished,” Shyam Pandit, Nepalese liaison of the German relief organization “Nepalhilfe Beilngries”, writes to me. I wanted to know from him whether the work will be stopped in winter. “No stop. I will continue construction work,” the contractor replied, says Shyam. However, it’s going to be a little slower in the cold season than now.

Students still feel panic

With joint forces

“It is a good feeling to know that our children are getting a good education, and without fear when the building will be finished,” says headmaster Hari Bikram. “Even now they still feel panic. The students say they can hardly wait to move from the TLCs (Temporary Learning Centers, which were made of corrugated iron) to a new safe building. We are so proud of all donators.” The fact that the new school is being built is due to all who have given money for our project “School up!”. I had launched the campaign in June 2015, along with the climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Ralf Dujmovits, after the old “Gerlinde and Ralf School” in Thulosirubari had been so badly damaged by the devastating earthquake on 25 April 2015 that it had had to be demolished. “We hope that the new building with twelve classrooms will be finished before the monsoon next summer,” Shyam Pandit writes.

DAV charity event in Cologne with Ralf Dujmovits

Ralf Dujmovits

We have not yet reached our goal and need further donations. You should save a date: The Rhineland section of the German Alpine Club (DAV) supports our “School up!” program with a charity event on 24 March in Cologne. Ralf Dujmovits, the so far only German who has scaled all 14 eight-thousanders, will be talking about his adventures on the highest mountains of the world. We will also present current pictures from Thulosirubari that evening. All revenue from the charity event will go into the project. Online ticket sales via DAV Cologne have already begun.

That’s a nice Christmas gift for a mountain friend, right? And if you’re itching to donate just before the Christmas season, the children in Thulosirubari would be pleased. Here again the bank account of “School up!”:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

A thousand thanks to you all!

Schoolchildren in Thulosirubari

… go! Not only Olympic athletes are currently waiting for this call. People in Thulosirubari are in the starting blocks too. Hopefully we are only few days away from the start of the construction of the new school at this small village in Sindhupalchowk District in Nepal. According to the German aid organization “Nepalhilfe Beilngries” finally all bureaucratic barriers have been broken down so that the school for 700 children and adolescents in Thulosirubari can be rebuilt. That has been and will be the goal of the aid project “School up!” that I had launched along with the professional climbers Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner from Austria and Ralf Dujmovits from Germany a year ago. The “Gerlinde and Ralf School”, which had been inaugurated only in 2009, was so badly damaged by the devastating earthquake in Nepal on 25 April 2015 that it had to be demolished.

Long and winding road

Stones for the new school

“We are going to do our next meeting with the contractor this week, after that we’ll start the work,” Arjun Gatraj, the chairman of the school committee in the village, which lies some 70 kilometers east of Kathmandu, writes to me. Sunil Shrestha and Shyam Pandit, the liaison men of “Nepalhilfe Beilngries” in Nepal, have completed a truly “Olympic program” in recent months to obtain all permits and stamps for the construction project. Those who (often with good reason) complain about cumbersome and excessive bureaucracy in western countries could experience in Nepal that an increase is possible: The road through the involved authorities is even much longer and more winding. Many employees in Nepalese offices feel and act just as if they were little kings, because they know that things cannot go on without their permission.

Only two-storied buildings

The new school building is to be built here

Thanks to Sunil and Shyam this probably most difficult phase of the project is now behind us. In the first of three construction stages the first building section with classrooms is to be built. The Nepalese government has ruled that due to the risk of earthquakes only two-storied school buildings should be built in the future – in the form of the letters H or U. Of course, I will continue to keep you up to date about what will happen in Thulosirubari. Arjun will provide me with first-hand information and pictures of the construction progress.

Thanks to your donations the construction is about to start at all. So far we have collected more than one third of the required sum. We need more donations for “School up!” to finance also the second and third construction phase. Here again the bank account in Germany:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries e.V.
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany
IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP
Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School

Please tell others as well! Thank you so much!

P.S.: If you want to read my previous articles on this subject – including those about my visit in the earthquake region last March – simply click on the top bar at “School up!”, there you will find all posts concerning our aid project.

Children play “Hot Potato”

“They lost their houses and all their property, but they didn’t lose their plans,” says Arjun Gatraj about the people of his native village Thulosirubari. “There is still hope.” Not only for better times for themselves, but also for their children. “They feel that education is important for their children. They sent them directly after the earthquake as soon as we started the school again.” Arjun is the chairman of the school committee of Thulosirubari, a small mountain village, about 70 kilometers from the Nepalese capital Kathmandu. Almost every family has been affected by the earthquake. “75 people died, among them eight of our students”, Arjun tells me during my visit in Thulosirubari. “About 1800 houses were destroyed, only 30 to 40 are still intact.”

Teaching outside

Earthquake damage in Sangachok

Also almost eleven months after the devastating earthquake on 25 April 2015, the damage in Sindhupalchowk District, east of Kathmandu, is obvious. Most people, whose houses collapsed in the quake, are still living in tin sheds. They have cleared the debris, provisionally, if at all. As reported, the “Gerlinde and Ralf-School” in Thulosirubari had been damaged so badly that it had to be demolished completely. The teachers are currently giving lessons to about 700 students in temporary classrooms with tin sheets – or outside. Even today, the younger children have gathered outside. They work on a quiz. In teams of three, they lean over their wooden desks and put their heads together. The best of the ten teams will represent the school in the near future in a competition with other schools. Each correct answer is accompanied by large applause from the audience.

Shortly before take-off

Who will represent the school?

“Even in winter, the teachers often moved outside,” says Arjun.”We could not heat the sheds. In the midday sun it was warmer than inside.” For a long time the staff meetings were held beneath a large tree on the school grounds. Now the teachers use a tent. “If strong wind is blowing, we think it is going to fly into the air,” says the head of the school committee and laughs. The people of Thulosirubari have not lost their sense of humor and regained their courage.

Jumping out the window

Shailaja Kasaju

Immediately after the quake, that was different. Many residents of the villages were traumatized, among them also the children. “I could read it in their faces,” English teacher Shailaja Kasaju recalls. The 27-year-old is giving lessons at the school in Sangachok, not far from Thulosirubari. „A week back I had seen them smiling, very happy. And these faces turned into very sad faces. They even stopped talking to each other, what was very sad.“ The children were so traumatized that they often jumped out of the windows of the temporary classrooms when an aftershock occured. Meanwhile, they have become adepted to the situation, says Shailaja: “They have a kind of accepted it. In case of earthquake they know we can do this, we cannot do that. So they know the concept of earthquake, how to be safe.“ Like the school in Thulosirubari, the school in Sangachok had to be demolished completely. Both had been built and supported by the “Nepalhilfe Beilngries“.

Waiting for the go-ahead

The German aid organization is awaiting the approval of the Nepalese government for reconstruction. The process has become much more bureaucratic. Before the earthquake, the “Nepalhilfe” could manage the construction of new schools directly with the local school committees, now there are two more intermediary instances. “We hope that we can start in April,” says Shyam Pandit, who coordinates the school projects of the “Nepalhilfe” in the country. The government has adopted new rules to make the buildings earthquake resistant. So the schools must not have more than two floors now.

Loud and stressful

Badly soundproofed tin sheds

The teachers long for the new buildings. The lessons in the badly soundproofed tin sheds are “very stressful,” says Shailaja. “If I teach in one class, the other two classes are disturbed. We can hear everything from the other classes coming in. The teachers have to go on top of their voice. This is very tiring.” In addition, the students get distracted a lot, because they can see what happens outside, says Shailaya. And then there is also the risk of injury: “The children are cutting their hands on these tin sheets.”

The place for the new school in Thulosirubari is already chosen. The wooden doors and windows of the demolished school store in a shed. “So we can save money,” says Arjun Gatraj, the chairman of the school committee. “We are ready for reconstruction.”

P.S.: The people in Thulosirubari asked me to tell you a heartfelt thank you. Your donations for our aid project “School up!” have made the hopefully soon start of the construction works possible in the first place. More than a third of the necessary amount is already met. But the prices of construction material in Nepal have increased by 50 percent after the earthquake and the long blockade of the Nepal-Indian border. We are not there yet. Please continue to donate for “School up!” and tell others of this project! Here again the account information:

Recipient: Nepalhilfe Beilngries
Bank: Volksbank Bayern Mitte eG/Germany

IBAN: DE05 7216 0818 0004 6227 07
BIC/SWIFT-Code: GENODEF1INP

Intended purpose: Gerlinde and Ralf School