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16 - 30 June 2016
www.pattayatoday.net
Our Community
Where’s our bridge? by Derek Franklin
There was a time, not too long in the distant past, when crossing from one side of Sukhumvit Road to the other was not a life-threatening task. A few short years ago the road was just four lanes wide, two going in each direction, with a wide grass verge running down the middle. Cars were fewer in number, and crossing the road, even for a person with a disability, was easy to do. But as Pattaya increased in size, and the number of cars on the road has almost doubled in recent years, Sukhumvit was widened to become eight lanes. A new overpass was built and a road tunnel is currently under construction, which has meant that getting from one side to the other is today almost impossible.
Near the junction of Pattaya Klang, outside School No. 5, there is a pedestrian bridge which is used by hundreds, if not thousands each day, but if you have a disability, use a wheelchair or are missing a lower limb, how do you get to the other side? Not too long ago representatives from the Ministry of Transport visited Pattaya, and in particular they visited the Redemptorist Vocational School for People with Disabilities. With much fanfare in front of the local and national press it was announced, and promised, that an accessible bridge would be constructed outside the Father Ray Foundation. An electric lift would carry people up to the bridge where they would then wheel
themselves, or walk, across a bridge and then back into a lift to take them down. Since the announcement the students at the school have heard nothing; no start date, no designs, no plans, not even an apology for a delay in the work starting. So to remind the people at the Ministry of Transport of their promise, the students recently held a demonstration on Sukhumvit Road, and in front of the local and national media. Wheelchair users showed how difficult it is to climb the stairs on Sukhumvit Road’s only foot bridge in the city centre. Not just going up, but also coming down the other side. Most people can barely maneuver the pavements
A new army of fans Anyone who spends any amount of time here in Thailand will soon realise that Thais are obsessed with football, or soccer to our American friends. Pattaya is home to several football clubs, both Thai and foreign, with the most well known being Pattaya United, currently languishing in the lower half of the Thai Premier League. Pattaya City F.C., who presently play in Division two, may not be as popular as their Premier League city mates, but the team, formerly known as Sriracha FC, has recently gained several hundred new fans, most of them from the Father Ray Foundation. Owner of Pattaya City FC, Poonpol Kamuttira, recently
visited the Foundation to pledge his support by offering all revenue from the sale of tickets at the club’s home games, which are currently being played at Nongprue two Stadium, just off Siam Country Road. Following the announcement, and at the team’s next home game, several vehicles arrived at the stadium from the Father Ray Children’s Home, Special Needs Center, Vocational School for People with Disabilities and the School for the Blind all full of Pattaya City FC’s new fans. The students from the School for the Blind were selected to be the local team’s match mascots, which may be a first in the world of football, and then they sat in
by Derek Franklin
the grandstand as their teacher giving a commentary as they game was played. But the local fans were out numbered by the visiting supporters who had traveled for many hours along the coast to Pattaya. They cheered, booed, banged drums, waved flags, shouted abuse at the referee and were as devoted as any supporter of an English Premier or La Liga team. The local team may have been playing on their home ground, but the team from Trat was just too good and they won the match two goals to one. Nongprue two Stadium may not be as big as Wembley in London, San Siro in Milan or Madrid’s Bernabeu, but what it lacks in size it makes up in enthusiasm and passion.
of Sukhumvit, never mind attempt to climb s tairs with a disability and with a wheelchair. It wasn’t too long ago that most people living with a disability would be expected to stay at home, not go to school, to college or to university. It
was expected that they would not do much with their lives, becoming reliant and a burden on family members. But today things have changed. People with a disability want to be educated, they want to be independent, they want to be equal and
they want to be able to cross Sukhumvit Road in safety. We can only hope the current Minister of Transport was watching the news channels when this story was aired. More information can be found at www.fr-ray.org or email info@fr-ray.org
International Day of Yoga Pattaya 2016 by Derek Franklin
In 2014 at a meeting of the United National General Assembly, the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, suggested the date of June 21 to be known as International Day of Yoga. Six months later, a record 175 member states adopted the proposal and the first International Day of Yoga was celebrated on June the 21 2015. This inaugural event saw people in more than one hundred nations taking part, with more than thirty five
thousand people in New Delhi participating in what became the largest ever yoga class. This year, 2016, International Day of Yoga will be celebrated here in Pattaya, on the afternoon of Tuesday June 21 at the sunken plaza at Central Festival Pattaya Beach. The event starts from 4:30 pm, and includes an opening ceremony with VIP guests, a performance of Fly Yoga and a community yoga class which it is hoped that several hundred yoga enthusiasts will attend. This is an event not only
for yoga devotees, but one for the whole community, Thai and foreign, young and old, male and female, rich and poor. It is free for everyone, though a donation is requested, and optional, and which will be donated to the Father Ray Foundation, Pattaya’s largest charitable organization. This will be the second International Day of Yoga, and an oppor tunity for everyone here in Pattaya to join together to celebrate this ancient physical, mental and spiritual practice.
Lamborghini Club (Thailand) together with Royal Cliff Hotels and Niche Cars Group Support Father Ray Foundation Lamborghini Club (Thailand) and the Royal Cliff Hotels Group led by Mana Trongkamolthum, Lamborghini Club Thailand's president (4th left) and Vitanart Vathanakul, executive director of the Royal Cliff Hotels Group (2nd right), donated 200,000 baht to Father Pattarapong Srivorakul, president the Father Ray Foundation (3rd right), showing strong support for the children’s education program. The event was held at the Royal Opal Theatre of the Royal Cliff Beach Hotel in Pattaya.