“I am proud to be literate and I can now achieve all that I have always desire to achieve with the skills which I have Learned through Adult Literacy Training.”
Barbra was born on the 15th of August 1962 at Manetai Health Centre in the Central region of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville.To date she is 49 years old. She is the 3rd of the 9 siblings borned from Mr. Joseph Mondais and Ms. Catherine Numutaven.
Ms. Babra is a very Intelligent Women. One of her strength in which she aquire or Learn things quickly is through observation. She was around 10 years old when she attended St. Francis Xavier Primary School in the 1970’s. In those days Children are all ready in their Youths when they started their Schooling.
St. Francis Xavier Primary School was established by the Catholic Church in the 1930’s after Missionaries first came into Bougainville and settled in their area in the 1920s.
Unfortunately, she was not able to complete her education because there were so many of them in the family and her parents could not afford to pay School fees for everyone of them.
Few of her Elder sister and brothers were lucky to made it through and got a payed Job because they were assisted by the Catholic priest and Nuns who payed for their Tuition fees.
In addition, there was not enough clothes for her to wear to School. Her parents could not afford to pay enough clothes to meet the needs of all their children.As a result she withdraw from third grade in school and went back home to the village.
With what little she had learn’t in school she resort into helping her self and her parents by starting to sell cocoa wet beans to Local Cocoa buyers. She also involved in entrepreneual activities and she was making a lot of money and progressing. She even owned a Trade Store and during sporting days on Sundays or celebration of National events in the village she would travel directly to Arawa town buy consumable goods in bulk from major wholesalers or retailers and resell them during those major celebrations. She also sells Second Hand clothing’s and other local produce.
However, when her Business was growing and expanding she began to experience several problems; She couldn’t keep proper records or Book Keeping and even write long sentences even though she had very strong Management Skills. When she discovered that, She started looking for ways to become functionally literate so that she can have the basic Knowledge and Skills to effectively run and manage her business.
While she was thinking and still planning to attend a school or Literacy Class the Bougainville Civil unrest came and shattered everything. For another 10 years, she went through a lot of pains, but the desire to be Literate never ends in her mind. She believes that one day everything that she dream’t of will become reality.
That opportunity unfolded in 2010 when her only son invited her to take care of his son in Port Moresby.When she came to Port Moresby she stayed almost for a year and asked her daughter in Law if she knows any schools in Port Moresby that provides any Adult Literacy Classes. She told her, ‘”yes there are lot of schools for Adults” and name a few of those schools and then recommended that she will enroll at Anglicare Stop Aids Incorporated.
After a weeks she enrolled her self and started attending classes. After classes she would bring assignments home and she would do it with assistance from her son and daughter in Law.
She found it difficult in certain circumstances , but the passion to learn motivated her to attend classes and finally completed her lessons.
On December 5th, 2010 Ms Barbra was one of those proud Adult participants who graduated from Adult Literacy training provided by Anglicare Incorporated.She can now be able to Read, write and even speak in English.
She testified that, “Iam proud to be literate and I can now achieve all that I have always desire to achieved with the skills which I have Learned through Adult Literacy Training. Message to those illiterate mothers and fathers who are ashamed to be Literate. Come forward and attend this Adultery Literacy Schools.It will open your world wide and liberates you”.
by: Wesley Thomas – NLAS