Minmahaw School is a boarding school based in Mae Sot. The school offers intensive English immersion programs for disadvantaged Burmese aged between 17 and 23 years old that have completed compulsory aged education and have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to studies and leadership. Originally, (in 2007) the school was established with a single purpose – to prepare students to attend Tertiary Institutions and the students were the children/grandchildren of political prisoners. Minmahaw worked then and still works now on the principle of Intensive English Language immersion and all lessons and conversations during school hours are in English.
Minmahaw School participated in the PlayOnside Rainy Season Tournament in 2017, and PlayOnside has tight bonds with the school, as parts of our staff has been former students or teachers at the school. When we were invited to be a part of the school curriculum through their vocational training program, it was very easy for PlayOnside to accept the invitation.
We are very impressed by the level of both English and critical thinking of the students, and the students have given us valuable feedback about our program.
The lack of higher educational opportunities both in Burma and along the border for Burmese students, are a big issue. Minmahaw is filling this educational gap in an inspiriring way, giving opportunities to adolescents showing great motivation and commitment.
For PlayOnside this project has been very successful, and we look forward to explore and enhance our cooperation with Minmahaw School in the coming years. Already in March 2018 we are planning on another collaborative cross-border project with former Minmahaw students. Updates about this project will follow on our web page and social media pages.
Over the course of 10 weeks in the first semester of 2017, and 10 weeks of the second semester in 2018, we have presented our program, and had great lessons and discussion about how sports in general and football in particular can have a positive impact on individuals and local communities. From PlayOnside, Javier, Pyae Sone, Zin Min Naing and Ole have participated in the vocational training, and it has been a great learning experience for PlayOnside.
Ole G. Michelsen joined PlayOnside at the very beginning, becoming one of the main responsible of the growth and the professionalization of the organization. His wide range of knowledge and resources made him go through every single task of the program, from driver, fruit cutter, English teacher to Fundraiser, M&E and Finance responsible. His sense of humor, his “casual” clothing style and his solid “Na Lay La?” are really missed in the office.
Jame is a former Avoda School teacher and joined PlayOnside in 2017 as a part-time coach. Many years of teaching experience and knowledge of the community makes him a key player to identify the needs of the community. Also his Thai skills are very useful for the organization, especially when it is a phone call where body language is useless. As his name “James” His driving skills are as good as James Bond. When he retires he will probably own his own Songteaw. In the meantime…watch out! If you leave him alone he will be already running 3 different projects!
Oshape graduated from Minmahaw School in 2019. She was part of the PlayOnside Leadership Program at Minmahaw and her confidence, her smile and charm created a great impression on the team. She has developed her skills to become a role model in the community. She is passionate about learning more about gender equality and together with Yadanar they are the change-makers for many women in the community. A fast and sneaky football player, she also uses these skills off the field!
Zar Ni Win joined PlayOnside in 2017 with the responsibility of taking care of the fruits, the equipment and logistics around the field during the events. She shortly became a Field Manager. She has been growing a lot over the years being a key team member when it comes to the daily life of the organization. Nobody makes better nets than her in all of Tak province. Her conversations with Ole are still a mystery but somehow they always worked!
Evenly is one of the most talented former students from Minmahaw school. In 2018, she volunteered at PlayOnside Summer School in Thone Sae Thone Sue village. Then she continued her studies at ACU for 2 years and in February 2021, she joined PlayOnside as an intern. Her motivation, diligence and willingness to learn impressed the organization and there was no doubt to offer her a position as a staff. She is a great support in the different areas of the organization. Her participation in the meetings is the most efficient in the organization, breaking the previous record of 3 seconds per meeting.
Laura is the first female coach in PlayOnside. She joined the PlayOnisde family in 2017 creating a huge impact in the community. After that she has been leaving and coming back. That’s why we never remove her from the website. She’s currently enrolled in AUW University in Bangladesh. Due to the pandemic, she returned to Mae Sot to continue her studies online and provide PlayOnside with her knowledge and experience she has gained over the last 2 years abroad. It is easier to win the lottery than to predict when she will leave and break our hearts again.
Bway is a former Minmahaw school student. He completed the Teacher Education program in his second year at the school that equipped him with teaching tools and skills to start a teaching career. With a wide teaching experience, his critical thinking skill, initiative, and care for education bring a great resource to support the Star Flower project, creating and implementing the lesson according to individual student’s needs.Also his talent and passion for art makes him the “Canva Specialist”, bringing light and inspiration to our Social Media.
Throwback to 2018, Yair Yint is a Farm House school teacher and part-time coach. He was helping PlayOnside teaching at Green Island Summer school. His enthusiasm and his leadership skills help him to become a PlayOnside staff with full responsibility for Green Island since 2019. He shares “General Worker” tasks with Pyae Sone and James, creating a team not different from the Messi-Neymar-Suarez team. He is the best goalkeeper (and the only one we have) in the PlayOnside team and the ball rarely hits the goal net.
Esther was the defender of the Love and Care team during the 2018 Rainy Season Tournament. She was called “The Rock” for her strength, clearing every single ball that came close to her. In 2020, she applied and was selected for an internship position. After three months she has become a staff member responsible for the Global Goal E-learning project, and the communication of the SRHR program. She also has passion for the M & E Department where she has to deal with Zin Min Naing! Not an easy task!
Smallay joined PlayOnside in 2017. Former Minmahaw student, he is a natural fighter in order to reach his dreams. He learns as quickly as makes jokes in the team which makes him one of the most multifaceted staff in the organization. His football career was interrupted after a bad pass from Javier, a fact that he will never forget, that’s why he is moving to Bangkok to continue his studies while becoming a part-time job and web-designer. Before that, he has had the ability to hire half of his family in the organization.
Javier founded PlayOnside in 2013 intending to use the potential of football to promote different values around the migrant community in Mae Sot. He is a crazy Atletico Madrid fan which provided him with lots of experience to manage frustration, anger and disappointment. He likes to work (sometimes too much), and never stops thinking of new projects or new ideas to improve the organization and its staff.
Naing Zaw, is the tallest and the most smiley Burmese person you will ever meet. He joined the PlayOniside team in 2018 and went to Wide Horizons program to improve his skills in Community Development. After a year, he came back to the organization to share and implement his skill as a Fundraiser to keep the organization financially healthy. He likes to take photos and also courses online. His personal folder is full of certificates.
Zin Min Naing is one of the most humble people in the organization. After he graduated from CDC school he joined PlayOnside to create a happy environment and to keep staff satisfied in the workplace. His leadership skills, critical thinking and enthusiasm have helped him to organize the task in the team. He is a problem solver. If you have a problem, you will see him. If he shouts “One clap!”, you better follow!
Yadanar joined PlayOnside in 2018. Thanks to her strong character, quickly she became one of the important people to keep the office’s materials and the finances under control. She is an Excel expert and one of the best football players in the PlayOnside Female team. She scored more goals than her husband did this year (which is not surprising). Her new haircut will become trendy in the community (give time to time).
Pyae Sone is the first staff hired by PlayOnside since its foundation. He was a KM 42 school teacher. His leadership skills and motivation for the sports as well as his willingness to create a safe environment around the children brought him as Education and Child Protection Manager with big responsibilities in most of the activities. His passion for playing football (not his skills though) is as big as his body. He is not only responsible for Child Protection but also he protects all the staff who are in danger. (He is a snake killer)