Dear Editors,
Please grant me a space in the opinion page of your newspaper to clarify a matter that I consider needs to be brought to the public to set the record straight. I would also appreciate if you can use as head title of this article in the opinion page the following:
" A.C.E. FOUNDATION QUESTIONS THE TRUE MEANING OF COMPASSION, HUMANITY AND RELIEF"
I am writing on behalf of the volunteers of the A.C.E. Foundation and myself to express our dissatisfaction and distasteful disgust with the visit of Mrs. Sandra Cheung of the Tzu Chi Humanitarian Foundation to the new location of the A.C.E. Foundation School in combination to so-called delivery of the tables and chairs. I had received these chairs and tables as a donation the year before and had shared them with the A.C.E. Tzu Chi Humanitarian School that has been closed since October 2015. So my question am I receiving a donation of things that practically has been donated to me ? The Tzu Chi Foundation is a worldwide organization that provides compassion, humanity and relief ?
Where and what is the compassion of the organization in St. Maarten ? Where and what is the humanity ? and where and what is the relief ?
I was shocked to drive in the street and see Mrs.Sandra Cheung in person and some volunteers in Tzu Chi uniforms at the new location of the A.C.E. school gathering to make an invasive presentation. The volunteers of the A.C.E. Foundation School didn't accept what was brought as a donation in the form of buckets, brooms, mops and detergent in my absence, because they felt that this was not what we had requested via the Tzu Chi lawyers.
The insult to injury is that on Monday an article appeared in the electronic media and on Tuesday in the local newspapers. In our opinion this article is trying to make herself look good in the eyes of the public, because one was easily and hastily draw the conclusion that Tzu Chi was helping A.C.E. Foundation School and also donating something valuable to them. Wow... this is misleading to the public, because Mrs. Sandra Cheung emphatically stated that and I will quote from her e-mail: " I don't want nothing to do with you in life " .
This "non genuine love for education of the A.C.E. Foundation School" was already displayed in the court by an injunction, while a number of the same volunteers had visited Mrs. Sandra Cheung and had discussed a different terms to the solution in an amicable and humane manner respecting everyone domain.
After all was said and done she changed the whole scenario indicating that her English was not good so we would have to go through her lawyer or notary.
It is what it is and the results of the Court injunction was known via the Press, so I again got the restriction not to contact Mrs. Sandra Cheung personally after I did so to make the payment for September 2016 but to deal with her lawyer.
Mrs. Sandra Cheung had no valid reasons to visit the new location of the A.C.E. school or to badge in technically indicating that she came to help us clean the school. She and her crew regretfully couldn't receive red carpet treatment and what was brought as a donation was send backpacking because the volunteers that were in charge had already received buckets, mops, brooms and other cleaning supplies including trash cans and this donation from Tzu Ci was not needed. We have started our classes on October 11th, after having closed a chapter and moved on and away from the help of Tzu Chi Foundation. Every one of the volunteers strongly felt then that Sandra was going to put this show on in the newspapers and just like how they thought, so said so done, there this interesting "show of glow" article appeared. We felt so embarrassed to know that Sandra of the Tzu Chi had the boldness to do this. Does she do anything out of compassion ? Or is a "showcase of misleading " fact to gain public support or publicity.
The worse yet to act as if she is the spokeslady for the A.C.E. Foundation School and thinking a person as if anyone asked her to do the Vote of Thanks. This makes us all realize that TZU CHI SINT MAARTEN IS A MEDIA SHOW and pretend to the meaning of compassion, humanity, and relief.
Giving an education to a child is sowing a seed for life. A.C.E. Foundation School is not a school that has "elite" or well-to-do parents, but the efforts and education that have been given over the almost 15 years of existence leave a positive impact on humanity. The only man closes the door and I didn't expect someone that have compassion, humanity and relief intentions to do that to children. The judge already set his record and we were able to get a new location to continue our mission. A.C.E. Foundation would like to close this chapter with the Tzu Chi Foundation by taking the upper road, while they continue on their mission.
The A.C.E. Volunteers have worked hard and just want to be left alone to do their fair share.
Mrs. Claire Elshot-Aventurin
on behalf of the A.C.E. Foundation School Volunteers
