Indonesian children in the picture

Rotarian Ms Vicki de Carle has travelled to Indonesia to visit children at the Batumadeg School and to show students a copy of the Peninsula News that featured a story and pictures of the students.

The children were featured in edition 231 of Peninsula News after Ms de Carle visited the children in Indonesia to distribute text books and school uniforms to disadvantaged children, which were provided with the assistance of Woy Woy Rotary Club.

"Having never seen a newspaper before, it wasn't surprising that the children of the Batumadeg School were jumping for joy at their new celebrity status having their photo in the Peninsula News," said Ms de Carle.

"Each time you spend time with these delightful children, you see the world unfolding in front of them.

"When I take photos of them, they look at the camera screen and squeal with delight.

"When they saw their photos in the paper they were over the moon.

"They were calling out to all their friends, pointing to where they were in the photo and totally thrilled that people in Australia knew who they were and cared," said Ms de Carle.

Ms de Carle said she had 300 photos of the children printed to give out and numerous copies of Peninsula News.

"They couldn't wait to go home and show off to their families and neighbors.

"They had never had a photo before," she said.

"For a small village with little outside influence, Peninsula News for them is the most important, prestigious publication in the world as they were in it.

"The text books the children are holding in the Peninsula News photo has made an enormous difference to the school.

"The headmaster came running out to meet me with a thumps up gesture calling out Bagus Bagus (good, good) about the levels of literacy.

"He told me the difference in the children's literacy level was enormous since they had access to text books.

"In recent tests, similar to our basic skills tests, some of the children in his school had reached the highest level possible.

"This is something they have never seen prior to having text books."

Media Release, 24 Mar 2011 Vicki de Carle, Rotary of Gosford City