VIBErations Podcast

VIBErations Episode 26 - Karing Frontiers

VIBErations podcast Ep 26. Karing Frontiers at VIBE Book & Music Shop in Mui Wo on Lantau Island in HK on 12th May 2021

Featuring interview with Angelica Cheng and Benny Berkenkotter – 2 of 8 university students who have setup an NGO called Karing Frontiers. The purpose of ‘Karing Frontiers’ is to provide fundraising for refugee Karen students in Myanmar.

VIBE has donated to this very worthy cause by donating 2 ‘goody bags’ for prizes in their mid-June raffle and sponsoring a student for 1 year via their website at www.karingfrontiers.com This year, Karing Frontiers is aiming to raise HK$302,000 to empower 534 students and 60 teaching staff among five different post-secondary schools located in refugee camps. HK$560 is all it takes to sponsor one student for a whole academic year.

Angelica Cheng is a rising junior at Tufts University, studying electrical engineering. A high school trip in 2018 to the Thai-Myanmar border would lead to her developing a passion for working with refugees and marginalized peoples. In the following year, she began a high school project in the effort to secure access to higher education in the refugee camps on the Thai border. Eventually, the project would lead to the beginnings of Karing Frontiers, a registered NGO in Hong Kong. Now, when she’s not losing sleep to school, she works as the program director at Karing Frontiers.

Benny Berkenkotter is a rising junior environmental science major at the University of Vermont. He has been a part of Karing Frontiers since 2019, where he visited the Karen refugee camp and got to help with taking photos and videos of the students and teaching English. Now, he helps with coordinating fundraising strategies to keep the schools in the refugee camps afloat. His goal with Karing Frontiers is to give the Karen education system a stable and worry-free future so that the future generations of the Karen people also have a chance to become staples in modern-day society.

VIBErations Episode 27 - Dr Rhona Buchanan

VIBErations podcast Ep 27. Dr. Rhona Buchanan Vet at VIBE Book & Music Shop in Mui Wo on Lantau Island in HK on 28th May 2021

BIO

Dr. Rhona Buchanan has a wealth of experience since qualifying as a vet many years ago… She worked for 4 years with the PDSA a UK animal-based charity caring for the health of all domestic pets of those with a low income. A further 4 years as a self-employed locum working the length and breadth of the UK, many of the practices she covered were one vet clinics where she ended up covering for the owners on a repeat basis. 4 years as a Veterinary Director for Cats Protection - a UK animal charity where she was heavily involved in supervising the welfare and care of all the cats rescued by the charity. She liaised with all the Veterinary Clinics providing treatment and also with UK universities ensuring the cats in her practice were receiving the best and most modern standard of Veterinary care. Over the last 14 years as part of her managerial roles she’s been proactively involved in coaching and mentoring young vets both in UK and in Hong Kong. Given there was no provision for a Veterinary service on Peng Chau Dr Rhona has now launched Peng Chau Veterinary Home Visit Service aiming to service the area of Peng Chau and the outer islands. She can only provide a home visit service and is therefore limited in the services she can provide. However, when it is clear that any pet requires more attention than she can provide, e.g. radiography, surgery or hospitalisation, she has an excellent working relationship with many vet hospitals on Lantau and Hong Kong Island and can arrange a referral. She therefore offers a basic diagnosis and treatment of most conditions, and of course preventative health care: vaccinations, flea, tick & worm control. She can also assist owners looking to leave HK. She is able to source and supply most medications and food supplements given 48 hours notice.

10 Questions

1. Favourite book or author? - 'Outlander series' by Diana Gabaldon

2. Favourite musical artist? - Runrig, Yes, Classical music and Jazz

3. Preferred drink? - Good Gin & Tonic, Whisky or a pint Murphy's

4. Life motto? - Treat others as you'd want to be treated yourself

5. Favourite HK walk? – Anything around Peng Chau

6. Favourite HK restaurant? ¬- Hemmingway's in DB

7. Faced with a python whilst walking up to the Peak, what would you do? - Stand still and admire it

8. Best advice you were given? - We have 2 eyes, 2 ears and 2 hands for a damn good reason

9. Finish this sentence… I live in Hong Kong because… I was bored in the UK

10. Favourite area of Hong Kong? – Peng Chau