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PRT beautifies Afghan girl's school

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Oshawn Jefferson
  • U.S. AFCENT Combat Camera Team
QALAT CITY, Afghanistan --  Partnering with Zabul Province government officials, Airmen from Provincial Reconstruction Team Zabul are making school life more pleasant by overseeing improvements for 1,200 Afghan high school and elementary students at the Bibi Khala Girl's School here.

"Coming out here and seeing the smiling faces is something I always look forward to," said 1st Lt. Rebecca Heyse, PRT Zabul information officer deployed from MacDill AFB, Fla. "The projects we do for these young ladies is one I enjoy. Anything we can do to make learning a pleasant experience for them is something I will cherish forever."

Zabul PRT members are overseeing improvements to the school, including painting classrooms and hallways, new doors and windows, plastering walls, putting in a vegetable garden, and building a women's park, where local women can come mentor and commune with students here.

"The last two PRTs that have come to assist the school here have helped us tremendously," said Mehmooda, the Bibi Khala Girl's School head mistress. "The PRT has shown great support for the school and its students. Our young ladies feel more secure and have less fear since the PRT has been involved with us. Also, our girls enjoy all the improvements, because they feel like somebody cares about them."

Previously PRT Zabul aided the school by overseeing the building of a teaching garden, putting in landscaping, and construction of an irrigation system. Seeing the school transform during the more than $300,000 project, has filled Airmen here with a sense of pride.

"Working with the contractors here and seeing the school change has been awesome," said 1st Lt. Keith Yelk, PRT Zabul engineer deployed from Nellis AFB, Nev. "It's great to give these Afghan children a chance to function in a learning environment that's not only comfortable but pleasant to look at."

The school teaches children math, Pashtu, traditional Afghan learning and some English, a skill that some of the Afghan girls are improving in with each visit.

"It was a thrill to sing the ABC song with some of the students here," said Lt. Heyse, a native of Fort Worth, Texas. "I have learned a few Pashtu phrases as well, but they speak English way better than I speak Pashtu. For me though seeing them enjoying their school environment makes me feel like the improvements we are helping them make to the school, are a real investment in these children's future."

Currently the Zabul Team has 14 PRT-led projects including bridge reconstruction, hospital improvements, perimeter wall repairs, school construction, emergency road repairs, trash services, nursery security upgrades and irrigation wells. These projects, coupled with several other improvement operations being led by Afghan government officials, are organized and prioritized to best benefit the people here.

"The girls school project is one of many we have worked with Afghan leadership in the region to facilitate and prioritize for the betterment of Afghan citizens here," said Lt. Yelk, a native of Sun Prairie, Wis. "Moving forward, we will continue to help the Afghan government complete projects like these to build trust and improve the creditability of Afghan leaders and the people they serve."

When the PRT arrived in Zabul Province they adopted the call sign, Bunyad, which means 'foundation' in Afghanistan's Pashtu language. The team had a goal to help Afghans build a solid foundation, which they can build upon to benefit the people of Zabul for years to come.

"I think our school is pretty," said one smiling Afghan student. "I really like it here."

"We are here to help," said Lt. Heyse, with a smile, while surrounded by students from the school. "We still have a lot of challenges in Afghanistan but day-by-day it gets better. Helping the school here is a small step but it's a step in the right direction."