Five Little Hammers and Lots of Nails

Donkoi Primary School
Laos

At Mr. Khamvanh’s house in Donkoi village, little boys of grades four and five of Donkoi Primary School were fixing the school’s tables and benches excitingly with one big hammer and some big nails.  How wonderful this farmer-carpenter villager is! He took initiative to do this job without anyone’s suggestion.  Wouldn’t it be wonderful if there were a carpenters club in the school so the boys could play with wood?

The children were asked, “would you like more hammers?” They all said “Yes”, so that was it!  The Young Carpenters Group was born.  They began with five little hammers and a lot of little nails.  

Mr. Khamvanh was asked if he could bring some older youths to help him fix the tables and benches while the little boys just played with the hammers, nails, and wood.  Mr. Khamvanh bought a ‘tuktuk’ full of scrap wood (a ‘tuktuk is a small vehicle that carries passengers short distances) and that summer of 1998 children of Donkoi Primary School had a wonderful time creating anything they wanted to, no need to fix tables and benches.

That was how Donkoi School’s After-School Program began: with five little hammers, lots of nails, and a skilled carpenter with a very good heart.