Wendy Shew watched in horror as earthquakes devasted Nepal several years ago—and did something about it. Her goal: build 1,000 new schools in the developing world.
Wendy Shew poses with students in front of the second school Building Education completed in Nepal after the devastating earthquake.
Wendy Shew, who grew up and still lives in San Francisco, uses life’s transformational markers to make big decisions. She’s never doubted a single one.
During her first trip to Nepal in 2014, she celebrated her birthday during Diwali, the festival of lights, and stayed in a hostel. She went to a popular temple on her last day in the country. “I had completely forgotten the name of my hostel and had no idea what street it was on,” says Shew. “It was dark upon returning, and I couldn’t give my taxi driver the name of where I needed to go. I remember getting in the taxi thinking about how the driver looked like my father, and I could sense that he felt I could also be his daughter. He drove me around for two hours until I found my hostel. I will never forget being helped and at the mercy of a stranger when I was in need.”
That was in 2014. Six months later, a devastating earthquake hit Nepal. At the time, Shew was teaching English in a rural village in Thailand. She felt compelled to help. “It called to me and felt like a duty,” says Shew. “The destruction was horrendous—9,000 lives, 9,000 schools and 600,000 homes destroyed. I had never seen people so hopeless. The entire country was shattered. I worked in every group that I could from cleaning up rubble, building temporary schools of bamboo, building new homes and volunteering in displacement camps. It’s amazing the difference and impact a dedicated team of leaders can make together.”
The experience prompted her to launch the locally based nonprofit Building Education (bebuildingeducation.org), with a mission to build 1,000 schools that spark a legacy of change in developing countries. “Building Education helps the most vulnerable communities that suffer from multidimensional poverty, giving them access to healthcare, education, clean water, energy and basic infrastructure,” says Shew, who also worked in the international aviation business as a jet engine specialist before volunteering and living in Asia, Europe and Africa. We sat down with Shew to learn about the exceptional work she and her team are doing to raise walls and hope.
Wendy Shew
How did your work begin in Nepal?
I had no idea how to get started. But as more time passed, no one stepped up to the plate, and I felt obligated. The first wall to rebuild was a $2,000 project, so I began to fundraise for that first. I then partnered with the same organization that I volunteered with in India for a girl’s orphanage, New Hope Charitable Children’s Home, and we finished that first school together. It all felt serendipitous to me. In my heart, the first school built was dedicated to my mother, who passed away when I was 8.
Rebuilding the second school started in February 2016, and we officially founded and received tax-deductible status in July 2017. We were initially called Light of Hope and then an ex-boyfriend, who was a builder, suggested Building Education—so that was the name that stuck.
Was there a story that convinced you that something had to be done? Some of the strongest memories I have of the destruction in Nepal was when I was still volunteering right after the earthquake.
Shew volunteers at a school rebuilding site in Nepal.
The team was cleaning up and shoveling a home that had completely collapsed. The owner of the home watched as we shoveled through everything, using jackhammers to get through the rubble. I could see that he was appreciative, but I could also feel his heartache as we ripped through what was once his house that he worked so hard for. His sons had grown up in that home and already moved out; his wife had passed on, and the house was all he had left. Underneath the rubble, we found a framed photograph of his son, and it seemed to bring relief and hope back into his life.
Please tell us about your organization’s successes?
We’ve built three schools and created two community water systems, providing clean water to more than 200 families. We’ve supported more than 450 students and sponsored 70 students—with one now attending university. We’ve built two playgrounds. We also hosted a women’s empowerment conference that provided menstruation health, financial literacy and entrepreneurial skills to more than 50 women. Finally, we provided a hydroponics system as a sustainability project.
Rebikah BK is a student from our very first school rebuild project. She was the first person in her family to fully complete high school and one of the very first in her village to go to university. She is currently in her last year of pharmaceutical studies, and her dream is to open a pharmacy in the village to help all the sick people.
Students return to their school after a rebuild—the first structure Building Education completed.
What are some of the special challenges you deal with when running your organization?
Running a nonprofit is a rewarding commitment that I’m grateful to be doing every single day, no matter how challenging it gets. Our dollars go a long way in a developing country, and they provide a significant impact. It has the ability to impact villages and communities in a way that can be very influential. With that comes a significant social responsibility. We need to ensure that our interests, goals and understandings are mutually aligned before moving forward. We need to be able to ensure that rebuilding the school is the right solution for their challenges and that the community is ready for it.
Students in Nepal benefited from the third school built by Building Education.
Building Education is very mindful in its problem-solving process; we have to be conscious of how one solution may affect an entire village of people. We can’t impose our American ideals on them and assume that this is the right solution; instead, it has to be an inclusive process of coming to a solution together in order to create sustainability.
The organization also helps launch events like this women’s empowerment conference.
What’s next for Building Education?
Building Education has just sent our Nepal Operations Team out to Mugu District for the first time. Mugu District, located in the far west of Nepal, is known to be the most remote district in Nepal, as well as the least developed. The geography is extremely rugged, lacking infrastructure and paved roads.
Mugu District covers 3,535 kilometers of the Karnali zone in the midwestern region—nearly 47% of the population lives below the poverty line of $1.90 a day. Approximately 60% of the population in Mugu is out of the school system due to extreme poverty. The average literacy rate is about 49%.
The Building Education Nepal Operations Team is making a field visit to five schools in the district that need to be rebuilt. We’re getting ready to rebuild our fourth school in this area.
How can our readers help?
We always welcome eager volunteers who are passionate about the mission to support in operations. Readers can also donate on the website or become legacy sponsors by sponsoring a school rebuild project, which will include their name on the plaque of the school.
For corporations, companies and businesses, Building Education hosts four charity events throughout the year, and we are often seeking sponsorships to support us in hosting an event. We’re hosting our annual San Francisco Charity Gala this year on Nov. 18—our goal is to raise $100,000 at the event in funding our fourth school rebuild, which will be a 12-classroom seismic school that will support more than 500 students.
Photography by: COURTESY OF BUILDING EDUCATION; BY GARY SETO
