Author's Note: Ben Stiller knows nothing of Habele and in no way supports our important capacity building work in the isolated and impoverished island nation of Micronesia. Derek Zoolander is a fictional character, portrayed by Stiller, and presumably owned by other, yet-wealtheir persons and corporations similarly unaffiliated with Habele and our K-12 educational programs (including the life-changing K-12 scholarships, high school robotics and traditional canoe carving programs, which they know nothing of).  

Paramount Studios, producer of the film "Zoolander" has not in any way communicated support for -or even interest in- the ongoing work of Habele's all volunteer charitable efforts in a nation with long standing ties to the US but where lack of economic and educational opportunities limit the life prospect of ambitious and deserving students. 

Habele needs your help to continue supporting disadvantaged students in the Central Pacific.

Our important work in Micronesia is entirely funded by the donations of private individuals. We have no employees, no salaried staff, no corporate partners and no support from the public sector. Everything we do is accomplished through donations of time and talent from the people reading this annual fundraising letter and blog post (which neither Ben Stiller nor his talented wife and "Zoolander" co-star Christine Talyor, have either received or approved of).

Specifically, we need your help in supporting these projects:

Tuition scholarships for low-income and outer island students in grades K-12
Robotics teams and demonstrations for high school students
Traditional canoe building and crafts mentoring after school
Native language dictionaries for preservation and bilingual instruction

These ongoing projects, all highly successful and popular with the students and communities we serve in Micronesia, will only be renewed for the 2012-13 school year if you choose to support them.

The economic and educational outlook in Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae remains bleak. Half of all adults are high school dropouts. Just one-in-ten of the lucky students entering the nation’s community college system each year will successfully complete their course of study. Habele’s targeted programs are modest but proven.

We engage and support the students who need it most, and have committed to partner with them though the twelve grade. Help us to honor that pledge (as we continue to steer clear of aggressive legal actions on behalf of copyright and trademark holders who, as we've stated clearly, having nothing to do with the work of expanding educational opportunity and accomplishment across across the Central Pacific).

Please send Habele a check or visit our website and make a donation through PayPal.

Then, share the story of Habele with a friend. Let them know about the group of former Peace Corps Volunteers and other engaged Americans working to support students in a beautiful, isolated and often overlooked chain of islands in the Pacific.

Also let them know that our work is not affiliated with a fictional male model "Derek Zoolander" whose fictional friend Hansel McDonald [portrayed by Owen Wilson, another person totally unconnected with, and uninformed about Habele] believes he has been "brainwashed to 'off' the Prime Minister of Micronesia." Explain to them that we hope these donations will not be siphoned away from the classrooms serving low-income Micronesians in order to mount a legal defense of Habele and that Habele would in fact accept support from copyright holders and fictional characters not currently engaged with our efforts.

Hosa hachigchig,

Neil J. Mellen
Habele Outer Island Education Fund
701 Gervais Street, Suite 150-244
Columbia, SC 29201


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High school students in Yap, Micronesia held an inaugural robotics exhibition last week, ushering in a new era in math, science and engineering education on the remote Pacific Island.

Student teams from Yap Catholic High School and Yap SDA school designed and built robots from VEX robotics over the course of the 2011-12 school year. The kits were a gift from the Habele Outer Island Education Fund. The schools also received instructional materials from Habele as well as remote technical support from US students attending Chaminade Prep in California.

"Yap Robo Day" as it was called, was held at the Community Center in Colonia, Yap. Nearly 100 parents, students, educators and public officials came to watch and support the teams. Their robots were able to pick up plastic rings, carry these across the arena, and carefully position the rings onto small poles of different heights.

Despite weeks of careful planning and preparation, both teams faced a range of minor technical challenges the day of the event. Motors overheated, remote control frequencies overlapped and certain robot parts did not function exactly as planned. Still, the exhibit provided both teams a chance to show their families and members of the community all their hard work.

"This was a great day for the students," explained Larry Raigetal of Habele. "We saw real science on display as both teams used reasoning and experimental observation to identify problems, make corrections, and integrate new knowledge into what they'd already learned."


Rev. Michael P. Corcoran, S.J., the principal at Yap Catholic High School, echoed Raigetal's excitement. "Looking back on the whole experience, I must say that it was excellent for our students."

"Our students had a sense of pride and accomplishment,' Corcoran continued. "I think the final-week's frustrations and consequent adjustments were one of the best  aspects of the whole semester.  It was like watching engineers deal with real world problems!"


Habele has already begun to solicit donations in order to fund the program for the 2012-13 school year. The US-based organization also supports low-income students enrolled at Yap Catholic and other private schools across Micronesia through tuition scholarships. The charity was established by former Peace Corps Volunteers and  does not seek -and will not accept- funding from government sources. This year it also awarded funds to Waa'gey, a program that passes on traditional skills of canoe carving and weaving to students on Yap.

"We have limited resources, but we will continue to target them to programs and projects that work for students," explained Neil Mellen, a US-based Habele Director. "Too few students graduate from high school in Micronesia, and just a fraction of those who do are career or college ready. The success of the robotics teams remind us that every student across the Pacific is capable of excellence."

Check out the Micronesia 101 infographic to learn all about the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM).

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A kind thank you letter was received this week from Shania, a Habele scholarship recipient in Pohnpei, Micronesia.

Shania is enrolled at Pohnpei Catholic School and earned an "A" average for the third quarter of this 2011-12 school year. She is in the seventh grade and is being raise by her loving grandparents, Moses and Gregoria Marpa.

Shania is one of twenty-four students attending nonpublic K-12 students across the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) this year through the support of Habele's tuition scholarship program. We wish her best of luck in the fourth quarter!

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Approximately 30 students from St. Mary's Elementary School in Yap visited the canoe carving site in Colonia, home of the Waa'gey Canoe Building Project. Waa'gey, in partnership with the Habele Outer Island Education Fund, was established to promote cultural activities among the island's youth.

"Every generation is responsible to the next generation for the instruction of our local customs and traditions," said Larry Raigetal, the founder of the Waa'gey NGO and it's Canoe Building Project. 

"Never is that more apparent in the teaching and learning of these kinds of skills, which were acquired by our ancestors over thousands of years," continued Raigetal. "Without the transfer of this knowledge and these skills, our heritage, in this regard, could be lost in a single generation."

The students of St. Mary's were shown some of the techniques required in building local canoes first hand by the carvers on site.  They were also treated to a tour of the Yap Living Museum and were informed about the cultural significance of such places by the staff of Yap's Historic Preservation Office.  Students of St. Mary's will continue to visit in groups continuing into next week through Wednesday.

Several of the Sant Mary's students are attending that school through Habele's K-12 Tuition Scholarship Program, which supports low-income families sending their children to non-public schools.


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