Toilet for life !

We got a contact from a Hmong village's leaders during the third wave of COVID 19. It was about a vulnerable family living up on a hill in Chiang Rai. The family with eight people living together in a small bamboo hut. Besides strugling living their lives with limeted resources, they cannot access to a safe toilet. The safety of  wemen and girls of the family was a big concern.

We, together with village's leaders andvillage's volunteer built up a new small simple toilet which is safer and better hygiene for the family. Another positive impact we created together with local community ... may say... it is a toilet for life !

Wild fire protection lines...

 During the end of winer, many villages in hilly area prepare the wild fire protection lines around their villages, temples and clusters. 

Sustainable Community Foundation (SCF.) volunteers from Chiang Rai Rajabhat University (CRRU)  recently worked with local people on the wild fire protection lines for two temples. Hope they will be safe from the fire in summer.

Each time of working together is a new journey for all of us to learn and share together. It is a memorable experience that will be passed on from generations to generations. We belief it  contributes to sustainable development.

notes: some photo credits and a vdo file from #HmomgCRRUClub

้Happy New Year 2021

 Even the pandemic, climate change and disaster in 2020 were very challenging, we were able to implement two projects for better living conditions for vulnerable people. Water tanks and building a house for the disadvantaged ones in a so called Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) village were well done. Besides creating positive impacts, we also handed over the spirit of voluntary minds, love, sharing, supporting and caring each other to young people.

2021 is going to be a busy year for us as there are already  five villages in the list. We are ready to enhance  sustainable development through working together with the marginal communities. Let's  take the journey to create positive impact, one village at a time together ! 

Happy New Year 2021 to all readers.

Unconditioned .....is beautiful !

 I earlier posted about a need to finish building a house of a vulnerable household. When a small bamboo house was not convenient for two families: parents of  two sons and three kids, a second son and his pregnant wife. The second son started  building a bigger house three years ago but he could not  complete the new hose as his mother and his wife passed away. He even tried to commit suicide.

After we got to know the story, and  did some sites recce, consultations, discussions and coordination for funding supports from our family members, their friends and our network, we started the project.

All was very happy and emotional on the day we handed over the "Home" to the vulnerable household.  The team and the household's member came to talk to me and reflect their feeling of our working together.

Their words did touch my heart !

" Money cannot buy this experience" ....

" we do not have to be rich to help the others"...

" I am glad my help can reduce their problem"...

 " I am happy to help them unconditionally"...

 "what we can do for them is spiritually support and share our labors.

 " I am happy to see them happy"

" I do not know  how to  thank you enough for you kind help, but I will keep helping the others whose life is hard as best as I can.

The goodness of helping and supporting each other unconditionally  is very beautiful !

How good is it !!

 The "Water tanks for vulnerable households at Wiang Khamfa, Chiang Rai, Thailand" was completed well by September 2020.

 Not the achievement make us feel good but also what we learn and share along the way.  We have students from Chinag Rai Rajabhat University(CRRU) the Hmong CRRU club, soldiers, village's leaders and family male members from the vulnerable households work together at the sites while the women cook for us. 

Glad to see friendship building among the team of multi-cultures. No gaps of age, ethnic group,social status,  gender, disability, language( the disable couple cannot speak & have listening problem) and education levels. We all learn and hand on  the value of HOPE: Humility,Opportunity, Participation and Equity together.

How good is it! I keep telling myself.

 

Along the way of creating positive changes

In order to get sustainable development, besides getting the people engaged to the projects, we need to have young people learn and share together. This would be a hand over the spirit of "Civil Mind" from generations to generations.

We got students from local university working together to build a proper place called home for a vulnerable family which I posted earlier.

The building is in progressed  and we hope the house will be ready for  the eight family members to live in together soon.

How great to see young people lend their hands for the in-needed people unconditionally. Smiling faces, and laughter along our working days are going to be another wonderful memory for all of us. We all learn together the Sustainable Community Foundation(SCF)four key values of  HOPE: Humility, Opportunity, Participation and Equity. 

Hopefully  what we learn and share together will be one of the beauty in their characters and  pass on to the next generation...

(some photos credit to Suchanya Seansawang and Montree Sirisuksakul)

It is going to be a home one day...hopefully

Working at a water project in Wiang Khamfa, Village, Chiang Rai, we met a stateless young guy. His parents have eight kids and he is the youngest. He got married and has a daughter. He and  his wife made a loan to build their house.The house was expected to be a place where all family's members live together  like a primitive Hmong extended family.

Unfortunately, he lost his wife some two years ago and after that he lost his mother. He was very sad, lost hope and depressed.  He tried to commit suicide  many times but the love of his father, brother, sisters keep him alive.

In order to earn, he left his daughter with his father and  went to another province of some 650 kilometres to sell street grilled chicken to get money for building the house. It was very challenging  to travel across provinces of this stateless young guy, that he had to spend some more extra money for those trips. Then the COVID19 was another challenging and made things more worse. He could not earn from  his grilled chicken for many months 

And  at the end of September while we were completing our water tanks project, he came to see us. He traveled back home to meet us and  requested  us to help  building his house. 

After talking together, it is likely that SCF may take care of building concrete walls for the house while he and his family will take care of other parts.

 During our conversation, we feel his pain and need ,it was sad and emotional.We did not committed  to help building his house by words, but by hearts we will try our best to make this done.

Please feel free and let us know if you would like to be a part of this mission....building a house to be a home of  stateless and in need family. 

an unfinished house

we build a water tank for the house

inside the house

inside the house

sleep in a tent

bamboo wall 

a house !

We feel hope and need when we look at this house