“She was a ‘wanderess.’ Thus, she didn’t care about money, only experiences – whether they came from wealth or from poverty, it was all the same to her.”
-Roman Payne
Thanks to you guys, I have begun making sales and pushing towards profitability. Because of this, I have made the decision to select a charity and start donations ASAP.
It wasn’t easy to ultimately decide which charity to use, (or I considered finding an individual and just giving them cash). There is so much poverty in your face here in Bangkok (like all cities in the world), and need at home in the US. In addition, many of the craftspeople we work with are not exactly high-society. Where should our small donation go?
I know that each sale from the store helps the artisans help themselves. This makes me happy and it should make you feel good as you purchase. Helping the artisans is a cause close to my heart and supporting that cause inspires me every day on this blog. But there is another cause that I consider dear, and one that has become closer to my heart me since I came to Thailand. The plight of children in orphanages and living in poverty is one that I see often here. I have volunteered through a group here and have slowly grown more invested in their cause. The APSW Emergency Home is an organization making a difference on many levels for Thai children. They help mothers, families and give direct aid to the children. You can see their story here, but let me tell you what I’ve been doing with them specifically.
I recently went to volunteer at the children’s nursery along with some other Wandering mamas here in Bangkok. Our job was primarily to be extra hands for the regular caregiver. I have a lot of opinions on the way things are done and will keep all of those to myself, because I can’t judge an organization that is doing so much for so many children. I will simply say that the APSW can certainly use more help in the form of money and hands. Some of the most fun was watching the kids eat and play…they were so well behaved! How do they avoid the Mayhem?! We were exposed to many aspects of the children’s life, both good and bad there in the nursery.
Their greatest need now is a functional kitchen to prepare clean and healthy food for the children. That kitchen will cost 15000 Thai Baht.
This makes my goal 15000 Thai Baht (approximately 430 US Dollars). With this money we can buy a kitchen for these kids and create a tangible difference in their day to day lives. That’s 20% of about 2000 dollars in profit. Seems like a lot…but I know we can do it. In addition to that 430, all of those sales will be helping artisans. Just thinking about it makes me feel awesome and re-affirms my decision to do this blog. No offense to my friends who are doing great things with other businesses, but this method works for me, and feels very personal. I created this from the ground up and can directly witness the benefits. I hope you feel a part of it!
While I would usually put pictures on here, I didn’t take any personal pictures at the nursery on my first couple trips, because I was getting comfortable with the kids. I’ll add some later.
There are also other ways to donate to the APSW, and if you’re interested in just doing that I’m certainly not going to stop you; I’ll even help.
Finally, if you’re a fellow Wanderer here in Bangkok and want to join me on a volunteer trip, please let me know!