Author: Tatjana Bak

How often do the girls get the chance to thank their sponsors? Not very often, but last November the people who have sponsored us for many years, and gave us new Chromebooks (computers) and computer desks, came to visit us. Not just as a way of getting acquainted but they also spent a nice and...

In April 2023 we were approached by a lady from India who wanted to come to us as a volunteer for a longer period of time. We then explained that she was required to study the Thai language for a couple of years as it is not possible to work with us without speaking Thai....

A typhoon in Japan is frightening, but hey, it’s not happening in Chiang Rai, so you don’t worry about it too much. However, when this typhoon causes extreme rain which ends up in the river streaming into Chiang Rai Thailand, the situation changes. The typhoon also caused a lot of rain locally so that the...

Who doesn’t like to celebrate their birthday? Most people enjoy it and so do most of the girls. It was Nongnuch’s* birthday, she turned 14. A wonderful meal was prepared; the mother helped the birthday girl making banana cakes, two girls prepared soup, and another girl made papaya salad. It was lovely to see the...

You have just had a lovely Thai meal and now you’d like to hang out for a while and so what do you do? I can assure you that many girls prefer hanging out in front of the television, but when the sounds of playing children drift in from outside, they are lured outside as...

What if you see an unconscious person lying in the street? Or you witness an accident and there are several people injured? What would you do? Would you be able to help? Would you be able to provide first aid until the ambulance arrives? We, all the ‘mothers’ as well as the girls have just...

The long, hot summer holidays are over and all the girls have gone back to school. The first school week is always rather chaotic as everybody has to get back into the rhythm and it always remains to be seen whether our preparations are sufficient. Do they all have enough pens, pencils, notebooks and are...

From mid-March to mid-May the girls are having a holiday. It is a long period of time, and it is hot, but doing nothing is not an option. Twice a week the girls go to the gym for self-defence lessons taught by the older sisters who practise this sport at top level. It’s great to...

A few weeks ago we saw the start of the summer holidays and all the girls are enjoying them very much. No school, homework or getting up early for a while. Six of the girls are probably enjoying this holiday even more, because they graduated. One young lady got her social work degree at university,...

Did you know that dying your hair is prohibited in Thai schools? The hair is seen as part of the uniform, you see. Glasses too should not have bold colours, the frames must be black or of a neutral colour. Knowing this it is easy to understand why the girls want to dye their hair...