Dear Thailand-UK member.

There is a thread on the forum that I would like to bring your attention too - Some sad news.

The thread was started by Richard B who has been an invaluable member of Thailand-UK since 2002 helping many people with various visa problems.

Richard's story unfortunately didn't have a happy ending, as Richard explains ...

"A short while ago I discovered a dear friend of mine, Aom, who lived in Thailand was ill.

Though she was discharged from her local hospital with the help of friends, acquaintances and strangers we sought a second opinion and received news that Aom had had the HIV virus and sufficient secondary infections to diagnose Aids.

Sadly in the country which we all love many with the virus are fearful of seeking help and treatment and in any case many of the drugs we take for granted are not available. With the help of those same friends, acquaintances and strangers Aom was transferred to the Camillian Centre where she was welcomed by the nurses, patients and residents. She immediately responded to her welcome and the hugs she received. She was no longer a scared and confused girl facing death alone. Aom smiled and chattered happily to her new friends. Aom had her dignity, her sense of fun back and hope.

Sadly despite the best medical interventions Aom passed away not long after. "

During this difficult time Richard has received a lot of help and support from friends and strangers who have been moved by this story on the web. His posting of Aom's story on various Thai forums have not only highlighted the good work of Father Giovanni and the Camillian Centre but also highlighted some of the issues such as prejudice, misinformation and fear that accompany AIDS & HIV in Thailand.

According to the World Health Organization, "AIDS has been spreading across Asia faster than anywhere else in the World. The number of Thai people who are HIV positive and who have AIDS continue to grow each year primarily due to the lack of knowledge of the disease and how it is contracted."

So how can Thailand-UK forum members help?

Well, Thailand-UK are joining forces with the good people at Bahtbus in an attempt to raise money for the Camillian Centre, and we would like you to join us.

We are linking into the Bahtbus JAIDEE appeal which has been running since December 2001. The JAIDEE appeal has already hit the 1 MILLION BAHT target and we want to help them obtain that SECOND MILLION!

In the past when we have discussed charity work on this forum we have always had a positive response from our members and were hoping that once again our members can do us proud. We have run this FREE website and forum for nearly 6 years now and saved many people a bit of cash along the way.

Now were asking that you give a little bit back.

If you can help out as an individual, employer, group or organisation, or if you have some ideas for raising money then you have the forum at your disposal to assist you.

You can keep updated on the JAIDEE appeal on Thailand-UK and ask any questions via this thread.



You can read all about the Camillian centre by following this LINK to their informative website.

You can donate to the JAIDEE appeal by following this LINK

or via a variety of methods as explained HERE

Further reading of Richards story (on thaivisa.com) can be viewed Here


I'll leave the last word for Richard.

Thanks for your time.
Lee

---

Dear All,

I would like to thank everyone on this forum for their kind words and thoughts. They have meant a lot to me.

The work of the Camillian Centre goes on day after day and until a cure is found for this virus they will be there to help people like Aom.

As a forum I think to support this organization would be a lovely thing to do.

Thank You.
Richard.

To start the ball rolling Thailand-UK are donating £35 from the Thailand-UK slush fund (subject to discussions with the slush fund manager) and £35 pound from last years fantasy football competition.

Personal donations from Thailand-UK admin / moderators will take our initial donation to around the £150 mark.

All donations are welcome however large or small.
See http://www.bahtbus.com/csc/ to donate.

Thank you
Lee

quote:

To start the ball rolling Thailand-UK are donating £35 from the Thailand-UK slush fund (subject to discussions with the slush fund manager)

As discussed with Lee on PM a cheque for £35 from the slush fund is on it's way to Lee.

On behalf of Bahtbus, I would like to wholeheartedly applaud the management and members of Thailand-UK.com for supporting the Camillian Centre.

The stigma associated with HIV/AIDS is such that even the very mention of it can make people uncomfortable; for the charitably minded, helping those with or affected by the unforgiving condition could arguably be considered the least fashionable of causes to support.

Simply put, HIV/AIDS could be justly described as the leprosy of the modern age and people are similarly frightened of it. Ignorance is rife.
Sufferers may not wander alone ringing a bell as they warn others of their approach with the chilling cry of ‘Unclean! Unclean!’, but that is how they are often regarded.

Hard as it may be to believe, many Thai have been banished from their villages and/or their families ostracized. Children have been abandoned, literally dumped at doors of institutions.
The children at the Camillian Centre have been turned away from public swimming pools; Wats have refused to allow the remains of those who have passed away to be cremated on their premises; cremations, when allowed, cannot be held until the schools have finished for the day for fear of the children inhaling the smoke.
The list goes on.

Ignorance and hypocrisy is abundant.

A classic example is the instance when one Wat previously used by the Camillian Centre decided to stop further cremations of those who died from AIDS.

The particular Wat in question was used by Hi-So Thai for, in my humble opinion, the most bizarre and hypocritical purpose: fake cremations.

So I am reliably informed, the individuals concerned (at some considerable expense) would have all their clothes cremated and then appear wearing a white outfit. The act of burning their clothes supposedly results in all their past wrong doings in their life being forgiven as the slate is wiped clean. It was such hypocrites who lobbied to stop the Camillian Centre using the facility as they were fearful it would pollute the oven and jeopardize the sanctity of the Wat or some such nonsense.

The raison d’etre of the Camillian Centre was to care for children who were orphaned by or abandoned because of AIDS and were dealt the most cruel hand in life by being born HIV positive.

As witnessed by the fact that Father G and his team did their utmost to help Aom in her hour of need, the Centre does help some adults and they have also established a comprehensive information network to promote HIV/AIDS awareness.

When I first visited the Camillian Centre when the Jaidee Appeal was established, I was particularly taken by one little girl by the name of Sonia, largely because she seemed to be permanently glued to Father G, or ‘Pa Yon’ as the kids affectionately call him.
Here is her story:

Sonia is a bright-eyed full of life four-year old. She is as bright as a button and everyone’s favourite, including Father Giovanni’s if he were to admit it. Father G had a smile on his face as he told me how she tells him off. He explained that if he picks up one of the other children and gives them a cuddle, Sonia demands that she too should be given a cuddle. She has been living at the Camillian Centre for about a year now.
Sonia was abandoned in Chonburi market by her ‘working girl’ mother who had AIDS.

Sonia was born with HIV.

That day, Sonia was lost and confused.

In her wanderings trying to find her Mama, she was knocked over by a car. She was quite badly injured and taken to hospital. The blood test revealed that she was HIV positive. Sonia then had nobody in her life other than the hospital staff. At that time she did not even have a name.

As Sonia had a ‘communicable disease’, the law dictated that she must be transferred to another Government facility.

There was no room.

One of the hospital staff, being familiar with the Camillian Centre, took it upon herself to call Father Giovanni. Father G, taking one of his experienced female staff with him, drove to Chonburi and made the arrangements to take Sonia into his care.

By this time Sonia had recovered from her injuries caused by the accident, but when she arrived at her new home her physical condition was poor, to say the least.

This was a direct result of advancing HIV.

In addition to her general state of health, the condition of her skin was ‘terrible’ according to Father G, particularly around her neck, ears and scalp.
As he told me, they had no choice but to shave all her hair off so as to administer the necessary treatment.

She was one very sick little girl.

Following various blood tests, it was concluded that the severity of Sonia’s condition warranted the immediate start of anti-retroviral treatment.
Within a couple of months she had recovered remarkably. She was soon to be seen running around the garden playing with the other kids, just as she does today.

To look at her now, you would have no idea as to how sick she has been, or how sick she will most probably one day become. I amongst many hope that that day is a long way off or never arrives.

It hardly bears thinking about as to what would have happened to Sonia without the Camillian Centre.

When this photo was taken I was talking to Sonia and she went all shy, obviously feeling the need to hang on to Brother Tow for security. Do not be concerned about the white smudges on her face, Sonia had just been for a shower and she does so like to play with the talcum powder! It is little kids like Sonia that the Bahtbus Jaidee Appeal is all about.


A picture of innocence...

There are many more ‘little Sonia’s’ at the Camillian Centre who need our help; sad to say there will also be further adults who have nobody else to turn to too.

Donating to the Jaidee Appeal is not a contest and let me stress that NO donation is too small as every satang really does make a difference.

If you can spare a couple of hundred baht, that would be great; if you can spare a little more, that would be superb.

To make a donation directly to Father G using your credit card, please click on: DONATE NOW!

People often ask me why I try to help Father G in his ongoing mission and all I can tell them are two reasons: it is my way of giving something back and, to be painfully honest, it feels good…

Good to see the widely read STICKMAN giving the Camillian Centre and specifically the 2005 JAIDEE APPEAL a plug in his latest column.

See Stickman Weekly 23/10/2005

Just had an idea that might help raise money for the Camillian Centre.

I guess that like me, most of us have mobile phones on contract. The deal with my provider is a new phone every 2 years but I always manage to screw one out of them each year - if they say no, I just say ok, I'll go elswhere and they usually give in. So each year I have a reaonably modern mobile going spare.

Could we collect these in the UK and take them over to Thailand periodically to sell and give the proceeds to the Camillian centre? I'm sure we could persuade the airlines to accept the extra weight without charge.

If people think this will work, I'm willing to handle the collection and delivery and sort out somewhere over there to do the unlocking etc. If possible, I think we'd need to have reasonably modern phones with cameras etc. - talking to the guys at the shops in MBK, that's what they all want.

What do others think?

Hey,

A relative has just given me 2 phones - that's a start!

Could you not try and sell them here on the forum and donate the proceeds to the camillian centre?

I for one would be interested.

Regards
Lee

Could do Lee, but wherever they are sold - the first thing I need is people willing to donate.

I was thinking of Thailand as the place to sell them because sometimes models that are now 'old hat' here have just come onto the market there.

I just saw this Flip a good idea amongst many. I will be out before long and will take a good look at the Camillian Centre. I am hoping that there might be a be a specific project that Thailand-uk could sort of adopt within the Centre , sort of one pre used mobile = one window on the Thailand-uk classroom sort of thing.

Richard

Ok Richard,

Despite an apparent lack of interest here, I still intend to press ahead with this sometime within the next few weeks (having a busy spell). I'll look for some other places to try to locate phones.

No lack of interest from me Flip however I don't yet have a mobile to donate. Much easier if every member donated £1 to this worthy cause, soon have a couple of thousand pounds that way.

Conrad

Yes Conrad,

But Lee has already collected a substantial amount of cash. I was thinking of something that could be an ongoing provider of funds. I now have 3 mobiles to take across in January - one quite modern Nokia with a camera, so that's a start. anyway, thanks for taking the time to reply.

quote:

Originally posted by Flip:
Despite an apparent lack of interest here.....

Not a lack of interest, Flip. I suspect that for most of us it's the lack of an old phone! The three of us upgraded our phones a couple of months ago and gave the old ones to our local Oxfam shop. Sorry.

Maybe Nick,

So member's could contact me when their contract is up. As I say, I'm looking at an ongoing thing as I'm sure that The Camillian Centre will always need funds.

quote:

Originally posted by Flip:
Could we collect these in the UK and take them over to Thailand periodically to sell and give the proceeds to the Camillian centre? I'm sure we could persuade the airlines to accept the extra weight without charge.

Sorry to dampen your enthusiasm but I am pretty sure that you are not allowed to officially (officially) sell foreign mobiles within Thailand unless they have been approved by the Communication Authority of Thailand. From what I can remember they test it and then stamp it in the battery compartment. This was certainly the rule a few years ago.

It is obviously just an excuse for a government body to charge a fee of foreigners but I believe it is still in force. I suggest you look into this as it might be relevant.

SDM

Thanks for the info SDM but I've never been one that worries too much about rules - especially ridiculous ones like that.

quote:

Originally posted by Flip:
Thanks for the info SDM but I've never been one that worries too much about rules - especially ridiculous ones like that.

You miss my point Flip. It's no problem (apart from the legal one off course) to give British bought mobile phones to our attachments in Thailand but it is a completely different matter if you are proposing that they be sold by or for a charity since it might become an issue if they were imported and sold illegally. You may not worry about the rules but I am sure the charity to which you refer will. Also, if Thai Airways (or any other airline) are going to carry them for you they will almost certainly want to make sure that they are being imported legally into Thailand with the relevant licences etc.

I wholly heartedly support and applaud your wish to find new and innovative ways to support this charity but suggest that you check out the situation fully before collecting a mountain of mobile phones that cannot be sold abroad if that is the aim.

SDM

Sorry Flip
There is a fiercly contested family (Thai) waiting list for our old phones. I am lucky if I get the time to transfer the directories before they are snaffled.
Best of luck with your initiative and if I can help (say act as courier) let me know!

SDM,

I have no intention of giving the phones to the charity to sell - I intend to find an outlet in Thailand or sell them here, either way I don't mind. If any Thai authorities want the bad press that would come from any red tape standing in the way of a worthwhile charitable cause - bring them on.

Sincerely, I thank you for the information but I'm not going to go looking for obstacles - I'll let them find me, although I doubt they will.

quote:

Originally posted by Lucky:
if I can help (say act as courier) let me know!

“Are you carrying anything for anyone else?” - Is this a familiar question? A “Yes” will raise many more and a lie is not a good idea in the current climate. (Not that I am suggesting a lie would be given)

quote:

Originally posted by Flip:
If any Thai authorities want the bad press that would come from any red tape standing in the way of a worthwhile charitable cause - bring them on.

It’s not so much the Thai authorities, who I am sure will not really care about the bad press anyway, it is more the charity that could be receiving funds from potentially illegal sales.

I suggest you do two things. Firstly run your idea past the charity or sell them in the home market on E-Bay or some method. There is always demand for unlocked (at a fee) mobile phones.

Good luck and be careful. It is all very well to say “bring them on” whilst sitting at your PC in your comfortable chair at home, but I wonder if you would be quite so bold after a long flight, looking at a Thai customs official over an open suitcase with a number of mobile phones & charges inside that you are attempting to bring into the country without permits.

SDM

The total pledged to date for the 2005 JAIDEE APPEAL JW DRUNKATHOLON:IN MEMORY OF AOM continues to rise!
If you would like tp pledge any amount you feel able and willing to spare, please let us know!

PLEDGES TO 31st of October 2005:

SUMMARY:

110,460



61,000



16,000



187,460


DETAIL:

10 July 2005 AXE WOUND 10,000

13 July 2005 JOHNNIE WALKER 10,000

14 July 2005 FOSSIL 10,000

21 July 2005 SWEENEY TODD 10,000

1 Aug 2005 AIRPORTWO 10,000

18 Sept 2005 WAIRU VALLEY TAVERN 23,460

18 Sept 2005 NOEL THOMAS 10,000

23 Sept 2005 RICHARDB 10,000

23 Sept 2005 AUNTY 10,000

24 Sept 2005 CHOPPER 5,000

24 Sept 2005 SUSIE WALKER 2,000

31 Oct THAILAND-UK.COM 61,000

6 Oct 2005 KEN (THAIVISA.COM) 8,000

7 Oct 2005 MPDKORAT (THAIVISA.COM) 4,000

12 Oct 2005 THE SCOUSER (THAIVISA.COM) 4,000


TOTAL TO DATE [‘plus change’ courtesy of Mrs. Wound] 187,460

SDM,

Believe me, the Thai authorities are very concened about bad press, especially when it comes to HIV/AIDS, why do you think they go to such lengths to massage the HIV figures? I doubt I'd be taking suitcases full of phones over there - especially judging from the response so far.

I do understand your concerns and I have taken them on board - if and when it seems necessary to do things officially, I will use the correct channels. At the moment I have 3 mobiles - I'm not going to go seeking any permissions or go through any formalities for such small quantities. I usually have 3 mobiles with me when I go over to Thailand in any case and its never been a problem.

I don't think Lucky would have any problems in carrying out his kind offer either. I think I stated earlier that if the quantities became large - I would try to blag free carriage from a freight company.

In some ways it would be easier to do as Lee suggested and sell the phones here but I was thinking of re-furbing them with new cover, battery etc. In the UK the cost of this would be prohibitive but these items can be purchased very cheaply in Thailand.

As I've said, I understand your concerns but I'm not going to let formailities worry me at this stage - behind my PC or face to face with a Thai customs official (and yes, I'd be just as bold,if not more so).

Can we please get back to raising money now?