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“Life is not measured by the number of breaths you take, but by the number of moments that take your breath away”  [Maya Angelou]

Living and volunteering at the Home and Life  was a  breathtaking experience.

Home and Life is a Thai orphanage, set up as a response to the devastating Boxing Day tsunami of 2004.  Although many children did lose their parents in the tsunami, there are others who did not, but whose parents are unable to care for them because of unemployment and family breakdowns.

Helping to clean the local temple

The 26 children (ranging from 6 years old to 18) live together with their Mum and Dad (Rosa and Root) and big brothers (Boy and Bay) as a family – with the children, staff and volunteers all learning together, sharing their experiences and taking care of one another.  It is an incredible place that totally lives up to it’s motto:

“A family place of love and learning.”

Home and Life Family

The children are welcoming, generous, energetic and so courageous, despite what they have been through, and now, thanks to the love of the staff, they are able to grow up in a safe and nuturing environment.

My husband, Jared, and I volunteered for a week, but despite it being such a short time,  managed to fall completely in love with Home and Life!  Highlights included:

• Helping the children with their English work.
• Going to school for an afternoon.
• Helping in their organic garden.
• Cooking Thai food – “a roy mak – delicious!”
• Serving dinner to the family.
• Learning how to bake their famous fresh bread, cookies and banana bread.
• Swimming at a nearby beach with the children – paradise!

The children have a wonderful life.  They learn life skills at the orphanage and are educated at a local school.  They are also taught English and Thai Dancing, among other things.

String games

Playing golf.

 

Home and Life currently have a couple of projects on the go.  They are building a big new bakery, with the plan to expand what they are able to cook and sell.  It will also be an ideal place for the older children to work, if they wish, once they leave school.  They have also started to build a bigger mushroom hut as part of their garden.

Home and Life is a charitable organisation.  They support themselves through selling coffee and baking; growing vegetables; and making crafts to sell.  However they still rely heavily on outside support.    Can you help?

• Do you have spare clothes, books or toys that you no longer need?  
• Perhaps you could spare a few dollars?
• You could even spread the word by sharing this blog 

You can donate directly to them via their website - www.homelifethailand.com.

Or if you would prefer, we will happily pass any donations along to them –  email us at info@optimumlearning.co.nz.

Anything they receive they are incredibly grateful for - and you know that every dollar goes directly to the orphanage.

More stories on our Home and Life adventures to come….

Sisters

Brothers

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