The Giving Bureau

Mae Hong Son, Thailand

In the districts of Mae Sariang, Sop Moei and Mae Lanoi in Mae Hong Son Province, there are 178 schools for 25,000 students with 1000 personnel. Most of those schools are for hill tribe children and are scattered over the mountains. Many of the mountain villages are more than a day’s walk from the schools. For that reason, many of the children need to board at the schools and only go home on school holidays.

Samsara’s objective is to give those schoolchildren a safe and dry place to sleep and eat, hygienic toilets and clean water to drink so that their school life will be easier and happier. Samsara raises funds for those facilities and realises them in close cooperation with the directors and teachers of the schools and the parent and village committees. As a result, volunteers from the villages build the facilities.

Samsara monitors the construction projects. At the end of the dry season, just before the Thai school year finishes in mid-March, opening ceremonies take place at all schools where projects were completed. These events are celebrated with a lunch for the volunteers. It is great fun to see all the happy faces of the students, teachers, volunteers and others from the community. They are always very happy and proud to have a brand new facility and to know that they contributed towards making it happen. It is good to realise what the donations from countries such as Holland, Canada, the United States and Thailand can achieve. A small amount of money goes a long towards improving the conditions at these schools.

Samsara’s philosophy is that only through education can the vicious cycle of poverty be stopped. We concentrate our work in only 3 districts so we see the difference we make for these hill tribe children.

Samsara also offers a scholarship programme for children who have finished grade 9 with good grades, to go to schools in Mae Sariang valley to continue their studies at grades 10/11/12; or at the Vocational School.

More information is available at their website at: www.samsara-foundation.com