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Rivalry fierce during annual Sports Day at Vocational School

“Caring for Kids living with HIV and disabilities”

Standard Chartered Bank spends time at Father Ray Foundation

Diana Group celebrates the start of Buddhist lent by making merit at temples and schools


Rivalry fierce during annual Sports Day at Vocational School

The four teams make an oath to play fair.

The yellow team were the loudest supporters.

Derek Franklin

The annual two day sports competition at the Redemptorist Vocational School for People with Disabilities recently took place, and as usual the rivalry was fierce. Following an opening ceremony which was officiated by Pattaya Deputy Mayor Verawat Khakhay, the four teams of competing students showed their skills and talents in a variety of sports, including fencing, wheelchair basketball, athletics, field events, petanque, tak-raw, soccer, two volleyball competitions (standing and sitting), swimming and wheelchair tennis.

All students were split into four teams, yellow, red, blue and green, and all students are expected to participate in at least one of the many sports where there was a competition. For many new students it was the first time they had competed in a sporting event, but the school encourages sport as a way of building confidence and to give a sense of achievement.

Unlike sports events for people without a disability, students at the school are categorized according to their disability; it would be unfair to have a 100m race with a student who is missing an upper limb run against an athlete who only has one lower limb and who uses prosthesis. Therefore there are several 100m races, including one for athletes with only one leg. Unfortunately one blue team member was unable to locate his leg so he tried to run using a set of crutches, but half way through the race he threw his crutches down and hopped over the finishing line.

During the long distance wheelchair race the athlete from the yellow team was favoured to win the event, and he was well ahead of his rivals, but on the last turn he took the corner too fast and landed on the floor with his wheelchair on top of him. As he struggled to climb back into his chair he watched as several other athletes passed, mostly with smiles on their faces, on their way to the finishing line.

In the pool, a one one-legged swimmer was almost disqualified as he was having difficulty standing still whilst the race starter was counting down to the start. But the competition rules state even with just one leg the swimmers must be able to remain still until the starting gun sounds, thereby not distracting the other racers.

The school has a long tradition of producing great sportsmen. TV repair teacher, Suppachai Koysub, won three Paralympic gold medals in Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004, as well as two silver and a bronze in Beijing 2008 for wheelchair sprinting over 200m.

Many athletes preparing for the London Paralympics 2012 are alumni of the school, and whilst many current students may not compete on the international stage there are many local and national competitions which the students of Pattaya will be invited to attend.

The Redemptorist Vocational School for People with Disabilities is managed by the Father Ray Foundation. For more information www.fr-ray.org or email [email protected]

One student was unable to find his leg so he used crutches to race.

The freestyle swimming relay.

The backstroke race for those students with no use in their lower limbs.

Passing over during the wheelchair race.

Thailand’s national game - Takraw.

Thumbs up for first place.

This young man was the winner of the shot-put competition.

The green team won the takraw competition.

A helping hand during the shot-put competition.

Waiting to take part in the relay race.

Red Team member.

The long distance race was a tough test of endurance.

When one student falls from his wheelchair the race continues.

The red team easily won the sprint race.


“Caring for Kids living with HIV and disabilities”

Lewis Underwood

Today, August 6, marks the day when the Canadian Jackalope Open culminates their fund-raising at Burapa Golf Club for yet another group of special children. For this is the day the Camillian kids living with HIV and disabilities get a boost.

Fey can now stand on her own.

The Jesters Care for Kids Charity Drive’s involvement with the Camillian Social Center began in earnest 3 years ago when the organizers of the Canadian Jackalope Open joined forces with us. The proviso from the latter was that all funds raised from their annual charity golf tournament would go to the kids at the Child Care Center, which is one of the 10 projects under the Camillian umbrella in Rayong.

The strategy behind this arrangement is that the Jackalope and Jesters working together would have a bigger impact on the kids there. Moreover, over the last two years, we have combined to donate 1,428,052 baht to the Camillians.

In 2008, when we asked Father Giovanni where our donation would be best utilized, he suggested we cover the 24/7 care-giving, medicine (ARV’s) and food for two children living with HIV and disabilities. On a monthly basis, this worked out to be 27,525 baht per child.

The two children in focus were a girl, Fey, and a boy, Tewid, and the following are their respective stories.

Tewid with one of his famous goofy grins.

Fey was 4 years old when she came to the Center. She was born HIV-positive and abandoned by her parents after birth in a Nong Kai hospital. She is blind and mentally impaired most likely from the HIV infection.

When she first came to the Center in 2006, she could not stand or crawl and would get upset frequently slapping herself in the head. With the continued administration of ARV, physical therapy and care-giving, her tantrums subsided, and she was able to stand and walk with assistance. By the time we saw her she was 6 years old and her life and demeanor had improved substantially.

Tewid, who is 13 years old, was also born HIV-positive and due to the late administration of ARV’s has become partially paralyzed from the infection. He is thought to be autistic too. Tewid enjoyed listening to music, watching TV and spending time with another autistic girl at the center.

His mother, who is deaf from her own HIV infection, also comes to visit him regularly at the Center.

In late 2008, both of these children were transferred to a new Camillian Center opened in 2008 located in Lat Krabang just before Suwannabumi Airport, which is where disabled children who have their HIV status stabilized are now taking up residence. Here there are professionally trained specialists who better help the kids learn to live with there disabilities.

Faisal Malik, who is the coordinator there, gave us the latest update on these two children last week:

“Tewid and Fey are both doing very well. It has been really amazing to see how these two children have grown and developed over the years. I remember Fey when she first arrived as a baby and Tewid when he was practically comatose for the beginning years. Today when I went to take pictures of Tewid, he started laughing and sat up by himself. He would follow the camera and give his goofy grin. I told him he was handsome in Thai and he started laughing. His mother continues to take fantastic care of him and the other children including Fey.

Fey loves physical interaction. She likes to be held, squeezed, hugged, thrown up into the air and swung around. She goes crazy with laughter and won’t let you go. In the beginning, she used to hit her head and bite herself on a regular basis but now it’s quite rare. She is very active and can walk around everywhere by herself, though you always have to keep a careful eye on her.” 

If you would like to learn more about these kids, please visit their website at www. camillianhomelatkrabang.org. If you would like to help special kids, like Fey and Tewid, you can also visit our website at www.care4kids.info.

After all for these kids, it is all about well-beingness!


Standard Chartered Bank spends time at Father Ray Foundation

Derek Franklin

As part of the Community Social Responsibility initiative at Standard Chartered Bank, two groups of employees travelled from Bangkok to Pattaya to spend their time at the Father Ray Foundation.

Varoon visits the little ones at the School for the Blind.

Arriving at the Father Ray Children’s Home more than one hundred employees, led by Saijai Sae-kung, senior director of customer service & telemarketing, spent the day working with and teaching the children the different ways of how they can help save the environment.

The following week Varoon Kanjanapoo, country head of compliance & assurance, led a convoy of more than thirty cars down the motorway to Pattaya to visit the Redemptorist Pattaya School for the Blind. Upon arrival they provided lunch for the children before organising a variety of fun games and exercises.

Mmmm, delicious.

As well as Community Social Responsibility being an opportunity for employees to work together to strengthen teamwork and bonds amongst themselves it also improves the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society at large.

The Father Ray Children’s Home and the Redemptorist Pattaya School for the Blind are managed by the Father Ray Foundation. For more information on the work of the Foundation www.fr-ray.org or email [email protected]

Saijai poses with the children at the Fr. Ray Children’s Home.


Diana Group celebrates the start of Buddhist lent by making merit at temples and schools

Sopin Teppajug and her staff are in deep thought
as they listen to monks chant from the Holy Scriptures.

Chatchanan Boonnak

The Diana Group celebrated the start of Buddhist Lent by offering candles and supplies to monks at three area temples and dinner to 43 children at a local shelter.

The kids were pretty good twisting the Hoola Hoop.

Diana Group Managing Director Sopin Teppajug led the July 22 candle-presentation ceremony at Huay Yai temple, where lunch and offerings were also provided to nine monks. Ceremonial ‘Khao Pansa’ candles were also presented to the Nongprue and Najomtien temples.

The hotel chain, which is also celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Diana Inn, also donated garments, medicine and other items to monks while confined to their temples during the three-month lent period which started this week.

That evening, Sopin and her employees gathered to plant about 30 jackfruit and mango trees at the Pattaya Welfare Center and provided dinner to 43 of the shelter’s children.

A hearty meal was served to the children.

A commemorative Jackfruit tree was planted in the Pattaya Welfare Center grounds.