Character and Leadership Training for Thai Youths

Site Visitation by GlobalGiving Team

The Foundation for Life is privileged to be included in the Global Giving platform, and as much as they need to ensure that we properly use the hard-earned money by sacrificial donors, we too needed to be assured that they also properly channel the funds as donors had intended.

Regular visitations by their teams of volunteers and staffs, had helped to build and strengthen the relationship between our organisations. On this ocassion, we have 2 people sent by the GlobalGIving office, on this year's site visitation.

Today, we will visit with a young leader, Nurs,who is 15 years old. She lives in the Klong Toey Slum Community. Nurs' family background is rather sad and particulary challenging for a young girl. Born as the second child of the family, amongst an elder sister,  and 2 younger siblings (one brother and a sister), her parents basically did not spend much time nurturing her, as they are both drug addicts, with regular terms in prison for their drug habits.

Living in the slums, along the "main lane" where drugs are bought and sold almost openly, she knows exactly how these drugs are taken and the apparatus that are used, as she often sees her parents doing drugs at home. 

At an age when she started schooling, her parents became involved in the BCM centre, where some life skills training was offered. Her dad then became the handy-man and her mom a client-staff of the centre. Meanwhile, the children program was also carried out by our Foundation's volunteer, to help build Character and Leadership in children and youths. As Nurs got involved with our program, she gradually became more confident, with better self-esteem. From a little girl, who was attention seeking, she slowly blossomed into a leader whom others can rely on, after going through numerous leadership camps and experiential training. Naturally, she experienced much ups and downs as with any other kid, and more so with parents who were struggling with their addictive habits.

SO, when Cedric and Luanna from GlobalGiving met with Nurs, she has certainly grown up to be a beautiful person on the inside. Together with her little sister, they brought the team through the labyrinth of little streets in the slums to what would be called their home. 

Both parents were recently released from prison, and had found part-time jobs, and so were not at home. Nurs, opened the door to their musky, poorly ventilated and unkempt abode, that was slowly sinking because the foundations of the house was built on soft ground, next to a filthy pond.

It is heart-breaking to see the conditions that some people live in, and yet heartening that the human spirit can lift itself out of the miry dumps, with proper help, mentoring and coaching. As testified by Nurs, who said, "I am grateful for the opportunity to develop myself as a young leader. Because of the work of the Foundation of  Life, I have learnt what it means to be a good leader."

Our Foundation sincerely thanks all donors for reaching out to us and supporting our work, which is to change the lives of Children and Youths, giving them a Hope and a Future!

Any feedback and comments to improve our services, is also greatly appreciated.

How Foundation for Life has impacted Teh

Teh comes from a family where his dad worked as a gardener and handy-man for a local Thai family. His dad's meagre salary would have to support his wife and his 2 kids, Teh and his younger sister Fon.

At around 10 years of age, Teh began joining the Saturday children's activity program that the Foundation had partnered with another institution. Through his years there, he began to show some leadership potential, and thus was given the opportunity to develope himself in various leadership trainings and camps.

As he grew up, he began to help in the Foundation's office , during his free time, to earn some pocket money. Through the training that he had received, he learnt about the SMART (Stewardship of Money And Responsibility towards Treasures) Scheme, and  began to develope the habit of saving instead of going for instant gratification.

At 15 years, his dad was discovered to have cancer, which very rapidly caused his health to deteriorate very rapidly. Within a few months of that discovery, his father passed away.

It was good that his dad had taught Teh the importance of hard work and delayed gratification when it comes to money matters and that through what he had learnt from the SMART Scheme, Teh managed to save some money, which he continued to do so as he grew up.

Below is a link to a video of his story.

The Foundation is grateful to all donors who helped to make a difference in the lives of children and youths, that they will carry with them throughout their lives.

Thank you!

Links:

• Teh's Testimony on how SMART Scheme by Foundation has helped him