Warm Heart at Work

Hey Everyone, Josh here, today I will be finishing up my first full week of teaching. I began teaching English to the children at the Children’s Home, and others from the villages of Huay Sai and Baan Dong, two Fridays ago. The class size is a little over twenty and most of the students are between the ages of 10-15.

I came to Warm Heart to develop a solar water heater made from recyclable materials. When I found out I also had the opportunity to teach English, something I have never done before, I couldn’t wait to take on the challenge.

So far the class has a lot of energy, and things have been going really well. I look forward to teaching later today, what is already going to be my fifth class.

มาเรียนภาษาอังกฤษ กันเถอะ นี่เป็นคำเชิญชวนของน้องๆจากบ้านพักเด็กของมูลนิธิอุ่นใจ ที่ชวนเพื่อนๆจากโรงเรียนบ้านแม่ปั๋งมาเรียนภาษาอังกฤษกับครูJOSH หลังเลิกเรียนตั้งแต่เวลา สี่โมงสีสิบห้าถึงห้าโมงสี่สิบห้า ทุกวันจันทร์ พุธ ศุกร์ และเรียนกิจกรรมพิเศษทุกวันเสาร์ ไม่ว่าจะเรียนเกษตรกับพี่ปลิว เรียนภูมิปัญญาการทอผ้าแบบกะเหรี่ยงกับพี่ศรีพรรณ เรียนงานช่างกับพี่เพิก เรียนคุณธรรมและจริยธรรมกับครูตี๋ รวมไปถึงกิจกรรมต่างๆ ไม่ว่าฟ้อนรำ กีฬา การปฐมพยาบาลเบื้องต้น
จากกิจกรรมดังกล่าวตอนนี้แหล่งเรียนรู้มูลนิธิอุ่นใจ มีเด็กสนใจร่วมกิจกรรมนี้ กว่าสามสิบคน นับเป็นจุดเริ่มต้นที่น่ายินดีสำหรับการพัฒนาที่ให้เด็กรอบชุมชนมีความสนใจด้านการศึกษา และพัฒนาตนเอง

Warm Heart is bursting with new life. Six new interns have added almost more energy than we can stand and have reinvigorated everyone. They are very task oriented and we are already seeing results. I have set impossible goals for the summer – and have every intention of seeing them accomplished!

Aisha and John are working with HIV+ mothers and their HIV+ kids to develop a support program. What they have learned through interviews so far is that Phrao has some 15 HIV+ kids 12 and under (kids born before access to anti-retrovirals all died). The kids are shunned in the their villages and at school. Their mothers receive medical advice when they or their kids are sick, but no help to be better mothers, to deal with their kids’ questions or their own social isolation. We hope that together with a group of mothers and older children Aisha and John can develop a program that Warm Heart will be able to operate for the – unfortunately – growing population of HIV+ parents and children.

Aisha Scherr-Williams is a 2009 grad from University of Puget Sound and will be attending USC Medical School in the fall; John Arnold is UVA grad who is completing a Masters in Pacific International Affairs at the UCSD School of International and Pacific Studies.

Josh is laboring alone in back of the office to build a prototype solar hot water heater. Hot water is an unknown luxury here – but much appreciated by everyone who has ever tried it! (You need only take an ice cold bucket bath in December when the temperature is 40◦ to appreciate why.) But available heaters are electric, expensive, expensive to operate, and environmentally unfriendly (a large portion of Thailand’s electricity is produced with coal). Josh’s challenge is to harness the sun using recycled materials – old 55 gallon drums and insulation made from flattened Styrofoam food containers (themselves a ubiquitous, non-biodegradable environmental disaster here). If he succeeds soon enough, his next project is to make the Warm Heart Children’s Homes an industrial strength solar rice and soup boiler using an abandoned TV dish.

Josh /Wiener completed the Global PACT Thailand training at Rajabhat University in Chiang Mai in June and will return to Rutgers University in the fall where he is a double major in Political Science and Environmental Policy planning to graduate in 2011.

David, Sylvia and Zack have joined the Microenterprise and Microfinance Project. David and Zack have already assembled a library of microfinance training manuals and teaching materials. We will begin putting together the Warm Heart program next week. (Our clients are way behind the assumed clients of the normal training programs. We will have to back into things a bit more slowly starting with the basics of a family budget and building from there.) Meanwhile Sylvia is designing a microfinance market survey that she and Mae Joom will take into the rice paddies and lamyai orchards next week.

David Rose is a researcher on loan from Prof. Somboon, a senior leader of the Karen people in Thailand. David, an ex-lawyer now engaged full-time in NGO work, is working with Warm Heart in preparation for his work with the Karen. Sylvia and Zack Wagner-Rubin are both MPIA candidates at UCSD IR/PS.

This motto keeps the Warm Heart staff whistling while they work and working while they whistle. The “geejagams,” or activities from this past weekend are a case in that very point.

At 7am on Sunday, the entire Warm Heart staff, donning their pink Warm Heart polo shirts, met the Chiang Mai Lion’s Club at Phrao’s “Tessabon” (community center?) to assist in the distribution of their donations. Warm Heart coordinated their visit and welcomed them with open arms into our community. The Lion’s Club came with enough blankets and care packages for 600 Phrao community members, 300 of which we children. They also made a donation of medical supplies for the three Children’s homes in the Phrao district and had medical personnel on site to provide free check-ups for those present.

In the afternoon, the Warm Heart staff headed to the Phrao Agricultural Center for their very first staff activities day—a day of relay races and games, such as Chair Ball, Capture the Flag, Eggplant Ping Pong, and an 8-Legged Race. Divided into two teams, red and blue, the entire staff enjoyed a day of playful competition and physical activity. In the end, both teams came out on top, and smiling. The night ended with karaoke, bonfires, stargazing, and “camping” in cabins and tents. The following day, Matipan “P’Plew” Wisingtorn and Trireuhat “P’John” Wongsatan led a group on a nature hike on the surrounding mountains trails.

After a location change to a newly constructed lakeside resort in Phrao, the entire staff enjoyed a leisurely afternoon of boating and swimming in the sunshine. In the evening, karaoke recommenced, and the festivities continued. Warm Heart celebrated five successful months of official operation and gave thanks and bid farewell to the four Northeastern Co-op students who are soon to be heading back to snowy Boston. Alicia Genna, David Goldberger, Emily Turner, and Bridget Twohig have been with Warm Heart from its very beginning days. That night all the staff together celebrated the family and love that has grown within Warm Heart’s walls. They all smiled and laughed into the night, under a sky that was smiling right back at them.

Best wishes to our four Northeastern students. We hope you come home again soon!

Warm Heart is continuing to identify issues and inspire solutions within the Phrao community. As the winter season rolls around, the Warm Heart research team has identified 300 adults and 300 children within the Phrao district who are in need of basic living supplies and medical supplies. To help alleviate these demands, Warm Heart has sought the assistance of the Chiang Mai chapter of the Lion’s Club International. The Lion’s Club is an international club that works to raise funds for specific causes related to community development, education, and public health. The Chiang Mai chapter has gathered enough funds to supply these 600 Phrao community members with warm clothing, toothbrushes and toothpaste, sporting equipment for the schools, and blankets. The Lion’s Club members will stay in Phrao this weekend to make the donations and on Sunday will hold a free healthcare clinic for the people of Phrao.

Warm Heart hopes this partnership with the Lion’s Club International will provide warmth and good health to the poorest third of Phrao’s population this winter season. Our most sincere gratitude the Lion’s Club International members for all of their efforts.

Although there has not been much news on the blog about the progress of the Warm Heart Children’s Home – this project has not been abandoned. Behind the scenes, the staff continues working hard on planning and conducting community research in preparation for the Warm Heart Children’s Home.

With his artistic abilities and agricultural expertise, Warm Heart staff member Matipan “P’Plew” Wisingtorn has been drawing blueprints for the Children’s home and the surrounding land. These plans include two Children’s Homes that can accommodate 10 to 14 children each and are intricately designed in traditional Lanna (northern Thai) style. The surrounding land will contain a farming zone where crops will be grown and livestock raised to feed the occupants of these homes. A large open field has been designated as a multipurpose area for the children to enjoy tree houses and swing sets. Tanomsri “P’Aoy” Sukkahan has been working on the budgets for this project, calculating both construction costs and the day-to-day living costs for the children to ensure all funding will be covered. Right now, no children have been selected for the children’s home, however initial community research has indicated that there are many underprivileged children throughout the Phrao district in need of a more secure living situation. A few children living in Khun Pung Village in Sub-district Mae Pung fall into this category. This coming Sunday, Warm Heart will meet with the Village Head of Khun Pung Village to see if the Warm Heart Children’s Home would be a good fit.

Everyone is working hard to ensure the Warm Heart Children’s House will be a happy home.

Today, the Warm Heart staff participated in a flag offering ceremony, as part of the “116-Day Unity Campaign,” which celebrates the 116 days between Her Majesty the Queen’s birthday on August 12 and His Majesty the King’s birthday on December 5. Side by side, the AuBauTau Maewan and Warm Heart staff ran and power-walked across the Phrao district, waving Thai flags high in the air. In the imitation relay race, a total of forty Thai flags were passed to Warm Heart and AuBauTau Maewan staff members from the Police Department of Phrao who jogged 5 km from the center of town in Phrao. The AuBauTau Maewan/Warm Heart parade was led by Intorn Chainurak, Chief Executive of the Sub-District Maewan, who proudly displayed a flag with the royal emblems of Their Majesties the King and Queen.

This parade was held in districts across Thailand to show loyalty for His Majesty the King and Her Majesty the Queen and to promote national unity across Thailand. Warm Heart Thailand was proud to be a part of it!

Micro Enterprise has gathered another shipment of products that is now en route to the US and scheduled to arrive in time for Black Friday, one of the biggest shopping days of the year and the official start of the holiday shopping season. The featured products are HANDCRAFTED evidence of the local artistry in Phrao.

Warm Heart’s Micro Enterprise team recognizes the rare beauty of the products of Phrao as well as the creativity of their makers, and looks forward to to sharing these items with an international market in time for the holidays. Most importantly, the Micro Enterprise team looks forward to the support these sales will provide to the Phrao community.

Some of the most popular items from the Back-to-School shipment are to be featured in the Holiday sale.  A colorful array of scarves from the Weavers of Wat Toong Luang are guaranteed to keep its wearers warm and fashionable this winter season and Saa paper products from Baan Mayaoon Saa Paper Factory include stationary sets, boxes, and notebooks.

In addition, the artisans have created some new products for the holiday sale, including Saa paper lanterns in various shapes, and colorful mobiles all from Baan Mayaoon Saa Paper Factory. Warm Heart is also testing out the children’s market at high-end boutiques with a few sample sets of wooden toys and puzzle games from various stores located in the furniture district of Chiang Mai.

This holiday season, make a conscious decision while spreading the holiday cheer by gifting with Warm Heart’s products from university sales at Northeastern, Rutgers, and UCSD. A beautiful gift that supports artisans and small business development on the other side of the world will bring us all together in celebration.

At the Warm Heart Office, preparation for Loy Kratong was taken very seriously and began three weeks ago with the design of the float and costumes. The next weeks were a fury of hard work and enthusiasm, as the entire staff worked to create the final float masterpiece in the intricate design of Chatree “Kru Tie” Saokaew’s father. The final details of the float were added right up made right up until the last minute but in the end it all came together very nicely. The float was made of craved styrofoam with various colorful flowers, banana leafs, and beading to accent. The dragon painted in glow-in-the-dark neon orange and yellow looked fierce. Warm Heart’s own talented costume designer, choreographer, and hair and make-up artist, Khem “P’Da” Narim’s made up the entire Warm Heart staff to look the part in traditional Thai dress.

As the sunset, lanterns were sent to the sky and krathongs floated down the river, the Warm Heart parade began led by Carole “Kru Duan” Ketnourath and Bridget Twohig carrying the Warm Heart banner. Next came the AuBauTau Maewan and Warm Heart administrative staff, including Intorn Chainurak, Chief Executive of the Sub-District Maewan and Chatree “Kru Tie” Saokaew, President & Executive Director of Warm Heart Foundation. The rest of the AuBauTau and Warm Heart staff followed closely behind holding candles or umbrellas. In addition, Khem “P’Da” Narim and Aoytip “Nong Aoy” Potima performed “Fon Pang,” a Thai Lantern dance set to traditional Thai music. The grand finale of the parade was Anchamai “P’Ann” Sodsai sitting atop the glowing float, smiling and waving to the people below.

The crowd was dazzled by the parade of Warm Heart and AuBauTau Maewan staff dressed in traditional Thai dress and traditional Thai dance, as well as a spectacular float. The Warm Heart float placed 4th and seemed to be a highlight of the parade. Way to go everyone!

Loy Kratong is a Thai holiday celebrated on the night of the full moon in the 12th lunar month across Thailand. The Thai tradition pays respect to the river goddess Khongkha and apologizes for the use of her water. During the festival, a “Kratong,” a small boat made out of banana leaves decorated with flowers and candles, is sent down the rivers, hoping to wash away ill fortune. In the accompanying parade, celebrators march floats through the streets and release paper lanterns into the sky. The spectacle is magnificent.

Here in Phrao, Loy Kratong is celebrated with all of the above activities and strong enthusiasm. Each village, government office, and local business makes and parades their own float which is then judged in a float contest. Winning is an honor and the floats are truly a product of deep consideration and hard work.

As a community organization, Warm Heart participating in this joyous event with a float that showcases the artistic abilities and teamwork of the entire staff. The intricate design by Chatree “Kru Tie” Saokaew’s father, tops the float with a fierce looking dragon, hand-folded banana leaf flowers, and a Buddha image. Dressed in traditional Lanna-style dresses, Carole “Kru Duan” Ketnourath and Bridget Twohig will honor the past traditions as they hold the Warm Heart “Building a better future” sign in front of the float. In the center, atop the float, Anchamai “P’Ann” Sodsai will pose beautifully between the dragon wings, as the rest of the Warm Heart staff dances in traditional Lanna style with candles and paper flowers behind the float.

“This is a big day for all of us in the community! I am excited to wear the beautiful traditional Lanna dress and learn the dance,” says Alicia Genna, “We’ve been folding banana leaves into dragon scales for days, but I’ve seen small pieces coming slowly coming together. I can imagine the final product is going to be spectacular!”

Warm Heart is confident our final float will catch the eyes and capture the hearts of both spectators and the judges.