OVER 5 YEARS ON AND EVEN NOW THERE IS STILL LOTS THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE A lot was achieved in the weeks and months that followed the Thai Tsunami but even now there is plenty we can do for the children who were so badly effected; they need ongoing help and encouragement. We provide this ongoing assistance through a Charity set up in the name of 'Lauren's Gift' In 2010 we are looking to increase our fund raising efforts and share cash raised between Thailand and Haiti |
Would you like to help our fund raising efforts and Children in need of our assistance? See the 'Lauren's Gift' pages for ideas on how you might help. |
Please browse through the pages within this site to see a little of what a Tsunami can mean to your regular Thai village folk. Please remember that much of our story was written at the end of February 2005 after returning back to the UK from South Thailand but has been updated since because the work will not end for a long time to come. Prior to December 26th 2004, few would have know what a Tsunami was, let alone how one could change their lives for ever............. |
Should you have any suggestions to enable us to do more effective work or have experiences of your own which would be useful to others to share, do please let us know by writing to the email address below or leave us a message in the guest book. Equally, should you have ideas for projects or have money to spend in the Baan Nam Khem area we would be pleased to advise you or assist in making sure it was well utilised. |
Waree, Alesha & Peter Warsop Northampton UK Email; pwarsop@gmail.com Email; wwarsop@gmail.com |
During the course of these efforts to help Tsunami victims over US$ 100,000 has been raised and spent directly on goods that were given first hand to those in need. No administrative costs or expenses have ever been deducted and so 100% of all donations have been spent directly on the support being organised in Thailand. Many friends and family helped to whom we are extremely grateful. Special thanks must go to Panini S.p.A the International publisher based in Modena, Italy. Without the enormous financial support provided by Panini only a fraction of the aid that was given could have been provided. Over the last three years cash has been raised through Lauren's Gift, a new UK based charity, as can be seen by going to the pages marked 'Lauren's Gift' |
"The waves were totally indiscriminate in that they took whoever or whatever was in its path that dreadful day; 5 star resorts, fishing villages, holiday homes and small businesses, local people, visitors from all over the world as well as a prince of the realm - all gone." |
Within a day or so of arriving in the South of Thailand just after the Tsunami had struck Waree and I thought we had made a mistake in expecting that we could find ways in which we could be useful. We actually advised our hotel on three separate occasions that we would be checking out the following morning, only to change our minds in the hope that we could think of something - there was so much devastation and suffering, there had to be something we could find that would help. With each visit to the camps we understood more about the needs of the residents and soon learnt that despite the willingness to help by many organisations there was a resistance to commit finances within the short term. This was not only depriving thousands of families of the things that they really did need but it was also proving to be dissipating confidence and morale for many of them. Thankfully for some it also did the opposite and motivated them to do even more for themselves and their friends. Surprisingly the type of aid we managed to get distributed during this particular exercise was not being attended to by many others in any volume and, although it was a pin prick in terms of the overall problem, it brightened the lives of thousands and gave them encouragement to continue. The message is; don’t be put off by the ‘experts’ who advise that everyone should wait for the master plan to be unveiled so that all efforts can be geared and coordinated to reach the eventual goal. Inevitably there is room for short term and medium term actions – they may be slightly less well targeted but they do make a positive difference and help prepare the displaced people to be ready and to be able to take advantage of the 'master plan' once it is ready and delivered. |
Some people will say that the Tsunami was over 5 years ago and so why is there a need to continue work; it may be difficult to understand but read on ... |
Site under redevelopment. Our thoughts & Prayers to those in Haiti |
Peter |
Alesha |
Peter |
Waree |