Go Happiness helping poor people living a hard life in Bangkok.
Bangkok Slum kid running to receive some true HAPPINESS!
On Thursday 27th April GoHF produced an aid and show giving project at one of Bangkok's little known shantytown slum communities.
Project Date 27/04/17.
Volunteers: Eddie Haworth, Founder/Director at GoHF. And"Big Thanks" to Australian, author and TV personality Mr. Andrew Biggs. Plus all other volunteers > Mr Gale Bailey MBE > Mrs Ailsa Kneath > Mr Nicol Burr > Mr. Terry Sherwood & Daughter Jaci > Mr & Mrs Thoma & Anita Abraham > Mr. Tony Doherty, volunteer cameraman.
Paid staff: Khun Polchanok Buasorn. (Sponsored by planet of the crepes)
Transport sponsored by: Monroe Consulting Group - Clown Eckie Corporation - Mr & Mrs Thoma & Anita Abraham.
Number of beneficiaries: Around 70 children and families in the Rong Wai Community, On Nut, Bangkok, Thailand.
Goods and services given: Clothing - Toys - Educational supplies - Babywear - footballs & sports gear - Cooking pots-n-pans - Medical supplies - Professional family entertainment show & educational performances given by International school teachers and volunteers. Total value of goods and services given; ฿-53,000.00.
Volunteers: Eddie Haworth, Founder/Director at GoHF. And"Big Thanks" to Australian, author and TV personality Mr. Andrew Biggs. Plus all other volunteers > Mr Gale Bailey MBE > Mrs Ailsa Kneath > Mr Nicol Burr > Mr. Terry Sherwood & Daughter Jaci > Mr & Mrs Thoma & Anita Abraham > Mr. Tony Doherty, volunteer cameraman.
Paid staff: Khun Polchanok Buasorn. (Sponsored by planet of the crepes)
Transport sponsored by: Monroe Consulting Group - Clown Eckie Corporation - Mr & Mrs Thoma & Anita Abraham.
Number of beneficiaries: Around 70 children and families in the Rong Wai Community, On Nut, Bangkok, Thailand.
Goods and services given: Clothing - Toys - Educational supplies - Babywear - footballs & sports gear - Cooking pots-n-pans - Medical supplies - Professional family entertainment show & educational performances given by International school teachers and volunteers. Total value of goods and services given; ฿-53,000.00.
| We were delighted to provide the whole community known as Rong Wai with a fantastic fun filled afternoon of shows and celebrity entertainment, plus a great truck full of essential goodies for everyone. This aid and show giving project was supported by the respected District Officer, Khn Kin and his management team at Bangkok's Suan Luang Government District Office. Who collaborated with the community leader and a wonderful lady, Khun Pratoom, who like Mother Teresa of Calcutta, cares for the poor families in this well hidden urban slum community. The project was attended by eight Gift of Happiness Foundation volunteers and a very well known celebrity TV personality, Mr Andrew Biggs. |  |
The families living here struggle to survive on whatever they can find to recycle or by working for very low casual pay, so they really need and appreciate all that we can give them.
Gift of Happiness Foundation is now committed to supporting this very poor community for as long as they remain in need of the kind of practical "Hands-on" support we gave during this first of what will become our regular aid giving project visits. Please follow the links to donate used or new goods and help us fulfil our commitments to serve poor people like these throughout 2017 and beyond.
(Send some goods or money NOW!)
Gift of Happiness Foundation is now committed to supporting this very poor community for as long as they remain in need of the kind of practical "Hands-on" support we gave during this first of what will become our regular aid giving project visits. Please follow the links to donate used or new goods and help us fulfil our commitments to serve poor people like these throughout 2017 and beyond.
(Send some goods or money NOW!)
Driver made a silly mistake here! Aid & Show Giving Project Report by Eddie Haworth, Founder/Director at Gift of Happiness Foundation.
Eddie says...
26/04/17; My day started early because the original plan to sort-out all the goods and show equipment in advance was thwarted the day before when a Bangkok driver decided to purposely crash into my truck in the mistaken belief that he could make a claim on my insurance to get his already damaged car fixed-up. That little attempt to make a fraudulent claim was soon quashed when the insurance assessor arrived on the scene to declare that I was clearly 100% NOT to blame and after a couple of hours roadside wrangling with the police and insurance guy...I was able to go on my merry way with only minor damage to the truck and no damage to my personal integrity, but a lot of valuable lost time.
Eddie says...
26/04/17; My day started early because the original plan to sort-out all the goods and show equipment in advance was thwarted the day before when a Bangkok driver decided to purposely crash into my truck in the mistaken belief that he could make a claim on my insurance to get his already damaged car fixed-up. That little attempt to make a fraudulent claim was soon quashed when the insurance assessor arrived on the scene to declare that I was clearly 100% NOT to blame and after a couple of hours roadside wrangling with the police and insurance guy...I was able to go on my merry way with only minor damage to the truck and no damage to my personal integrity, but a lot of valuable lost time.
Eddie's truck had no air conditioning or opening windows on the hottest day of the year! 27/04/17; I made a very early start which enabled me to sort out most of the show equipment and some goods to be given to the poor before I was visited by a couple of great people who were dropping-off donations of toys, clothing and other useful goods before the main group of volunteers arrived to set-off on a short drive from the Go Happiness Centre to the project location. The fantastic people who gave so much that morning didn't know that I was single handedly getting everything ready for the big day ahead. That was because the staff who should have help load two trucks and sort the last of the goods didn't turn-up due to a simple misunderstanding. "I really need to improve my Thai language skills!"
Still, eventually the small convoy of three vehicles and eight volunteers including me managed to depart from the Go Happiness Centre more or less on time, when suddenly the main fuse went bang on my trusty old truck which meant Tony the cameraman and I had to drive with the car doors slightly open because there was no air-conditioning or electric windows, on what just happened to be the hottest day so far this year in Bangkok "Well over 40c!"
"Phew wot a scorcher"!
Still, eventually the small convoy of three vehicles and eight volunteers including me managed to depart from the Go Happiness Centre more or less on time, when suddenly the main fuse went bang on my trusty old truck which meant Tony the cameraman and I had to drive with the car doors slightly open because there was no air-conditioning or electric windows, on what just happened to be the hottest day so far this year in Bangkok "Well over 40c!"
"Phew wot a scorcher"!
Upon our rather damp/sweaty arrival at the shantytown, we were greeted by the wonderful leader of the community, Khun Pratoom and a few of her helpers, where she quickly organized a mechanic to come along and fix my very hot truck, while we set-up ready for the arrival of Thailand's well known TV presenter, Andrew Biggs. While we were setting-up the show gear, donations to be given and getting the car fixed, we were treated to a great display of Southeast Asian traditional drumming and dancing given by the orange uniformed teenagers who have clearly spent much of their time rehearsing their entertainment production which was delivered to our team of volunteers in a highly professional manner! "I noted...it's an unusual pleasure to see teenagers giving such a well-honed performance in these days of smartphones and other devices that occupy so much of young people's time".
 | Then our show went-on as planned with our wonderful team of volunteers interacting with the children in an educational sing-along before Andrew Biggs started the main proceedings by presenting some great Thai/English fun learning activities, followed by his big introduction of the Clown Eckie Buffoonery Show! The show went down very well with all the children and seemed to go even better with the older members of the community. |
"Expensive" Ice-Cream for everyone! They have never seen such silliness and mayhem before and we were so happy to give them our unique gifts of happiness to treasure for the remainder of their lives.
After the big show, we had a lovely surprise for everyone in the community and all the GoHF volunteers when Andrew Biggs dished-up scoops of freshly made ice-cream that the volunteers had clubbed together and bought for the occasion. It was probably the most expensive tub of ice-cream in Bangkok?...but well worth the price when we saw just how much the people appreciated it and just wanna say..."Another big Thank You to those great volunteers who paid for that special treat". Also..."Thanks for paying the bill to fix the truck, Gale Bailey MBE!"
As we were leaving the location we were all moved by the genuine appreciation and grateful thanks for the happiness and important goods that we gave them that day. I also asked Andrew to announce that we would be supporting the community through regular giving of important needs like clothing, babywear, toys, educational supplies and other useful goods. Our next visit will be in July 2017, when we will give whatever we can to help them prepare for the rainy season, when they will need clothing, bedding and anything else to help them through the next few difficult months.
After the big show, we had a lovely surprise for everyone in the community and all the GoHF volunteers when Andrew Biggs dished-up scoops of freshly made ice-cream that the volunteers had clubbed together and bought for the occasion. It was probably the most expensive tub of ice-cream in Bangkok?...but well worth the price when we saw just how much the people appreciated it and just wanna say..."Another big Thank You to those great volunteers who paid for that special treat". Also..."Thanks for paying the bill to fix the truck, Gale Bailey MBE!"
As we were leaving the location we were all moved by the genuine appreciation and grateful thanks for the happiness and important goods that we gave them that day. I also asked Andrew to announce that we would be supporting the community through regular giving of important needs like clothing, babywear, toys, educational supplies and other useful goods. Our next visit will be in July 2017, when we will give whatever we can to help them prepare for the rainy season, when they will need clothing, bedding and anything else to help them through the next few difficult months.
Enjoy this slideshow before reading more, click on the picture below... Photos by Tony Doherty
My character building day continued?
I had to rush back to the Go Happiness Centre where I had prepared a posh suit and tie ready for my attendance by invitation from his Excellency Mr Geoff Doidge, South African Ambassador, to a celebration of this years South African Freedom Day. It’s a national day in South Africa and a public holiday, which celebrates freedom and commemorates the first post-apartheid elections held on that day in 1994. I was invited to this event following a collaboration with the S/A Embassy in 2016 when we, (GoHF) produced a few special events to celebrate the "Nelson Mandela Happiness Day" at an Emergency Home for abused women and children in Bangkok. Ever since then, the Embassy and Ambassador have shown a lot of interest in our little charity which they see as being run on the same principal as something the great man once said; “Tread softly, breath peacefully, laugh hysterically.”
I had to rush back to the Go Happiness Centre where I had prepared a posh suit and tie ready for my attendance by invitation from his Excellency Mr Geoff Doidge, South African Ambassador, to a celebration of this years South African Freedom Day. It’s a national day in South Africa and a public holiday, which celebrates freedom and commemorates the first post-apartheid elections held on that day in 1994. I was invited to this event following a collaboration with the S/A Embassy in 2016 when we, (GoHF) produced a few special events to celebrate the "Nelson Mandela Happiness Day" at an Emergency Home for abused women and children in Bangkok. Ever since then, the Embassy and Ambassador have shown a lot of interest in our little charity which they see as being run on the same principal as something the great man once said; “Tread softly, breath peacefully, laugh hysterically.”
Enjoy this slideshow before reading more, click on the picture below... Photos by Nic Burr
So to end this character building project report, I am delighted to have been able to produce so much happiness for some of the people who really need the occasional good old fashioned belly laugh. And equally happy to have been given so much fantastic support from all the volunteers and our good friend Andrew Biggs, who all did a sterling job at the Shantytown. Plus all the amazing people who have donated and continue to donate essential goods for the poor and also the S/A Ambassador for his offer to help us with more projects like this one. Thank you very much to his Excellency, Mr Geoff Doidge for his kind invitation for me to attend the biggest event of the year for his country.
End report by Eddie Haworth.
End report by Eddie Haworth.
In the lead-up to this fantastic Fun Day on the 27th of April 2017 our charitable activities continued as normal;
April is always a quiet month for the Gift of Happiness Foundation because in Thailand there’s the New Year, Songkran celebrations and all the Thai schools are on holiday, plus the migrant schools are doing exams before their annual long holiday. In past years we have managed to find places to serve with shows and aid, but this year it’s not been possible to do much giving during April partly because we have been low on stock of donated goods to give and some of our regular volunteers have been unable to administer the planning of aid giving projects. That doesn’t mean April 2017 hasn’t been very busy for us working on local projects like collecting donations all over Bangkok and passing some onto the poor people living close to our Go Happiness Centre, located next to another small shantytown. And organizing our next week-long aid giving project in late May when we will be going north to the Thai/Burma border city of Mae Sot.
We will go for a week packed with visits to eight poor migrant and Thai government schools, plus a Safe house for abused women and children and Mae Tao clinic where we will be giving three truckloads of essential goods to more than 1,000 poor people. I have also been most active in promoting our small but very effective charity to several potential organizations for regular donations or sponsorship and during the course of my many meetings, I am pleased to say that at least a couple of organizations have shown some interest in helping us.
So stay tuned to this news page for exciting updates!
April is always a quiet month for the Gift of Happiness Foundation because in Thailand there’s the New Year, Songkran celebrations and all the Thai schools are on holiday, plus the migrant schools are doing exams before their annual long holiday. In past years we have managed to find places to serve with shows and aid, but this year it’s not been possible to do much giving during April partly because we have been low on stock of donated goods to give and some of our regular volunteers have been unable to administer the planning of aid giving projects. That doesn’t mean April 2017 hasn’t been very busy for us working on local projects like collecting donations all over Bangkok and passing some onto the poor people living close to our Go Happiness Centre, located next to another small shantytown. And organizing our next week-long aid giving project in late May when we will be going north to the Thai/Burma border city of Mae Sot.
We will go for a week packed with visits to eight poor migrant and Thai government schools, plus a Safe house for abused women and children and Mae Tao clinic where we will be giving three truckloads of essential goods to more than 1,000 poor people. I have also been most active in promoting our small but very effective charity to several potential organizations for regular donations or sponsorship and during the course of my many meetings, I am pleased to say that at least a couple of organizations have shown some interest in helping us.
So stay tuned to this news page for exciting updates!
Quite simply...We can only keep doing this with YOUR HELP!"Every donation ONLY goes to help the poor people we serve!"
| Via ATM or Android to: Account Name: Gift of Happiness Foundation Address: Kasikorn Bank PLC. BIG-C Rama 4, Bangkok. 10110. Account No:7702101594. Account Type: Savings. Sort Code: 0004. Outside Thailand. Swift Code: KASITHBK. Currency Converter | *Clothing - Adult and Children’s / New or Used. *Toys - "No toy weapons please". *School equipment - Paper, pencils etc *Playground equipment - Always very welcome *Medical supplies - anything available at pharmacies. *Bedding - Essential for most northern locations. *Toweling - Can also be used for bedding. *Personal hygiene - Soap, toothpaste/brushes etc. *Mosquito nets - Helps prevent Malaria and Dengue. *Other useful goods - We know what's needed. READ MORE>> |
