Heading for Laos

Happy New Year! This year, 2008, Shawn and I are feeling so grateful for all of the incredible people and experiences who have passed through and been part of our lives. More and more we feel that service to others is the key to enjoying life to the fullest, because we are all connected when we help each other, we help ourselves. So we are grateful for Jai Dee as a venue for helping others--in this case the small children of Muong Khong, who live in one of the poorest countries in the world, and of course the children in the slums of Howrah near Calcutta, which is our 2nd project run by the amazing and goodhearted Mamoon.

For now, we’re in Bangkok and it’s hot, hot, hot! Tonight we’re taking an overnight train to the Laos border. Then we will take a bus to Pakse and another (mini) bus to Kong Island (where our kindergarten project is located).

On January 9th, we will meet the principals of the 16 kindergarten schools in the district. This meeting will allow us to understand their needs and build relationships. It's very important to us to understand the reality for the children so we can help in a sustainable way. We will follow up this meeting by visiting and documenting some of most needy schools, and doing what we can to help with the funds we raised this year.

We would like to thank our volunteers, the musicians, the donors and sponsors for everything. We’re full of gratitude to you all. You should be very proud of yourselves--helping to change the lives of these children who, otherwise, would be left behind. It's an honour to work with you all in the service of others.

Best,
Thanou and Shawn