Holistic Care for 450 HIV Positive Thai Families

He was on his way to school. Had just left the house. Loong, only 9 years old. He lived with his grandparents, who have a house very close to Loong's school. It was a monday morning. Loong had just said goodbye to his grandparents and then it happened. It changed his live forever.

2 years ago our staff in Mukdahan, northeast Thailand, received a call from the hospital. A 9 year old boy was hit by a car and very badly injured. He broke many bones and his brain was damaged so much, that he already had surgery more than 4 time. He was now ready to go back home, but he would never be able to see, talk or walk again. His family, consisting of his two grandparents and his mother, who lives and works in Bangkok, didn't have the money and the knowledge to take care of him. The hospital told us that Loong needed specific care and that he had to wear diapers as well. 

Nobody to help the family
We usually reach out to underprivileged people who are HIV-infected. But in some cases, we decide to support vulnerable families with other problems as well. Especially when a family really needs help and has nobody else to take care of them. Loong's family didn't have an insurance and the guy who hit Loong, visited him once and after that never offered any help or showed interest in the family. So we promised the hospital to reach out to Loong's family to see what we could do. This was a year ago and since then we have visited him and his family very often. We found him a donor who supports him on a monthly basis. From the supported money, we buy Loong diapers and sometimes food.

Grandfather quit his job
Loong is very blessed to have a commited grandfather who takes fulltime care of his grandchild now. He quit working and read books and studied how to take care of his grandson, who now has to be fed through a tube and breathe through a hole in his neck. Grandfather stays with Loong all day, feeding him and massaging his muscles to keep his body flexible and strong. He made a great sacrifice, cause now he cannot work and make money to support his family anymore. It is Siam-Care's responsibily to help this family survive. But we get something back as well: inspiration. It is very inspiring to see how grandfather takes care of his grandson. The future perpective is not good, Loong will never recover. And yet grandfather does not give up and keeps on fighting for his grandson.

Thanks to your support through GlobalGiving, Siam-Care can keep on having an impact on people in need, like Loong. Please keep on partnering with us, Loong cannot survive without your help!

As you probably know Siam-Care focuses on children who are affected by HIV and their families. 95 percent of the families in our program, have family members who are infected with HIV. Od and Ed are an exception. This very special couple has been part of our program for many years. We would like to introduce them to you.

Od is a funny and a happy guy. He is 54 years old and was born in Bangkok, in the same house where he still lives today. When we visit him, he always makes jokes and shares a lot of smiles. He lives together with his sister Ed, who was born in the same house. Ed is a very friendly and calm woman. Together with her brother she does the house hold chores: she cooks, cleans and washes their clothes. 

No ordinairy family
Od and Ed are no ordinairy family. Od has profound spasms and cannot walk. Ed is blind. Because of their conditions, they are both unemployed and cannot leave the house. Yet they are very well able to survive as a couple. Ed takes full time care of her brother. Eventhough she was born blind and doesn't know what her own house looks like, she knows every corner of the house like the back of her hand and does all the house hold chores by herself. She is the legs of this family, Od is the eyes. She walks around to do household chores, Od tells her where things are being kept and warns her when he sees something on the floor that might cause Ed to stumble and fall. They wouldn't be able to survive by themselves, but as a couple they do miraculously well.

Loneliness 
This family hardly has an income. The Thai government supports this family because of their illnesses, but the ammount of social welfare they receive is way too small to make ends meet. Siam-Care has been supporting Od and Ed for many years. We give them food and keep them company every now and then. Their lives are pretty lonely, so we try to visit them as often as possible. We listen to their stories, laugh with them and sometimes pray for them. We will never be able to change their situation: Od will remain cripple and Ed will remain blind. But we can make sure that they have enough food to eat and that they won't get too lonely. Your supports helps us to support Od and Ed. Thank you very much for making a difference in their lives.