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!