Field Reports

A Visit to Nath Maw Village – Myanmar
Nath Maw Village is a small place on Giant Island, located in the Thawlwin River. Nath Maw is accessible only by a ferryboat across this very large river. The current is swift. It took us 45 minutes to get there from Mawlamyine; 90 minutes to return. Here we are boarding the boat we took And, here’s a view of the

May Mi — A Tragic Story with a Happy Ending
Last Friday we visited Palel Myintta, a live-in facility in Yangon, Myanmar where 20 orphaned or abandoned children living with HIV are cared for in a safe, loving environment. Her is my colleague, Peter Scontrino, talking with the Director, Annie. That’s where I met four-year-old May Mi Than. Look at that smile. May Mi is HIV positive. Both of her

A Week in Myanmar
In Mid-May 2015 I headed north in Thailand to join my friend, Treasure Shine, in Mae Sot for a brief stop before we traveled across the border into Myanmar. There in Mae Sot we visited SAW (Social Action for Women) to see the safe house, orphanage, and crisis center they operate. They are doing great work that seems to be

January – February 2015 SEAF Trip
After bidding farewell to the TWCCTW group I headed back to BKK for a day and then on up north to Chiang Rai. So … as Paul Harvey used to say (I know some of you are old enough to know who Paul Harvey was)… Here is the “rest of the story” … My first stop was to visit Jit

January 2015 TWCCTW Trip
I’ve just recently returned from our January 2015 Together We Can Change The World (TWCCTW) trip to Thailand and Laos — a time that was busy, interesting, and productive. Here are some of the highlights. We began in Bangkok where my partner Scott Friedman and I were the featured speakers at the Bankapi Rotary club luncheon meeting. Judging from the

Current Status at the Wildflower Home
It has been a while since so many of you made your generous donations to our Wildflower Campaign so it’s time that I provided you with an update. I’m happy to report that the Good Shepherd Sisters have appointed a new leader for their Wildflower Home — Sr. Anurak, a Sister with whom I’ve worked closely for more than four

Three Trafficked Girls
This is a story about three little girls that have been trafficked – a story I wish did not need telling. Unfortunately, however, in today’s world it does need to be told – and heard – by those of us fortunate enough to be able to make a difference. For nearly four years now we’ve been working in support of

October/November SE Asia Trip
I’ve just returned from another most interesting and highly productive trip to SE Asia. I’ll share some of the highlights with you in this newsletter. Work began this time at the Fountain of Life Women’s Center in Pattaya where my partner, Peter Scontrino, and I conducted a weeklong workshop on Leadership, Management, and Supervision for the Good Shepherd Sisters and

June/July SE Asia Trip
But first I’ll report an important new development. Finally, after 13 months of waiting, the IRS has granted us Public Charity 501(c)(3) status. So, we now have a new non-profit called the SE Asia Foundation. (I’ll have a website up for it soon.) That Foundation will now be the home for all three of our active funds, namely the Bali

April – May SE Asia Trip Report
This trip began in Singapore where my partner, Scott Friedman, and I were offered an opportunity to speak at the nearly 4,200 attendee 2014 HR Summit. Needless to say, this was a huge gathering of interesting people from around the SE Asian region. Our talk, entitled: “The Secret to Employee Retention — Corporate Social Responsibility” was well received. Our unique

The Power of Partnership
Many of you know that “partnership” is an essential element of the work we do. In this spirit of partnership, we work with carefully vetted, local, grass-roots NGOs (non-government organizations)

The Awesome Power of Scholarships
University scholarships are a clear pathway out of poverty. So, you won’t be surprised to know that we fund a lot of scholarships. Sometimes more than 20 in one year.

Helping Abandoned Children
Here in Cambodia, “orphanages” are often viewed in a well-deserved, unfavorable manner. In way too many cases, so-called “orphanages” are simply scams run for the benefit of the sponsor, not

Special Care for Special Kids with Special Needs
Today I want to talk about about kids with developmental issues … kids with learning disabilities … kids with special needs. They show up in all cultures and all countries.

These Kids Crave Education
All too often when I was growing up school seemed like such a drudge. With most of my friends feeling the same way, that only reinforced my attitude. Why did

A Safe Haven for Marginalized Women
In Cambodia it’s not unusual for impoverished women to find themselves in difficult situations. Often, it’s financial. Sometimes it’s a bad marriage. Sometimes it’s domestic violence. Often it is a

Only 23 More to Go!
A few days ago, I wrote about the new toilet block we provided for a village school in Cambodia. That was certainly good news for the kids and teachers there.

Toilets Change Lives For Kids
Let’s talk about toilets. Here in America, and in most of the western world, we take toilets for granted. That’s not the case elsewhere on the planet – especially at

PreSchool is a Great Head Start for the Kids
Time and time again, research demonstrates that kids attending preschool thrive when entering Grade 1. Just recently our wonderful NGO Partner, the Grace House Community Center, took that step and

The Importance of Bicycles
Today I want to talk about bicycles. Here in America bicycles are readily available and often taken for granted. But, in many of the villages where I work in Cambodia