Living in hell on a paradise island

It’s a sad fact that on the paradise island of Phuket there are still those live in hell. Among them are hundreds of children on the streets of Patong, some living rough, others neglected or abused (or both in turn) by their parents, many making a living through stealing or prostitution.

Some even start to rather like the life – the money may come fast and easy, they have no responsibilities, no need (as they see it) to go to school. They can do what they want, when they want.

It can’t last, of course, and deep down, many of these children are in despair. Some use drugs to escape. Some use aggression and violence as an outlet while others simply withdraw into themselves.

An escape from the streets

This is where Happy Home helps, by providing a safe environment where these children can escape from the stress of the streets or from a horrible home.

Happy Home can house up to 30 street children between the ages of 11 and 16 in segregated dormitory-style accommodation. Children don’t have to stay there – some prefer simply to drop by from time to time to relax and be children. The home is accessible 24 hours a day.

Apart from the dormitories the home also has accommodation for staff, a training and recreation space, an education area, first aid/sick room, a dining area and segregated bathrooms.

The stated objectives of the home

• To ensure children are protected from abuse.
• To ensure the physical health of the children is provided for.
• To ensure children have opportunities for healthy play and recreation.
• To provide opportunities for children to learn and be trained in dignifies occupations.
• To provide children with life skills such as personal responsibility, their rights as children and individuals, how to engage with society in such a way as to allow them to be empowered.
• To assess the risks of family reunification and to engage in monitored reconciliation in cases where this is in the best interests of the child.

How the Project Started

Before Happy Home opened, World Vision, a charitable Christian development organization, had been working with street children for three years, providing education and assistance at a “drop-in” centre in Patong. The aim of the Happy Home was to boost this work by providing a permanent, safe and nurturing environment around the clock to help children to rebuild their lives and acquire skills to go on to a more empowered future.

The project was funded by sponsorship from the Holiday Inn Patong’s owners, LC Thailand Ltd, and its management company, IHG Inter-Continental Hotels Group, along with donations from many Holiday Inn guests after the 2004 Asian Tsunami.
A total of 8.5 million baht was invested in the buildings and interior, and Happy Home is supported by 35,000 Euros a year for five years from AIG Private Bank and OVB Holding AG, Cologne. Happy Home had its “soft opening” on July 21, 2006, and was officially opened by Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindorn the following October.

At the soft opening, Holiday Inn General Manager Wolfgang Meusburger explained, “As a successful hotel operating in Patong and Phuket, we felt it was our responsibility to give something back to the community. Happy Home is a project we believe will make a real difference to the future of the street children, helping them to escape from daily abuse and misery, and giving them life skills and the foundation for a better future.”

The Children

World Vision, which manages Happy Home, found three classes of children at risk on the streets of Patong:

• About 50 children who were genuinely homeless;
• A much larger number without parents or family, who lived with their employers (ice carriers, flower sellers, prostitutes and the like) as virtual indentured laborers paying off “debts” to their employers;
• Children living with their parents but working on the streets by day.
• The first two groups were deemed to be most at risk from abuse, trafficking and HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases.
• The children typically have no ID cards (so officially do not exist), have no contact with their families, and often are unsure of where they are from or are unwilling to reveal such information.
• Most have endured serious physical and psychological abuse over a long period. Without immediate and intensive help their future is very grim.
• Behind this misery, of course, lies poverty.

How You Can Help

To make a donation, you can deposit the funds direct into the following account:

Ac No, 601-3-03155-9
Account Name: Wolfgang Meusburger, Wanpen Jariyantananon and Asnee Kankaew
Account Purpose Patong Street Children Fund, Holiday Inn Resort Phuket
Bank: Siam Commercial Bank, Patong Branch, 200 Year Road ,83150 Patong , Phuket, Thailand
Swift Code: SICOTHBK

If you are in Patong, you can also make a contribution in person at the Holiday Inn. Go to the front desk and ask for a donation envelope. All donations go 100% to supporting Happy Home.

For more information about Happy Home, please contact the General Manager of the Holiday Inn, Wolfgang Meusburger, by email to wm_hirp@phuket.ksc.co.th.