Despite widespread economic growth over the past decade, many children and families in Thailand still experience great poverty. Many of the families excluded from the country's growing prosperity are migrants, minorities, refugees, single-parent families and families impacted by HIV. While some live in or near Bangkok, many of the vulnerable children and families Holt serves with you in Thailand live in very rural areas. In partnership with Holt Sahathai Foundation — a prominent and well-respected provider of child welfare services — we empower these vulnerable families with the resources and opportunity they need to stay together, and seek permanent, loving families for children who have been orphaned or abandoned.
Provinces with Holt family strengthening programs
Provinces with Holt orphan care programs
Provinces from which children can join families through adoption
In an attempt to develop and industrialize many rural areas of Thailand, the government has converted large sections of Thailand's agricultural land into manufacturing facilities — destabilizing communities, and stripping families of their land and livelihood. For these families, community support and vocational training are now more important than ever. For families in Thailand without stable income or the ability to meet all of their children's needs, generous sponsors and donors provide for their most basic needs, and empower them to reach lasting stability.
In partnership with Holt Sahathai Foundation, Holt helped initiate the practice of foster care for orphaned and abandoned children in Thailand. Today, most children who come into HSF's care in Thailand stay with one of our highly trained foster families. But whether a child is in foster care or living in a care home, we strive ensure they receive the best care possible as we work to reunite them with their birth family, or seek for them a loving, adoptive family.
While Thailand is considered quite developed in comparison to other countries in South and Southeast Asia, there is still a huge population of vulnerable children and families who struggle every day. In my travels to Thailand, I've seen how families, especially in rural areas, struggle to meet their children's most basic needs such as food and education. In rural Thailand, most families rely on limited income from farming or fishing. And social stigma for single mothers contributes greatly to the level of vulnerability for their children — increasing the risk of abandonment and relinquishment. For these children, we focus on finding permanent, loving families either in Thailand or the United States. To strengthen families on the verge of separation, we work with Holt Sahathai Foundation to offer life-changing services such as educational and nutritional support, gardening training, temporary foster care for displaced children, counseling for young mothers, community-based support groups and financial accountability education. Ultimately, these services help strengthen struggling families and keep children with their birth families. But this is only possible because of the generous individuals who also have a heart for these vulnerable children and families in Thailand. Please contact me about how you can be involved in this meaningful work.