Honourary Australians

Q: Is it an honour to be a honourary Australian? A: Depends which Australians we are talking about.

 We met a (Thai) man today working in his family hardware store in Takua Pa who had studied English for a year in Qeenstown. He met his Thai wife in NZ when she was in Queenstown on holiday from Christchurch. His English was quite good so it can't have been all beer and snowboarding that year. It was refreshing not to have to explain where NZ was ("next to Australia") or that NZ and Australia are not actually one and the same thing. Admittedly  though we do sometimes resort to: "NZ - Australia - same same but different".

Being mistaken for Aussies  around here is understandable and not as bad a thing as you might imagine given the role that Hands Across the Water Australia and its supporters play in funding BTNC . The  funding and running of the orphange is a multifaceted thing with many organisations and individuals involved, some ongoing, some on a one off  basis. The day to day management of the orphange comes under the umbrella of the highly respected Duang Prateep Foundation. Hands Across the Water who we are volunteering through provide major support. Other supporters we have become aware of include the Thai Children's Trust, and Willie's Orphan Fund.   No doubt there are many others we don't know. What we do see week to week are holiday makers who come to volunteer a few days or donate some rice or supplies. Whatever help BTNC and its children receive, large or small, they do seem to truly appreciate it.

Further info at :

handsacrossthewater.com.au 

en.dpf.or.th ( Duang Prateep Foundation)

thaichildrentrust.org.uk

handsacrossthewater.org.uk