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NEWS 14/05/07

Photos from the 2006 Virginia Water walk are now online.

NEWS 18/03/06

A second Reading Chronicle article encouraging people to get involved in the Tsunami Hope appeal (image size 28K, opens in new window).

NEWS 29/03/06

Photos from Sarah's Feb 2006 return trip to Thailand are now online: see the progress photos and other photos she took.

NEWS 23/03/06

Photos from the 2005 Worcester and Boscastle walks are now online.

NEWS 04/07/05

Read the Reading Chronicle article on what drove Sarah to plan the Tsunami Hope Walks (image size 104K, opens in new window).

NEWS 25/05/05

The Tsunami Hope Forum is now open. It's the ideal place to arrange lifts and accommodation with other walkers.

Tidal Wave Orphans Charity Walks
Worcester, Boscastle, Virginia Water

Hello. I'm Sarah and together we can bring hope to the orphans of the tsunami.

2005

In February 2005 I went out as a volunteer to Phuket after seeing an ITV news report on the children orphaned by the Boxing Day 2004 Tsunami and the Moken sea gypsies whose communities were devastated. I was shocked to discover there are 800 orphans on Phuket island. My heart was very much moved and I am now committed to raising money to help them.

In 2005, two friends and I organised sponsored walks in British towns that have also suffered flooding - Worcester and Boscastle. Worcester was a 13 mile half marathon and Boscastle was just 10km as some tracks were still washed away.

2006

In February 2006 I returned to Phuket, Khao Lak, Phra-Tung and Phang Nga Province to visit the projects we are helping and meet the orphans again. See the photos.

In 2006 our first fundraiser was a walk at Virginia Water in Surrey on May 20th.

2007

In March 2007 I returned again to Phuket, Khao Lak, Phra-Tung and Phang Nga Province to visit the projects we are helping and meet the orphans again.

Projects rebuilt:

Ban Kamala School, to be opened by Princess of Thailand in June 2007;
Thai Muang Nursery School and Playground rebuilt;
Morgan Sea Gypsy Village rebuilt huts and fishing jetty.

The King of Thailand has approved our tsunami work and we have been granted 'The New Life Foundation' status to further our response to those in need.

See some photos. More to follow shortly.

2007 update on the Tsunami reconstruction projects

Our new fund-raising projects are:

A football pitch and sports facilities for Kamala School and the local community. Any football tycoons who would like a football ground named in their honour are very welcome to make a donation: we need £30k to complete the job!
Sussex House needs £1000 a month to feed and house the orphans in their care. This is an ongoing and long-term need - money has been slowing to a trickle but the orphans of the tsunami still need support. World Vision has stated that the reconstruction and support for the affected regions should be seen as a five year project and we only about halfway through this period.

There are 800 orphans of the tsunami on Phuket island.

To raise funds for the rebuilding of Kamala school, West Sussex Police took part in a bike ride past every police station in Sussex. Starting on the 25th of May 2005 with the Chief Constable leading the way, the 600 miles took 6 days to complete.

The ride raised £25,000 for purchasing a hostel for school children in Phuket, called Sussex House.

In February 2006, Sarah returned to the affected areas one year on to revisit the projects and people that she'd first seen after the Tsunami.

She is grateful for the charity discount she received from London Zoo which enabled her to take out therapeutic play donations again. visiting the orphans on the sea gypsy island, she took a hug's worth of toy monkeys for them to keep.

Where is the money going?

The Thai government has approved Phuket Christian Centre to undertake the following projects. Click for photos.

Orphans of the tsunami are going to be placed in extended families as being culturally appropriate and approved by the Thai King. To aid the extended families we will build a resource centre to support them and the orphans and a playground - UPDATE: playground construction now completed.
To rebuild the school that was wiped out by the wave in Kamala - UPDATE: rebuilt 1 year on by Boxing Day 2005. The official opening on 22 March 2006.
To build a school for the sea gypsy island of Phra-Tung and a jetty to help rebuild their fishing business - UPDATE: rebuilt houses on the island.
To build a new village for a second Moken sea gypsy community who cannot return to their home island as it has been declared unsafe - this project has become the personal concern of HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand.
To build a new nursery school and clinic at Thai Muang - this is our main focus for 2006 fundraising.

All the money we raise will go 100% towards these projects - we are all volunteers and have no admin costs.

How can you help?

We held our first walk in Worcester on Saturday 16th July 2005 and our second walk in Boscastle on Saturday 17th September 2005. Our latest fundraiser was at Virginia Water in Surrey on Saturday 20th May 2006 and was a quarter marathon for families and anyone who likes to take it a bit easier!

The Worcester donation tins raised £120 from the general public on our walk through the city. Overall, the walks' sponsorship money (which is still coming in) has exceeded £2500. Thank you!

We're also looking for companies and individuals to help make the appeals a success by offering time or material assistance - please see the donations page.

How to get there

The Worcester, Boscastle and Virginia Water walks have already been held.

Details about other fund raising activities will appear here later.

We hope you will join us in our efforts to raise money to help the tidal wave orphans. Donations are very welcome too!

With many thanks,


Sarah Pollard	Jan Bonczyk	Ros Cooke

Website design and production services donated by Mark Jones.

All monies are handled via Compassion and Care International,
Registered Charity No: 1107495
To view a letter from Compassion and Care International confirming the organisers' status as charity collectors please click here (image opens in new window).

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Tidal Wave Orphans Charity Walks Worcester, Boscastle, Virginia Water