These Hazara boys at Joghari School near Ghazni in Afghanistan go to school in tents but they would really like a proper school and thanks to the donors of 100 Friends and the Bangkok Patana International School in cooperation with PARSA in Kabul this dream will become a reality in 2008.
The Hazara girls in Joghari School in Afghanistan have the same dream as the boys: to have a real school instead of going to school in tents.
These next pictures of the current construction work were taken in early November, 2007. The bathrooms shown here are nearly complete but work has now stopped due to the arrival of winter. Work resumes next Spring, 2008.
The walls are coming up "inside" the partially completed school.
More walls coming up. You can see the current "school" in the background: tents that have served as a school for the children for the past few years. 100 Friends will build at least one new school per year. Next year 100 Friends will build a new school in Nepal.
More construction of the new school is now partially completed.
Another part of the building going on.
This is the valley where the school is to be located.
In Bali, before her cleft palate operation.
After her operation. She looks so much better!
Before her cleft palate operation.
After her cleft palate operation.
100 Friends is proving ongoing support for the John Fawcett Foundation in Bali, Indonesia. Here is a child with a cleft palate. A cleft palate is a congenital abnormality in which there is a cleft or split in the upper lip.
This boy in Bali is named Ketut. He was badly burned in a fire in his village The children at school tease him about his looks so he refused to go to school. A $400 donation from 100 Friends will pay for home schooling for Ketut for the next 12 months.
Another photo of the terrible burns that Ketut suffered in Bali. 100 Friends is paying for his home-based education.
This man in Bali had a terrible skin condition but he was helped by our partner, the John Fawcett Foundation.
This is Putu, a blind boy I found in Lovina on Bali. He lost his vision at age of six and his parents couldn't find or afford a school for the blind. 100 Friends has enrolled him in a great school for the blind located in Denpasar.
First day in school in the dorm with his Mom!
Marc with Putu and his Mom in the dorm.
Putu finds a new friend right away!
Putu playing with a guitar. 100 Friends bought him three musical instruments. You should have seen the look on his face when he started playing with them!
Since Putu became blind at the age of six, he has been crying almost daily because he wants to go to school. Here he is sitting for the first time in three years at his desk with his new teacher and he is so happy!
Putu's father is named Gede, and he is so delighted here in this photo watching his son finally back at school after waiting for three years to be back in school.
Putu with his new teachers.
This is Putu's new school for blind children. 100 Friends will pay for all of his expenses until he is an adult. He will also learn vocational skills including massage and learning to play Gamelan, the traditional Balinese instrument (similar to a xylophone).
I took Putu to be examined by a neurologist. He confirmed that Putu will never see again because of damage caused by the hydrocephalus which is the cause of his blindness. Otherwise, he is in good health.
This boy became permanently paralyzed because of a motorbike accident that killed his cousin. He has been depressed for the last 18 months. We went to visit him to cheer him up and provide some financial assistance.
Dwipayana is a 5 year old boy with Downs syndrome from Ubud, Bali. He was born with an imperforate anus, a life-threatening condition. His father passed away with heart complications shortly after his birth, and his mother has no job.
This shows his intestines protruding from his body due to his imperforate anus. On September 11, 2007 he had an Anoplasty pull-thru operation (to make an anus). Another surgery has been planned as well. 100 Friends paid $1100 for the surgery.
Closeup of Dwipayana's protruding intestine. Before the surgery, he had to have a colostomy. This opening is formed from the end of the large intestine.
Dwipayana with his mother.
My local guide took me to a poor village near Ubud in Bali where we met a family consisting of a man around 40, his wife and their only child. She is 9 years old and has been unable to walk since birth. The father works in construction and makes, in a good stretch, $100 per month, often much less. I spent about an hour interviewing them and ended up donating $160 plus I purchased her first wheelchair, crutches (and a doll) ; this will greatly improve her mobility and life.
Marc with the little girl in Bali who cannot walk,. with her father and mother. Their small house is in the background.
This is part of Mae La Refugee Camp. About 60,000 people live here on the border between Burma and Thailand They are mostly from the Karen hill tribe, fleeing the repressive government in Myanmar (Burma). Some people have been there for 23 years, some for 23 hours. They cannot go back to Burma and they cannot leave the camp to go into Thailand. I asked people what they wanted most and they said, "freedom".
Conditions are difficult and work is hard here at Mae La.
You have to wonder what kind of future lays ahead for this baby boy.
This is one of the Karen Burmese children I met at the refugee camp.
What a doll!
A young man I met at Mae La.
Another child from the refugee camp.
A little boy from an orphanage. 100 Friends donated almost $3,000 to help children, families and the elderly at the refugee camp. The money was donated to COERR (Catholic Office for Emergency Relief and Refugees).
Happy looking young Karen Burmese girl.
This small Karen boy looks so pensive.
Another small refugee boy.
A childhood with hard work is not uncommon here.
These are children from an orphanage at Mae La Refugee Camp. Because of poverty, these children have a boring and substandard diet.100 Friends paid for food for 85 children that will last for the next 12 months. This will result in a more balanced and nutritious diet. We also bought them some soccer balls.
This man is one of my heroes. He had a chance to live in the United States as a refugee but he gave up this opportunity to continue caring for the children in the orphanage.
Happy Burmese children helped by 100 Friends in September, 2007.
A Karen Burmese mother with her infant.
Another photo of a Karen mother with her baby.
There's not much to do for many in the refugee camp. These people are making candles to earn some money.
100 Friends was able to help numerous elderly in Mae La Refugee Camp.
Here is an old Muslim man from Burma.
This old man lives in a small bamboo house for unaccompanied elderly. 100 Friends contributed funds to help numerous elderly refugees.
This blind old Karen Burmese woman lives in the same small bamboo house. 100 Friends paid for part of the salary of a local community social worker to help care for the elderly. They will do outreach to find more elderly people without family support who need assistance.
Another old Burmese lady living in the small bamboo house. I spent as much time as I could with each person.
These are supplies purchased by 100 Friends for Burmese children in a village near the border. We had a great day visiting this poor village near Kanchanaburi, Thailand.
Even in this remote refugee camp on the Thai border, you can find reminders of interest in the hip-hop and rap culture.
This is Ravuth on his way to work for 100 Friends on his motorbike delivering food, cash, medicine and other items to the elderly in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. He also holds their hands, cleans their houses and takes them to the doctor if they need to go.
The first unaccompanied elderly person Ravuth has helped is named Long Sambath and she is 93 years old. 100 Friends gave Ravuth money to buy her this new bed, mosquito net, pillows and other supplies.
Marc with Long Sambath in July, 2007. I asked her if she had a big dream she wanted to have fulfilled. She said that she wanted to move back to her village permanently and she especially wanted to pay homage to her deceased parents.
Long Sambath taking a rest. I call her "grandmother".
This is Long Sambath's simple hut. It didn't have electricity but now she has light and a fan thanks to your donations.
This is Ravuth helping Hang Nie, an elderly woman. Hang Nie is 77 years old and she lives alone. Ravuth used funds from 100 Friends to give her rice, noodles, medicine and some cash.
This is Sum Pin, another elderly lady without extended family being helped by 100 Friends.
Here Rauth is interviewing an old woman being helped by 100 Friends. Her name is Meas Yeum and she only has her granddaughter with her. She lives next to these railway tracks.
Meas Yeum receiving a donation from 100 Friends in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
This small platform is where Meas Yeum and her granddaughter sleep. 100 Friends will be getting them a much better place to live.
Here Ravuth is helping 88 year old Oung in Cambodia. She said to us: “I can not work because I am very weak. Everyday I have no money to buy food, my grandchild always bring me the food. I thank you very much for helping me.”
Mean Yeum and her granddaughter receiving rice and noodles from 100 Friends.
This is Ravuth delivering food to Doung Vanny. She is 48 years old and sells vegetables to make a living. Doung has difficulty walking and she has problems with her vision. When this photo was taken, she hadn't eaten for two days. The rice and noodles you see was donated by 100 Friends and she will receive assistance on a regular basis.
This is the inside of Duong Vanny's frequently flooded house.
This is the outside of Duong Vanny's flooded home in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
I couldn't believe it when I saw this sign in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. It says: Cambodian Association Helping the Miserable Corpses. They make sure that unclaimed bodies get a proper burial.
This is Run Ratana, a six year old Cambodian boy who is deaf. He wears hearing aids but still needs to go to the Sign Language School for the Deaf as with or without these devices he won't stand a chance in a mainstream Cambodian school. 100 Friends is helping to support him and his mother with the help of "All Ears Cambodia", run by my friend Glyn Vaughan.
The man in this photo is Bo Bolen, my trusty driver and guide in Phnom Penh. He helps me to find many poor people who need help in Cambodia. Bolen is a real gem.
Two beautiful children 100 Friends helped in Cambodia.
100 Friends helped this woman and her daughter in Cambodia.
This is Srey Peap on the left and Keut Srey Neang on the right. These are two new girls who have been rescued from life at the Steung Meanchey Municipal dump on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. They are being sponsored by one of our generous donors and they now live at the Center for Children's Happiness (CCH).
Srey Peap and Keut Srey Neang at the Steung Meanchey Municipal dump in Cambodia the day we rescued them and took them to live at the Center for Children's Happiness (CCH).
Keut Srey Neang at the dump.
Marc with Srey Peap at the dump.
Srey Peap at the dump.
This is Sovann Bopha, one of the two new girls being sponsored by a donor from 100 Friends. She is 13 years old and her mother is quite ill. She says her goal is to go to school in order to get better future. Her younger sister, Sovann Lida came to CCH at the same time (August, 2007).
An unknown child left behind at the dump. It costs $800 per year to rescue at child from the dump. Rescued children come to live an entirely new life at CCH.
This is 10 year old Sovann Lida. She came to CCH with her sister Sovann Bopha in August, 2007. She says she is very happy to be at CCH.
Steung Meanchey Municipal dump on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
A child roaming around looking for recyclables at the dump.
An old man living in the village next to the dump.
Looking for recyclables at the dump.
Another child from the dump.
All of these children (and others; 12 in all) from CCH are being sponsored by 100 Friends.
Last July 100 Friends paid to take all the children from NACA orphanage to the Phnom Penh Water Slide Park.
Fun at the water slide!
More fun for the children from NACA orphanage.
Oh boy! What a great time they had at the Water Slide Park.
Namee Sous, the English teacher at NACA orphanage. I admire him greatly.
More fun for the kids.
This woman works at NACA orphanage.
Having a great time at the Water Siide Park in Phnom Penh.
Marc in Cambodia, July, 2007.
Marc with Srey Lee at CCH.
Srey Lee's sister Tiara at CCH.
This is Manin from CCH. She just received a $40,000 scholarship to attend the best private high school in Cambodia, courtesy of the singer :Peter Gabriel. 100 Friends bought her a motorbike to get to and from school.
Young girl from NACA orphanage.
Young boy from NACA orphanage. He is an incredible dancer. His specialty is dancing the part of the monkey.
This girl from NACA is a fantastic dancer (Cambodian Classical Dancer).
Another cute little girl from NACA orphanage.
This little girl from NACA orphanage was so charming.
These children used to live in the dump before they came to CCH. Look at them now, performing classical Cambodian dance!
These children are from NACA orphanage in Phnom Penh. They learn and perform classical Cambodian dance. Great form! They performed lovely dances while I was visiting in July, 2007.
100 Friends purchased 100 bikes near Jakarta, Indonesia for poor people who recycle rubbish from the garbage dump. Because of this donation (with the help our our local partner, a group called Nurani Dunia) all 100 families in the community were able to triple their income!
Getting ready for work on their new bikes, donated by 100 Friends.
Look carefully on the blue part of the donated bike. It says: 100 Friends!
Off they go to work with the bikes purchased for them by 100 Friends.
One of the wonderful old ladies I met at the Mathatirtha Old Age Home near Kathmandu. They needed doctor visits, medicine for a variety of ailments and food. Donated $500 to help these old ladies.
This woman seemed particularly fragile and sad.
Another wonderful lady I met at the Mathatirtha Old Age Home near Kathmandu.
Another sweet lady from the Mathatirtha Old Age Home in Nepal.
This woman from Mathatirtha Old Age Home was so happy to see us.
I had so much fun interacting with the ladies at the Mathatirtha Old Age Home 30 km. from Kathmandu.
This lady really enjoyed the shoulder massage I gave her!
The ladies at the Mathatirtha Old Age Home were overjoyed to have visitors. Their families rarely come to see them because they are either dead, live too far away and are too poor to visit them or have abandoned them.
At the Mathatirtha Old Age Home the old ladies are packed into a small space but they seem to look after each other with patience and kindness.
Mathatirtha Old Age Home building, about 1 hour from Kathmandu, Nepal.
100 Friends helped this woman and her family in Nepal. She is suffering from eye cancer.
These street children are now in a great program in Nepal.
Marc with some street children in Nepal.
A boy who was living on the street but now he is in a good program in Kathmandu.
Staff and children from the program for street children.
A warning about HIV/AIDS for street children.
This poster says: "No Future Through Begging. There are other ways to support street children." Many children use the money to buy glue to sniff or drink hooch alcohol.
I met these Tibetan nuns at the Shechen Clinic in Kathmandu. 100 Friends helped several people in need at the clinic.
More Tibetan Nuns I met at the Shechen Clinic in Kathmandu.
This Tibetan Nun is named Ani-la. She is fighting cancer and 100 Friends paid for her and her mother to go to Tibet.
We met this little girl at the Shechen Clinic in Kathmandu. We spent time with her critically ill mother the day before she died. Her mother died the next day, on her daughter's birthday. We promised her some gifts and she was glad to get them even though it was such a very sad day.
More gifts for the little Nepali girl we met at the Shechen Clinic.
Marc with two social workers from an organization called Setu-Nepal. Prema (on the left) is the project director. They help war widows and women who have been recently released from prison.
Prema with a paroleee. Her husband beat her for years and then she accidentally killed him in self defense. She went to prison for several years. 100 Friends helped several of these women as well as many people who are still in prison.
Another parolee helped by 100 Friends at Setu-Nepal in Kathmandu.
100 Friends helped this woman who was recently released from prison in Nepal.
This is Bina, the director of Jeewan Utthan, an incredibly poor orphanage in Kathmandu, Nepal. We spent a day going on a $1,000 shopping trip for items needed by the 26 children who come from poor mountain villages of Eastern Nepal. Here we are buying blankets for the kids. Then we donated an extra $400 for rent, staff salaries and food.
Shopping for kitchen equipment for the orphanage.
Buying 26 pairs of shoes for the children.
Purchasing foams beds for 26 children. The children had been sleeping on the floor but no longer!
Marc carrying some of the new foam beds for the kids.
The van is almost filled after a day of shopping for the kids.
We arrive at the Jeewan Utthan Orphanage and the children help us to unload.
The staff at the orphanage help to carry the new foam beds into the house.
The kids help us carry the new foam beds into the orphanage.
One of the sweet young boys sleeping at the orphanage.
This young girl from the orphanage was particularly charming and bright.
Another lovely child from the orphanage!
Yet another handsome boy from the orphanage.
This boy from the orphanage is so cute!
I asked the children from the Jeewan Utthan Orphanage how many of them expect to have a better life in the future. Wow!
Donating money from 100 Friends to the directors of the Jeewan Utthan Orphanage in Nepal.
A child with cancer in Bangkok. 100 Friends made a donation to help her family.
This is 24 year old Supansa Wichanand from Thailand. Her right arm was chopped off by a drunk Thai policeman after she refused to have sex with him. Her leg was broken in three places.She is a single Mom and her mother has cancer. The policeman was fired and will face criminal charges. 100 Friends donated $200 to help her support herself.
Supansa Wichanand now makes a small amount of money selling lottery tickets and garlands. 100 Friends will provide more funds in the future to help her.
This is what Supansa Wichanand looked like before a drunk Thai policeman brutally attacked her and cut of her arm with a sharp knife while she was riding her motorbike.
For the second year in a row, 100 Friends is continuing support for ten poor families in the Vietnamese countryside near Hanoi. This is one such family. The parents have died and the grandmother in this photo looks after her young granddaughter as best as she can.
These children in rural Vietnam are being supported by 100 Friends.
This widow receives yearly support from 100 Friends.
Another grandmother receiving help from 100 Friends.
This man became severely mentally ill shortly after he was married 9 years ago. His wife abandoned him shortly thereafter, leaving him with his young daughter and his mother.
This woman's husband died shortly after her daughter was born. 100 Friends supplies yearly financial support with the help of an organization called Humanitarian Services for Vietnamese Children (HSVC).
Another child being helped by 100 Friends in Vietnam.
These Vietnamese children live in a village on the outskirts of the city of Hue. Some of them were trafficked to Saigon. They were promised a good education but they ended up selling flowers daily until late at night to make money for the traffickers. My friends at an organization called Blue Dragon rescued many of them and returned them to their families. 100 Friends paid $1500 to hire a Vietnamese social worker for the next year to help the children in five different villages.
More children from poor villages near Hue, Vietnam being helped by 100 Friends.
These children used to live on the street in Hanoi. But now, thanks to Blue Dragon, they have shelter, food, a family-like atmosphere and lots of love and guidance from the staff. Here they are having a Halloween party in Hanoi in November, 2007. 100 Friends provides support for the wonderful activities of Blue Dragon.
A child from Blue Dragon having Halloween fun with one of Marc's many masks!
More fun with Marc's masks on Halloween!
This is Quan, a 16 year old boy living in Hanoi, Vietnam. Quan has a benign cancer called Neurofibroma. It attacks nerve endings and is neither painful nor life threatening. His face was larger last year and he had his first surgery in Australia. A second surgery has taken place that will make his face look almost normal. Quan is being assisted by Blue Dragon and 100 Friends. Donated $160 to the family and offered to pay for Quan's education all the way through university if he wishes.
I visited this pediatric hospital in Hanoi in November, 2007.
Buying stuffed animals, toy cars and musical instruments for all the hospitalized children at the pediatric hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam in November, 2007. All the gifts were paid for by 100 Friends.
Visiting children hospitalized at the pediatric hospital in Hanoi. 100 Friends will pay for the surgery for numerous children in 2007. We did the same in 2006.
Another child I met at the pediatric hospital in Hanoi.
Two children from the pediatric hospital.
This young girl suffered terrible burns in a house fire.
Giving this young burn victim a small piano.
Another child we visited at the hospital
Another teddy bear for a young patient at the hospital.
She loves her new teddy bear!
Even the babies liked our visit at the pediatric hospital.
The girl on the right with the longer hair is Aubrey Namit from Kalibo in the Philippines. 100 Friends is paying for her education. She had no prospects at all for her future but now she is training to become a nurse thanks to 100 Friends.
Aubrey is the young lady holding a newspaper in her hand. Here she is on her first day of school at the local college with her fellow classmates.
