Thanks to a new pick-up truck, disabled children in Northeastern Thailand will receive a more steady help and treatment.
The organization that received the pick-up truck is called Raindrop Foundation they are based in Sakon Nakhon, where 3 Danish physiotherapists are volunteering at the moment. In order to make the trip to Raindrop Foundations 8-10 centers in the more remote regions they need a reliable vehicle.
The car was granted by Danish Raindrop Friends that, apart from fundraising, help sending physiotherapists to Sakon Nakhon. Their project coordinator Dr. Christel Molde explains that the new pick-up truck plays an essential role in getting to the more remote centers.
“There have been a car available all the time, but the old one needed to be repaired continually, and it eventually made it impossible for the physiotherapists to do their work,” she says and adds that the new truck can be used to transport people in need from remote areas to hospitals as well.
Unexplainable large part of the population is disabled
The volunteers at Raindrop Foundation train locals and local witchdoctors in basic physiotherapy, so they can learn how to treat and train with disabled children. Christel Molde from Danish Raindrop Friends says that the funds are too small and the people in need too many in Thailand’s outer regions. But according to her the area around Sakon Nathon is hit even harder.
“For unknown reasons, compared to other parts of Thailand, a much larger percentage of the population in this area is suffering from a handicap,” Christel Molde says.
Half of the children helped by Raindrop Foundation suffer from cerebral palsy and the Danish Cerebral Palsy Alliance (Spastiker Foreningen) has helped by raising money through its magazine. After hosting Thai dinners, auctions and a crowdfunding day the efforts of the 100 percent volunteer organization Danish Raindrop Friends has finally paid off.
