HOME > Your Support

Your Support

Ban Rom Sai believes in independence, as a means to support the growth of the children.

Donations are important, but can fluctuate significantly influenced by economic conditions. In light of this, Ban Rom Sai has a long-term goal of reducing its reliance on donations. We call this 'Project Independence'. Independence – our ultimate goal – will be about Ban Rom Sai being able to raise the necessary annual operating costs by our own means. Independence will also allow us to provide long-term stability and continued care and support to the children.

Your donations and support will help us to launch and/or maintain projects that are integral to Project Independence. These include:

Ban Rom Sai needs your assistance to be able to support the children's growing needs.

At Ban Rom Sai, the cost of living for each child amounts to approximately US$5,125* per year:

(These costs do not include the basic operating costs of the orphanage, such as staff salaries, transportation costs or utilities, as well as clothing and school materials for each child).
* Exchange rate: 32 Thai Baht = US$1

The children at Ban Rom Sai must all take anti-viral medications on a daily basis and will continue to have to take these drugs for the rest of their lives. The annual cost for the anti-viral HIV medication is US$4,310 for each child (amounting to US$129,300 for all 30 children). Currently the bulk of this anti-viral medication cost is covered through an assistance grant from the international NGO, Oxfam. However, this is an annual grant and for the long-term, we do not want to solely rely on this support to cover medical costs.

Separately, the annual cost of basic medical care comes to about US$810 per child. This is in addition to the cost of anti-viral medication mentioned above. When compared to the annual income of an average northern Thai person, of about US$4,000-5,000, these two costs combined are an insurmountable monetary burden.

The orphanage adopted a new anti-viral regimen in 2002 and children are growing up healthy under this regimen. Although the goal of Ban Rom Sai is for as many children as possible to become independent and become active members of society, for some children this will unfortunately not be an option. Some of the children have suffered from side-effects from the drugs, others are mentally handicapped. These children will never be able to leave Ban Rom Sai. To this end, Ban Rom Sai wants to develop projects on-site, such as the Hoshihana Village Guest House, where these children could potentially work, as they grow into adults.

For other children, there is the growing cost of education. Some of the children are able and want to further their education and attend universities, technical colleges, or vocational schools. Tuition for such further education is more expensive than primary and secondary education. This means that we need to raise more funds to be able to support the ambition of these children.

Three ways you can help support Ban Rom Sai

Option 1: Direct donation

A little money can go a long way in Thailand! We guarantee that any donations Ban Rom Sai receives will be used 100% to support the children and will not be used to cover operating costs of the orphanage.

Option 2: Purchase Ban Rom Sai Products

You can support Bam Rom Sai by buying our hand-made products! All proceeds will go directly to support the children. Ban Rom Sai products can be purchased at special events and exhibitions, at the Ban Rom Sai shop in Kamakura (Japan), as well as our on-line shop: www.banromsai-shop.com (The e-commerce handicraft web-site is currently only available in Japanese and for purchase in English. We hope to have an English language web-siteavailable soon)
Also available to purchase in several shops in Thailand. New products are added on a frequent basis, so make sure to visit often and spread the world!

Option 3: Be a guest at Hoshihana Village Guest House!

Adjacent to the orphanage is the beautifully designed and serene, Hoshihana Village Guest House. Built thanks to generous donations from Japanese patrons, all proceeds of overnight stays by guests go toward supporting Ban Rom Sai. Please visit our web-site, to views photographs and descriptions of the guest cottages and make bookings: www.hoshihan-village.org
Come and enjoy a tranquil stay with us!