The warmth of a Scottish heart

Published on Apr 1, 2004

Two years have passed since I met Tracy Cosgrave, a widowed philanthropist from Scotland. We ran into each other first at the Pattaya Marriott Beach Resort and later at the Hard Rock Hotel.

Last year, she was awarded the "Scotswoman Award of 2003" by The Evening Times. The award recognises women whose personal courage and dedication towards others has been inspirational.

Recently I learned that this "Angel in Disguise", as she is called by many destitute Thai children, will be bringing along three pupils and one teacher, winners of a "Schools Challenge Educational Adventure Trip", partly sponsored by Thai Airways International, when she comes back to Thailand in June.

"It isn't often Tracy is lost for words - but even she was stunned into silence when she was named the 'Evening Times Scotswoman of the Year 2003'," says journalist Linda Robertson.

Cosgrave confirms her amazement. "I couldn't believe it I was speechless," says the mother of Paul, 14, and Melissa, 12.

Yet the choice of Cosgrave is easily understood if you know that she has been putting all her efforts into making life better for hundreds of forgotten Thai children, whom she discovered three years ago. All were living in slums and sewers and were condemned to hopeless lives.

Through the Melissa Cosgrove Foundation, which is named after her daughter, she raises money for Burmese refugee children, kids with HIV/Aids in Chiang Mai and street children in Pattaya.

I met Cosgrove and her two offspring in 2001 when the three were stopping over on a seven-month trip. The original plan - a three-month visit to China - had been on the cards long before but in 1998 her husband, Brian, tragically died in a road accident. He was 36. Tracy postponed the trip but in 2001 she and her children set off.

"You could say that making the trip was picking up where Brian would have left off," she says.

In Pattaya, while visiting a school for the blind, she had an encounter she will never forget.

Feeling a tug at her sleeve, she looked down to see a little boy... and burst into tears."He had no eyes - just sockets.

"I've never seen anything as touching as this little lad - I couldn't stop the tears rolling down my face.

"As I cried, he hugged me tighter as if to try to reassure me that everything was fine. Then he put his hand to my face, picked off a tear and placed it where his own eye should be."

Over the past few years, Tracy has taken hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of products to children in Thailand.

The famous soccer teams, Rangers and Celtic, have chipped in - "both have been immense" - and she fondly recalls the day when refugee children were presented with Celtic pyjamas and teddy bears. "They sleep on the floor. That was the first time they'd worn PJs," she says.

The Scotswoman of the Year award was a highlight for Cosgrove, and the nine months that have followed have been busy."It has been an amazing year so far and the award has made a huge difference, it has unlocked everything.

"So many people have offered to help me and when I meet companies most of them have already read about me in the paper, which means I'm not starting from the beginning.

"The award has given me a much bigger profile and there's no way I would have achieved this much without it."

Her biggest project this year is an entrepreneurial challenge for Glasgow schoolchildren with a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Thailand as the prize.

Fifteen schools are taking part - 250 children in primary classes six and seven and up to the third year in secondary school.

They're working on business plans to find money for the Thai children and their challenge is to look at different ways of fundraising.

"The winners will be the team with the best idea and business plan - it won't be judged on who's made the most money because it's all about getting them to think. The children are coming up with fabulous ideas and they're so enthusiastic about it. But we couldn't have done it without our sponsors, such as School Trends Sheffield, the Hard Rock Pattaya, the Marriott Resort and Spa and Imperial Mae Ping hotels."

Three pupils and a teacher will win an all-expenses paid trip to Thailand for 12 days. They'll set off on June 14 to visit the projects in Bangkok, Pattaya and Chiang Mai, and will also be taken on trips by the Thai Tourism Authority.

In the meantime, Cosgrove's been working hard to fill a 15-metre container, which will be shipped, free of charge, to Thailand by P&O Nedlloyd.

"One freight import and export company, Uniserve, gave me the container and it has taken months to fill," she says.

"There are thousands of items, worth more than £150,000 (Bt10.68 million). There are clothes, toys and furniture. I was even given a new sofa from Harvey's for the HIV-infected children. There's no furniture in their home except beds, so they'll love it. I can't wait for them to see it all."

Cosgrave is also intending to visit the World Aids Conference being held in Bangkok in July. "An event management company, Darwin Grey Communications, is working on behalf of a major pharmaceutical company for the conference and their exhibition stand has been designed like a Thai garden with water features, benches and plants.

"They've said that they will hand it over to our charity and replant it so that it can get used at the centre for the street kids, who have no gardens.

"Brian Davis, managing director of the award's sponsors, Nambarrie Tea Company, said: "Tracy was thoroughly deserving of last year's award."

But she still can't believe that her time as Scotswoman of the Year has ended.

"It has been a great year and the children have enjoyed it too. They're so proud of me, which is lovely.

"They like telling people that their mum is the Scotswoman of the Year!"

Ken Ywin
The Nation