Visit to Myanmar (Burma) April 2008
Supporters of the Melissa Cosgrove Children's Foundation (MCCF) put huge smiles on the faces of a group of Burmese children when they visited neighbouring Myanmar last week.
The not for profit foundation, run by Pattaya-based Tracy Cosgrove and named after her daughter Melissa, supports impoverished children in Thailand and Myanmar (formerly Burma).
Over the past six years Tracy has rebuilt an orphanage, a kindergarten and a nursery in a small village about a four hour drive from Myanmar's capital Yangon. She also supports a monastic school in the area.
Last week she was joined by a multinational group of MCCF supporters including people from England, Scotland, Italy and the United States.
Tracy said: "There were a lot of people who wanted to go and see what is happening in Burma and I think it is important for people to see it with their own eyes."
When the group arrive in the village they are taken to the monastic school where 60 novice monks and another 20 children from the township await in eager anticipation the arrival of the foreigners.
There is a formal greeting from the township elders and Abbot, the financial donations are handed over and formally registered and then the fun begins.
Two suitcases full of toys, sweets, balloons, paper and pens are unpacked. The children watch with delight as a bubble machine fills the dark monastery with airy suds of soap, a table is pulled out and a crowd of excited young faces wait in turn as beads are threaded together to make necklaces and bracelets, a balloon escapes and screams over the youngsters' heads filling the room with laughter.
Then the two bouncy skyhoppers are pumped up and within minutes the novice monks are hiking up their robes and the races have begun.
For the next few hours the room is filled with a cacophony of laughter and sheer joy as everyone from the youngest child to the oldest adult just has fun.
When it is time to leave the children stand and wave until the minibus is a dot of dust on the road. They won't forget that day for a long time to come and nor will their visitors.
Bob, a retired decorator from Manchester, sums up the feeling of the group when he says "I am totally devastated by what I have seen today. I have never seen poverty like this before. I'm glad I came but so depressed as well.
"People shouldn't be expected to live like this in the 21st century, this is a totally different world that I wouldn't have known existed if I hadn't come here today."
Making a difference to the lives of children in a country like Myanmar is not easy and on a large scale seems overwhelming. Yet Tracy has her next project lined up before the group leave the village.
She explained: "The monastery supports 10 girls from the township who are orphans, before when they were young they would sleep there as well but now the eldest is 15 the Abbot quite rightly feels it is inappropriate for them to share the same sleeping area as the novice monks.
"He told me that now the girls are sleeping in the homes of some of the villagers but they are vulnerable.
"So I want to build a sleeping quarters for the girls with a separate shower block and toilet and also install a generator so the monastery has power."
She estimates the cost will be around $12,000 and before leaving meets with the British Ambassador to Burma to discuss applying for funding.
Tracy adds: "It was a very positive meeting, he seemed interested in what the charity has done already, what I need to do now is find businesses or a sponsor to match-fund as they will look on an application which already has some financial support more favourably."
If you or your company are interested in supporting the work MCCF is doing in Myanmar or in Thailand please contact Tracy Cosgrove - info@mccf.uk.com - for more details.
