Serving Senior Missions: Humanitarian Visits in Kohn Kaen,Thailand

From Chiang Mai we flew to Kohn Kaen. We were travelling with Elder and Sister Ellsworth, our Thailand humanitarian missionaries, and Elder and Sister Lyon, the MLS couple of the Kohn Kaen Branch.

View of Kohn Kaen from our hotel window.

There are more than 18,000 members of the Church in Thailand. We visited the chapel in Kohn Kaen - a thriving place!

One of our branch members is Nok. Nok is a registered nurse and works for the Department of Communicable Disease. She is also a trained wheelchair assessor and trains other professionals on proper wheelchair assessments.

Kohn Kaen:

Our first humanitarian project visit was a mosquito net distribution in the village of Bau Thum. This village leader (in military uniform) knows everyone in his village by name.

We were traveling with the Rotary who had made the arrangements for the project distributions and ceremonies.

The Rotary worked with the local government leaders to help identify those in the village who needed nets the most, usually the poor, elderly or disabled.

This woman (left, holding net) suffers from cancer, and was very grateful for her mosquito net. Malaria and dengue fever are very prevalent here.

The second stop was at the village of Ban Nong Takai in the Sa Wa Tee district. One hundred nets were distributed to a very grateful and humble group of villagers.

A spontaneous embrace from a grateful recipient.

This woman's smile depicts her gratitude. I love the nail polish on her nails!

On Saturday November 7^th, we participated in a wheelchair distribution. Nok and two other trained assessors had worked with local government leaders to identify and assess those who could qualify for a wheelchair. Wheelchairs had been ordered according to the assessments, and arrived at the distribution with their names embroidered on the backs of their own individual wheelchairs.

Ms. Da Wan, 45 years old, has been a diabetic for 20 years. Due to complications, two years ago she had the lower part of her right leg amputated. This is the first wheelchair she has owned. It will make a big difference in her life. Her smile tells it all.

This woman (right) has had weakness in her legs due to a car accident 26 years ago. Medical care has not been able to help. She has used a stick to hobble around with great difficulty. This is her first wheelchair too.

This is Wat Pimkamlai (left). She is 73 years old and had a stroke recently. She is learning how to be more mobile and self reliant with the use of a wheelchair. Family members and recipients received training on how to care for the wheelchair and how to maneuver it safely.

At the ceremony to distribute the wheelchairs, the Deputy Mayor of Khon Kaen spoke, as well as other key individuals. St. Josephs, a charitable NGO, helps LDS Charities in these projects by helping get the wheelchairs through customs and store them until they are distributed. It is a triple partnership between LDS Charities, the Rotary, and St. Josephs - a combination that enables hundreds of people to be blessed throughout Thailand.