Posted by John Schorr on Jan 01, 2020

Chiang Mai International Rotary Club (CMIRC)-Kru Payu and Safe Child Thailand Children’s Water Safety and Drowning Prevention Program (CWSDPP)

Sponsored By CMIRC, The Swiss Lanna Society, The Safe Child Thailand Foundation, the British Community in Thailand Foundation for the Needy, and the Thai Thaim Foundation/Rotary Club of Park Rapids, Minnesota, USA

Potentially great news to start the new year! We have a new NGO that wants to partner with us:

Goggles for Guppies

Here’s a description of what they will provide us in an email from Goggles for Guppies project director Mike Hales, Executive Director, Goggles for Guppies a 501(c)(3) Charitable Organization:

“We would be delighted to work with you and the Chiang Mai International Rotary Club Children’s Water Safety and Drowning Prevention Program. We are well aware of the very high accidental childhood drowning statistics throughout Asia and your wonderful efforts to provide water safety instruction to fourth graders in Thailand is a perfect example of why Goggles for Guppies exists.

"We are an all-volunteer nonprofit distributor of manufacturer and retailer-donated swimsuits, swim caps and goggles to learn-to-swim and water safety programs for underprivileged, financially challenged children. Donations to Goggles for Guppies cover the operating expenses of transportation, inventory management, storage, packaging and shipping to qualified donors within the United States. Our equipment is shipped domestically via USPS Flat Rate Priority Mail.“

They are based in Laguna Hills, California, and their one concern is international shipping, so if you have some ideas please contact me: johnschorr@hotmail.com . Are there California Rotary Clubs that could help? Are there travelers willing to pack some suits or goggles?

They ship the following items and request a $50 donation/box to cover their costs:

a box of 20 mixed (male and female) suits: new briefs, jammers, one-piece and/or two-piece suits, or a box of 20 silicone / latex swim caps, or a box of 20 new swim goggles.

This is very high-quality equipment and will allow us to replace aging equipment at all of our programs in Thailand.

The Chiang Mai International Rotary Club Children’s Water Safety and Drowning Prevention Program kids and our great swim teachers are back in the pools here in Chiang Mai! We have already completed 15-hours of swim instruction for 4th-graders at six of the eleven Chiang Mai Municipality Schools. This year we will teach between 250 and 300 Chiang Mai Municipal School children survival swimming and water safety.

For those who want to see the certificate ceremony for the 150 children in the first six classes, save the date: Thursday, January 30. 9:30 am to 12:00 noon, Wat Pha Pang School. Please contact me if you plan to attend: johnschorr@hotmail.com .

Also news in 2020 is the fact that CMIRC with the help of an individual Rotarian is developing a new program at the BanYa Migrant Learning Centre in Phuket. We are planning to begin the program in June of this year, and if successful, it will continue to operate in the future under the auspices of CMIRC.

Swiss Lanna Society Chiang Mai

We have completed the Swiss Lanna Society-funded portion of our Chiang Mai Municipal School swim classes at the Bronco Kids Sport Club and the certificate ceremony for about 150, 4th-grade program graduates will be on January 30 (see above for contact and event information) These events are always fun, and the Swiss have some special presents for their sponsored kids, so this ceremony should be even more fun.

 

The British Community in Thailand Foundation for the Needy (BCTFN) Water Safety and Drowning Prevention Program in Phrao is completed for this year. We will award certificates to the BCTFN-funded 4th-graders on Monday, January 20th, in Phrao, time and location have not been finalized. Approximately 140, 4th-graders in the municipal elementary school will receive certificates and medals. Please contact me if you would like to attend, since we will arrange transportation: johnschorr@hotmail.com .

 

Plans for the remaining Safe Child Thailand CWSDPP funds are being developed. We will announce these once approval from Safe Child Thailand has been received.