Sadness behind the beauty
Sangklaburi is located along the Thai-Myanmar border. The region is home to immense beauty along with immense social problems. Below is some information on our situation and solutions. You can also find out more about.

A Community Without a Country
This area is home to many refugees fleeing war, forced labor and poverty in Burma/Myanmar. Leaving family and community behind has destroyed the support network for families and exacerbated the immense challenges they face when relocating to a foreign country and culture.

Upon arrival in Thailand, Burmese immigrants are restricted to living in a small region around the border where they encounter discrimination and a lack of jobs. Access to medical treatment and public education is minimal as immigrants face great barriers receiving social services without legal papers. Most of the children at Baan Unrak have either come from Burma or were born in Thailand but lack legal papers claiming their national identity.

Alcohol, drug and spousal abuse
Rampant alcohol and drug abuse are problems in our community. Tolerance of spousal abuse is also common in this area. Abandonment of children born in prior relationships is a routine occurrence in this region. Poverty exacerbates these problems.

HIV
HIV/AIDS is also a significant problem as many men travel to find work in urban areas where they visit prostitutes and become infected. Then, they transmit it to their wives and unborn children. Women are sometimes forced into prostitution due to lack of employment prospects making them at high risk to contract HIV. This leads to one or both parents dying or being too weak to care for their children.

Baan Unrak takes care of those children and mothers in need

Baan Unrak opened in an effort to protect the growing number of abandoned and orphaned children in the area, and grew to include 130 children, ranging from 4 to 23 years old. The biggest children are living in Chiang Mai or in Bangkok to study. Baan Unrak promotes the physical and psychological health and happiness for all these children.

We also support the women in need

Furthermore we believe that the best place for a baby is with it's mother and every effort is taken to keep families intact. Therefore we provide basic needs for mothers with their children in our home. To give them a future besides Baan Unrak, we teach them English and opened a sewing-center to provide them and residents from the local community with job-skills.

But Baan Unrak does not forget the other needy in Sangkhlaburi

We provide temporary food assistance for those in extreme need. Natural medicines are provided for the ill. In some emergencies, we pay for treatment, including surgeries, for those who have nowhere else to turn.