Calling out as we enter the yard, Kanyarat (Ung) comes out and shyly says 'hi.' While we wait on the porch, she goes in to the family home to get her mom, Mrs. Laddawan, and her grandparents. They are watching one of Thailand’s popular soap operas.
Ung was not born when her father passed away from AIDS. This is the only home and family she knows. She is now 12 and in the 6th grade. She is doing well at Sanamaeng, Ban Chae Chang School. Her grandparents share with pride that she is treated well as school where she is has good relationships with her teachers as well as many friends. "I want to be a nurse so I can help others like me and my mom."
Her grandma has diabetes and is doing okay with her daily schedule of medicine. She no longer works outside or inside their home. Her granddad continues to work his rice fields along with taking care of everyone within his home, which includes his granddaughter’s mom, who is HIV positive. She was working until recently when upper respiratory issues prevented her from continuing.
Besides the Health Gold Card, they receive little financial support from the Thai government. He receives 700 baht x 2 and 500 x 2, which he puts away in a saving account. He shared with us as we sat outside their modest home, “I do not depend on the government to take care of my family or me. I look for little jobs around the community, such as cutting firewood to sell to my neighbors, to make extra money for my family because what I get from the government is not enough.”
Ung was not born when her father passed away from AIDS. This is the only home and family she knows. She is now 12 and in the 6th grade. She is doing well at Sanamaeng, Ban Chae Chang School. Her grandparents share with pride that she is treated well as school where she is has good relationships with her teachers as well as many friends. "I want to be a nurse so I can help others like me and my mom."
Her grandma has diabetes and is doing okay with her daily schedule of medicine. She no longer works outside or inside their home. Her granddad continues to work his rice fields along with taking care of everyone within his home, which includes his granddaughter’s mom, who is HIV positive. She was working until recently when upper respiratory issues prevented her from continuing.
Besides the Health Gold Card, they receive little financial support from the Thai government. He receives 700 baht x 2 and 500 x 2, which he puts away in a saving account. He shared with us as we sat outside their modest home, “I do not depend on the government to take care of my family or me. I look for little jobs around the community, such as cutting firewood to sell to my neighbors, to make extra money for my family because what I get from the government is not enough.”
Both his granddaughter and her mom are on antiretroviral (ARV) drugs and are doing well with them. They must go every two months to have their CD4 count checked to ensure that they are staying healthy. The cost of transportation has slowly gone up causing some concern on Mr. Boonrueng’s part. It takes three taxis to get to the correct hospital.
GCPP’s Spaniard, Alberto, is Ung’s sponsor. He visits on a regular basis and they appear to have developed a good relationship. It is the family and GCPP’s hope that he will see her through her high school graduation and then on to her college graduation.