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In the Eye of  

 the Storm

Rebecca Kincade meets a local manintent upon making a difference…

O

n 26 December 2004, when the AsianTsunami occurred, we all watched

the scenes of devastation, stunned bythe quickly-rising death toll. At the time,most of us were motivated to do something,whether it was giving money or donatingclothing and blankets; but human naturemeans we have a way of forgetting andmoving on with our lives, especially whenthose horrendous scenes are no longerflashed in front of us every day.

For Coleraine man Willie Gregg,though, forgetting was not an option. Hewas so moved by what he saw that he

immediately began fundraising, knowingthat raising money back home would be

more worthwhile than hopping on thenext flight to Thailand. Over the past fouryears, Willie has seen what initially beganas a fundraising mission developing into afully registered charity; it is clear that hisdevotion and enthusiasm for this cause hasnot diminished with the passage of time.

Charity starts at home…Meeting Willie Gregg is an experience Iwon’t forget in a hurry. A self-confessedsoftie, he is one of life’s genuinely nice

people, who will go out of his way toanyone in need. The first time I called

him to arrange a meeting, he spoke fominutes of his excitement about the ucoming fundraising projects he had plfor the next few months.

Willie is keen to make people underthat the tsunami was not a crisis that be solved with a quick fix, but rather that needs long-term solutions to rebuwrecked communities and lives. Fullyimmersed in the day-to-day running ocharity, Willie often works long into tnight deciding how the money should

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Ireland. Rather than passing this money onto an already registered charity at home, he

wanted to personally ensure that it went topeople who desperately needed it.

During his time in Thailand, Willie cameacross the Duang Prateep Foundation(DPF), a charity working around the clockto provide homes for many of the childrenorphaned by the tsunami. These children,struggling to come to terms with the loss of parents, grandparents, aunties and uncles,homes, schools and friends, had been leftwith nothing, stranded and alone.

The DPF had originally set up amakeshift village for the children in anagricultural poly-tunnel while they tried

to come up with a more permanent plan.Willie noticed the work they were doingand, satisfied that they were a completelygenuine organisation, presented themwith his cheque. Since then, he has beena fundraiser for this Thai charity andsupports their work with everything hedoes.

His initial funds went towards buildingan orphanage large enough to house20 children; however, many more havesince arrived and it now accommodates

approximately 50 orphans. They receivesponsorship and encouragement with the

education, learn creativity through dramaand music, practise gardening (the growiand selling of orchids is a popular way tomake an income) and find care in a homeatmosphere.

I ask Willie what the atmosphere is likeinside the orphanage; he describes it as“a total circus”, in the same way that anyfamily home with young children shouldbe. Laughter fills the air all day and if onchild is feeling upset, there are plenty of others around to offer support and help.All of these children have one thing incommon; as a result they have formed a

strong bond.

Learning to liveEducation is something Willie places greaimportance on, keen that these childrenwill eventually be completely independenand successful in careers of their choice.Many of the girls want to be nurses, whilthe boys are keen to join the army ornavy. He is particularly pleased that fourchildren they support have managed toreach university - the orphans’ education

be spent and organising publicity,as well as any events which take place in

Northern Ireland to raise funds.When we met back in December, Willie

was in the middle of what soundedlike a million projects in the run-up toChristmas, his mind not occupied by themore frivolous present-buying and cookingplans everyone else had on the go. Betweencollection boxes, raffles and hampers, hewas also setting up an Art Pal scheme toallow children from here to communicatewith the Thai orphans through picturesthey have each drawn. This is a man on amission - and a mission he is determinedwill succeed.

Doing it for the kidsHaving visited Thailand on numerousoccasions before the tsunami, Willie sayshis motivation came from seeing the placeshe had visited and businesses he hadsupported lying in ruins on Boxing Day2004.

So two months later, in February 2005,Willie made his way out to the devastatedPhuket with a cheque in his pocket forover £14,000 raised throughout Northern

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often of a higher standard than those livingwith families, since they are encouraged to

participate in after-school activities and,when they come home, they have a learningroom dedicated to the enhancement of studyand homework.

The hope for all those involved inthe running of the orphanage is thatthe children will all be able to fend forthemselves when they reach 18, so thatthey can begin lives of their own. It isanticipated that some of the children mayeven take over the day-to-day running of the orphanage when they are old enough, sothat it becomes self-perpetuating and self-sufficient.

Willie is incredibly proud of the work andsupport provided by the house surrogatemother, Rotjuna, who he says has “taken onthese children as if they were her own”. Shemakes sure that Willie knows if the childrenneed anything in particular, so that he canorganise either for it to be sent out or formoney to be raised specifically.

And Willie admits that the biggest scarefor the charity came when Rotjuna wasdiagnosed with breast cancer. In order forher to receive the treatment she needed, she

had to be sent to Bangkok for 14 months,where she underwent a mastectomy,

chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Hadshe not survived, Willie says he doesn’tknow how this would have been explainedto children already struggling with suchdevastating loss. Fortunately, Rotjuna camethrough her treatment and is now preparingto travel to Canada to counsel other womensuffering from cancer.

Rotjuna’s support of the children ismost notable for the fact that, just fouryears after the tsunami, she has taught thechildren to trust water again. Trips to anearby waterfall to learn how to swim havebeen vital in the healing process for the kids;

looking at Willie’s photographs of theseexcursions, I am blown away by how happyand playful they all look. I am amazed thatthese little ones are able to go near wateragain - never mind enjoy it - when it oncedisplayed all the fury that left them withnothing.

With his plans for 2009 now comingtogether, Willie knows he has his workcut out for him. In the current economicclimate, people are tightening their pursestrings more and more. The most important

thing Willie sayshe needs right now are goodSamaritans who will commit to a smamonthly donation in order to guaranthis charity continues to thrive.

Already planned for the year aheadwheelie bin race - the first of its kind aone that Willie hopes will be an annuaevent from now on – and a masqueradball at Hallowe'en. He is also organisfor 500 sponsored airborne lanterns treleased on Boxing Night to mark theanniversary of the tsunami. Any mone

raised will be sent directly to the peopmatter, to be spent on their education wellbeing. Even the staff at the orphanor, as Willie calls them, “the unsung hof the tsunami”, work as volunteers sall the money goes towards, simply, wbest for the children.

 

To help Willies Orphan Fund in anyway you can, please tel: 079800049