Education Fund - Thailand

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In April 2019 Rod and Cathy Hearps cycled 500km in six days, ending at Hands Across the Water (HATW) funded New Life Home near Kanchanaburi in Thailand. Rod is VP Asia Pacific for ICEF, and Cathy is Financial Controller for ICEF Asia Pacific.

To support this worthy cause, the ICEF Education Fund donated AU$ 4 200 on behalf of every organisation that booked a table or a booth at ICEF Australia New Zealand 2019 in Darwin. By joining the ride, Rod and Cathy raised another AU$ 10 934, bringing the ICEF Education Fund’s total contribution to AU$ 15 134 towards over AU$ 380 000 raised by the group of 65 riders.

Rod and Cathy personally financed every aspect of the ride, including travel to, and within, Thailand. 100% of every sponsorship dollar will support the provision of services to HATW homes and projects, without one cent being spent on administrative, overheads, or other costs.

Special thanks to ICEF clients who contributed: Keith Segal (guard.me International Insurance), Timothy Eckenfels (International House Sydney City, Bondi, Darwin and Melbourne), Shayaz Khan (Bluesky Immigration & Students Consultancy Services), David Scott (English Language Company), Jeff Laband (Center For International Career Development), Eleri Maitland (French in Normandy), Peter Campbell (Export Vision), The PIE, Marcom Connect, Richard Brown (BROWNS English Language School), Ueli Stauffer (Cairns College of English and Business), Sean Mahoney (International College of Advanced Education), Diana Van Woerkom (Australian Internships), James Cowan (Edvisor.io), Ross Mason (Envisage International), Langports, Robert Parsonson (edex - Education Export Services), Brett Blacker (English Australia), David Bycroft (MyStay International), Aan Bratkovic (NEAS), Bernice Camilleri (Schools & Agents), Mark Raven (New Horizons Australia Institute of Technology), Sasha Hampson (Pearson Australia), Marco Di Agostino (OrbitLingua), Jochen Ostermann (Global Secutive LLC), Maria Castro (Linguland / Study Advisor Education Group GmbH), Tamsin Plaxton (Tamwood International), Jo Kwai (TAFE Queensland Brisbane), and Stefan Hofmann (Australian Institute of Higher Education).

We also acknowledge the many ICEF staff and personal friends of Rod and Cathy who supported the cause.

About Hands Across the Water (HATW)

Social enterprise HATW was launched after a devastating tsunami struck the west coast of Thailand and neighbouring countries, in 2004, leaving hundreds of Thai children orphaned. HATW currently finances the operation of seven homes for children across Thailand. To date, HATW has raised over AU$20 million to support children in Thailand, and now cares for more than 350 children. These include orphans, children with HIV, and victims of sex trafficking. In addition to providing shelter, food, and security, HATW focuses on giving children choices and education. Since the launch of the charity, 47 children have been provided scholarships to undertake higher education and training. Many return to work with HATW, as both an expression of their gratitude, and an ongoing commitment to community service.