TLCB Assistance 2001 and our ongoing support of

Fellow Members. Recently The TLC Brotherhood Assistance Program has undertaken the following projects in Southeast Asia:

Vichit Mingrachata, TLC Brotherhood Assistance Committee Deputy Assistant Chairman - Thailand, delivered the other day, our new 150 desks to Thai-Rae (Thare) St. Joseph's School today. The desks were requested by the Sisters who run the school as the primary need. These desks were manufactured on the local economy and purchased by donations made to the TLC Brotherhood Assistance Fund. Each desk was inscribed stating it has been donated by the TLC Brotherhood in memory of our fallen Brothers.

Vichit is also undertaking a visit to the Udorn School for the Hearing Impaired, where 378 children will be hosted to a dinner next Tuesday Jan. 30, 2001 consisting of Som Tam (cook ripe papaya) and roasted chicken with sticky rice and some fruit as this is their favorite meal.

All of these events have been accomplished because of the participation of members of the TLC Brotherhood, without whom none of this would have been possible. There is much time and effort put forth to insure your donations are expended on worthy projects which reach out in a meaningful manner to aid the people of SEA and honor the memory of our Brothers.

If you have not previously considered submission of a donation with the renewal of your dues perhaps the outstanding accomplishments we have achieved will motivate you toward directly making a difference! All donations are tax deductible, and we check our mailbox weekly. ;-)

John Sweet
Assistance Committee Chairman
56th Special Operations Wing
Tactical Units Operations Center
1987th Comm Nakhon Phanom 69-70
Air Commando Assoc. # 2924

In Thailand, contact has been established by Vichit with John Middlewood, formerly with the 56th USAF Hospital at NKP now retired and a missionary living in a small village outside NKP. He has married a local girl and is building a house while teaching English to the village children. The Board of Directors authorized a donation of one hundred dollars for his projects within the school and Vichit delivered these funds the other day and explained our requirements for receipts etc. If all goes well there is the possibility of major assistance to John's projects in the future.

At the Udorn School for Hearing Impaired Children, Vichit arranged a dinner for the children of their favorite meal, Som Tam (cook ripe papaya) and roasted chicken with sticky rice. There are almost 400 children at the school who enjoyed their feast on February 9th.

At St. Joseph's School, Thare, on January 25, 2001 l50 sets of desks and chairs were delivered by Vichit which had been manufactured on the local economy for the TLC Brotherhood. Total cost in Baht 83,081. There will be pictures supplied later, which have yet to arrive.

Milk and cake has also been provided for the students at the handicapped school in Phone Phisay Rehabilitation Center, Nongkhai Province by Vichit and Mrs. Tommy Thompson during a trip made for instructional care to parents of the more than 100 children at the school.

At this time, a hand peddle car was procured which had been especially manufactured for the TLC Brotherhood for only 2,500 Baht (about $60) which has now been delivered to a handicapped beggar in Udorn who has never had any assistance and was so happy and grateful to the TLC Brotherhood. This is a splendid example of how the TLCB is changing the lives of so many who are not reached by other organizations in a major way with little expense. I have asked Vichit to provide a picture of the girl an information on her life for the web site.

John Sweet
Assistance Committee Chairman
56th Special Operations Wing
Tactical Units Operations Center
1987th Comm Nakhon Phanom 69-70
Air Commando Assoc. # 2924

Shoes - Nikhon Son Kroa School, community welfare school - presented to students Feb 20, 2001. No totals on the socks and shoes as the receipt has not been translated yet.

Tommy - picture of Tommy with Director of the Udorn School for Hearing Impaired taken the day of the food fest.

Desks - three pictures of the 150 desks and chairs at Thare donated recently by the TLC Brotherhood. The pictures are not very sharp but the writing on the desks and chairs reads "To Our Fallen Brothers TLC"

John Sweet
Assistance Committee Chairman
56th Special Operations Wing
Tactical Units Operations Center
1987th Comm Nakhon Phanom 69-70
Air Commando Assoc. # 2924

Photo of John Oles who along with wife tagged along with Vichit, Dale Wages, the new Post 10249 Commander and another VFW member and his wife to the Nongkai Home for Boys to deliver 117 pairs of rubber shoes to boys from 7-18 at the home/school.

Photo of Joy Silabut with her peddle car manufactured for sixty dollars by the TLC Brotherhood. Joy is 30 years old and has one daughter age l2. Joy became handicapped during the birth of her daughter. Together they earn money for necessities cleaning and washing laundry but do not have a permanent address.
Pedi-car

Photo of food distribution packages provided by the TLC and delivered by John Middlewood at a small village near Nakhon Phanom. The Students will be selected by teachers each month. Criteria is based on need and active participation in learning, not necessarily students with high grades, but those who are trying as an incentive for students to try harder in school and see a reward for their hard work as well as a way to help support their families.

Photo of the students under the tutoraige of John Middlewood, at a small village near NKP who were provided school uniforms by the TLC Brotherhood. Students were selected from Grades pre-K through 6th grade by a committee of teachers from the school and John Middlewood. Selection was based on financial need.

Picture of the repaired playground equipment at the school outside NKP where John Middlewood teaches English to the children. This equipment was refurbished by TLC Brotherhood Assistance donations.

On Friday, August 24th, your Assistance Committee, upon approval of the TLC Board of Directors, made an emergency donation of several tons of rice, plus various cooking utensils and some mosquito netting, to flood victims in three tiny villages in the Kasi and Vang Viang Districts of Laos. The rice we bought will support eight families whose former homes are now a new riverbed, and a larger number of subsistence farmers in other villages where their homes survived but the rice fields they depend on are now under two meters of mud.

This gesture came about after Jim Michener read about local flood damage in Lao newspapers and contacted the US embassy in Vientiane to see how we could help. The embassy put Jim in touch with the chief of the Lao PDR National Disaster Management Office, and the Assistance Committee moved quickly. With the help of Party officials Jim surveyed the flood damage and met local leaders and villagers at storage buildings in Vang Viang and Kasi where the rice had been brought and stored. Enthusiastic local officials were astounded to receive this desperately needed help so quickly—and from Americans. This was TLC Brotherhood Assistance at work, and a major break though for us in Laos where the people you have helped are deeply grateful already.

This map is a close-up of the area. Note that the villages and areas damaged by the floods all lie along Route 13.

Map by Jim Henthorn and Project MapScan. A more general overview of the area may be found HERE

Ban Yao Bridge: Note the big "no entry w/o permission" sign at other end of bridge. Police are checking a car in the distance where the road begins to disappear to the right.

Ban Yao Stream Bed: Several houses remain against the bank of the road. Note the posts this side of them that used to support the houses that were washed away. Police checkpoint seen in first photo would be near the house in the extreme right.

Note the diameter of one of the trees that came down the mountain. No more wires on the electric poles--electric truck and crew can be seen in the distance. Road crews had already shoved debris from the road--was told the basic clearing process took a week, that sections of Route 13 North were impassable for day.

Meeting with Jim Michener prior to the ceremonies are (L to R) Jim, the Vang Viang District Governor, Ban Yao local resident, Bounmy - a retired LPRP official, and the NDMO district representative for Vang Viang.

Ban Yao Presentation Ceremony. (L to R)NDMO district representative for Vang Viang, three villagers, Bounmy - a retired LPRP official, Jim Michener, the Vang Viang District Governor, villager, NDMO Director Phetsavang, another group of villagers, and the NDMO Prefecture Representative for Vientiane (back turned). Members of the 8 households whose houses were destroyed are in the picture. Rice is behind us. Field tools and household goods (pots, etc.) are behind my feet. The building behind us is new (had to be built to store relief supplies).

Kasi Presentation Ceremony. (L to R) Unknown, Bounmy - a retired LPRP official, NDMO district representative for Kasi, Kasi District Governor, Jim Michener, NDMO Director Phetsavang, NDMO Prefecture Representative for Vientiane, unknown(2).

TLC-B Assistance Committee Representative Jim Michener at his desk, preparing his report to John Sweet.

Now that the immediate needs have been met, John Sweet and the rest of the committee will consider the long-range help we may provide to Vang Viang and Kasi Districts. The tiny village that was swept away will need everything, including a new site. We are working with the National Disaster Management Office director to define a role that will be directly helpful and fully accountable.

Although TLC Brotherhood Assistance resources were adequate to meet this need without harming our efforts within Thailand, contributions from the membership and other sources are needed and always appreciated. Remember, your donations are tax deductible as the TLC Brotherhood is a 501(c)3 non-profit charity. The TLC Brotherhood has been given a certificate of appreciation from the Lao Government for enhancing Lao-American relations.

Subject: Fw: TLC Donation

Dear Board and Committee Members, Delbert, Vichit & John

I am forwarding this e-mail (just in to all of you) - it conveys the spirit, intent and achievement of your work on behalf of the TLC Brotherhood Assistance program: I hope you have Word and can open the attachment to view the great pictures! Perhaps you could add this material to the Assistance Page of the TLC Web Site Jim? It's outstanding in every way!

Dale Wages, newly appointed Commander of Udorn VFW Post 10249 undertook a project with Vichit, our Deputy Assistance Committee Chairman - Thailand and Post Adj., Delbert Marohl who was also very much involved (his wife attended this very school almost 40 years ago) took these pictures of the delivery of the following items for Bahn Non Sawan School:

                                        ITEM                    COST EA        REQUESTED    COST
                                          Fans                      $18.18            10                    $181.18
                                         Chair & tables        $15.90            40                       477.27
                                         Bikes                      $27.27             4                       109.09
                                         Type written           $68.18             1                         68.18
                                         Balls                       $ 6.18               4                         27.27
                                         Book shelves         $22.72              5                        113.63

                                              TOTAL COST                                                  $976.62

We are extremely thankful to have such wonderful continued support with the newly elected officers of Post 10249. The former Post Commander, Forrest Williams and former Post Adj. John Oles continue in direct support of our programs and Forrest continues Project Crutch!
We wish all the members of the post a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year with the blessings of love they have so provided to the surrounding community in Udorn!

Warmest Personal Regards

John Sweet
TLC Brotherhood Vice President
Assistance Committee Chairman

----- Original Message -----
From: "Delbert Marohl" <udornvfw@hotmail.com>
To: <jsweet@thepipeline.net>
Cc: <bobbyphon@cfi.net>
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2001 7:26 PM
Subject: TLC Donation

John
Thanks to the TLC Brotherhood we have another Thai School that has a little bit more. The staff at Bahn Non Sawan School was elated by your donation and wanted me to express their great appreciation.
Here are a few of the pictures I took at the school.
Thanks!

Delbert N. Marohl
Adjutant Post 10249
Udorn, Thailand

During the year 2001, Vichit Mingrachata, Deputy Assistant Chairman - Thailand, with the assistance of VFW Post 10249 provided direct aid to the many hundreds of children at the Nongkhai Home for Boys, Udorn Home for Girls, Udorn Home for Hearing Impaired Children, Udorn Poor Children's Home, Ban Pha Sing School, Ban Yang Law School, Udorn Northeastern Mentally Relief Center, and Bahn Non Sawan School. Expenditures in the Udorn area amounted to 258,390 Baht (@ 45 per dollar) or $5,742.00 which includes funds on location in Thailand for current projects.

During the year 2001, John Middlewood, Assistant Deputy for Nakhon Phanom, provided over 538 jackets to the children in villages surrounding Nakhon Phanom . John delivered over 100 school uniforms, 80 sleeping mats, repairs to playground equipment, computer and sound lab repairs, provided 14 new sound lab stations, notebooks and pencils, monthly food programs at several schools, sports equipment and educational toys. A bicycle and sporting good equipment were also delivered to a Secondary School located at Takhet, Laos. Contributions in the Nakhon Phanom area amounted to 257,625 Baht (@ 45 per dollar) or $5,725.00, which includes funds on location in Thailand for current projects.

James Michener, Assistant Chairman - Laos, planned and delivered our first assistance project within the People's Democratic Republic of Laos, working with the Disaster Management Office to aid the villages surrounding Kasi. Over $1,700 worth of aid in supplies and rice has been provided and A follow up visit will be conducted soon.

Kids with 125 Jackets passed out December 2001 by John Middlewood at Ban Na Moon Hin Elementary School

Some of the 120 children at Ban Na Ratchakwai Pre-School & Elementary School with their jackets

Twelve Dozen Pencils & Notebooks delivered to Ban Na Ratchakwai Elementary School

Udorn Northwestern Mental Relief Center donations of UHT Milk, Milo and Ovaltine for the children provided by TLC Brotherhood and delivered by Assistance Committee Deputy Assistant Chairman - Thailand, Vichit Mingrachata and Post 10249 Commander, Dale Wages

Udorn Northeastern Mentally Relief Center Principal and Post 10249 Commander, Dale Wages

Some of the 478 children at Udorn School for Hearing Impaired enjoying their noodle soup provided by the TLC Brotherhood and deliverd by Vichit and Dale

In December, Post 10249 hosted their Annual Christmas Party in cooperation with the TLC Brotherhood. The TLC provided 120 pairs of Boy Scout socks, 236 pairs of white socks, 40 pairs of rubber shoes, 80 T-Shirts, 6 pairs of underwear as well as candy, cookies and balloons for eighty children

As you know on the 23rd of Dec VFW Post 10249 held it's annual Christmas Party for the local community. It was a big success and thanks to the generous donations we received this year, everyone had a great time (especially the 85 boys from the Nong Khai Orphanage). On behalf of the Udorn VFW Post I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a Happy Holiday Season and thank you for all you've done to make this years activities ones to remember. The attachment is a few pictures from the Party.

Thanks!
Delbert N. Marohl
Post Adjutant.

Our Annual Christmas party was very successful.....in many ways! We had some of the coolest daytime weather of the year, which was a blessing compared to previous years where the temp often reached into the low 90's! This year's high was a pleasant 78. Our 6'11" Santa came from Khonkaen again.....and passed out 247 wrapped gifts to wide-eyed children from around the area. Included were 70 children from the Nongkai Boy's Home, sponsored by a generous donation from the TLC. We gave these children first dibs on the food, and eat they did! They were a happy bunch, getting full plates of good food, sodas of their choice.....and to top things off, they were welcomed to seconds and thirds! Man, did they eat! Their chaperones allowed them the run of the park......and the boys took advantage of the holiday freedom. When Santa finally arrived, each boy received a wrapped toy, socks, and a bag of snacks.

How It All Started & 1999 Aid	Aid in 2000
Aid in 2001	Aid in 2002
Aid in 2003	Aid in 2004
Aid in 2005	Aid in 2006
Joel Brown's STOCK CAR	NKP DAYS - October 2002