The Fr. Ray Foundation is an umbrella organisation named after its founding member, the Redemptorist priest, Father Raymond Brennan. Since its establishment the foundation has managed to successfully change and save the lives of thousands of children, teenagers and adults who have been abandoned in Thailand.
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Established in 1984, with its primary purpose to offer vocational training courses for physical disabled people aged 17 – 35 years. To date the School has successfully graduated over 2,000 students who are now earning a living and contributing to Thai Society.
Established in 1986, the purpose of the school is to give an education at primary and secondary levels to those children who are blind or severely partially sighted. To date more than 400 students have graduated.
Established in 1990, the aim of the Home is to provide assistance to under-privileged children who lack proper care from their own families. In the Home, children shall have a normal daily living, access to an education, medical assistance and good quality meals. As in all programs where there is a family breakdown, it is the goal of the Foundation to re-unite the family and assist them to maintain their family life.
Opened in 2004, as a temporary shelter to help homeless kids who have broken from their family for whatever reason are not living in families by providing 4 basic human needs, psychological rehabilitation, and counseling aspects leading to better quality of life.
Recently opened on September 6, 2008, aiming to provide assistance and care to those orphaned and less fortunated children aged from birth to 12 years old. Ensuring that they will grow up with good daily livings under proper care of guardians with warmth and happiness like other normal families.
Latest project recently opened on September 11, 2008, providing caring services for small children aged 2 – 5 years old whom are from poor families living in risk environmental areas. By giving caring assistance during the day while their parents need to leave them home for work to earn livings.
The home for the elderly no longer accepts new residents. It provided a safe home, living accommodations, food and medical care to elderly displaced persons who for whatever reason had trouble establishing their citizenship and hence were not qualified for government care.
Until recently, the Father Ray Foundation operated The Pattaya Orphanage. The orphanage was the first project of the many projects started by Fr. Ray. Due to complications with the owners of the land on which the orphanage was established, the Fr Ray Foundation turned over operation of the orphanage to the Diocese
Father Raymond Brennan was a Redemptorist Priest born in the USA who in 1972 was requested to assist at the local church, St. Nikolaus church, Pattaya. One morning while opening the doors of the church he found a newborn child lying on the stairway. Not knowing what to do, he took the child and began to provide it with the care and love it deserved. Word of his generosity soon spread across Pattaya resulting in more children being brought to him. Most of the children presented to Fr. Ray were the offspring of Thai women and US servicemen who were stationed at the U.S. military base at Sattahip during the Vietnam war.
Father Ray grew concerned about the sudden boom in "war babies" and began to visit the U.S. military in Thailand in the hope of finding ways and means of aid to care for the children. Father Ray held meetings with several officers in the army which resulted in representatives from the army and Father Ray himself visiting Bishop Thienchai Samanchit, the Bishop of the Chanthaburi Diocese at the Bishop’s House, Si Racha. During these visits, Father Ray informed the Bishop that the American veterans wanted to build a home for the children in Pattaya and present it to the Diocese, of which Father Ray Brennan would be the manager. Fully aware of the task ahead Bishop Thienchai Samanchit replied, “It is not difficult for you to build a home for orphans and then wash your hand and go home, while it is not known where the Diocese will get money from to feed those orphans”.
After producing 500,000 baht to pay for the management of the orphans, the Diocese passed a resolution accepting the Pattaya Orphanage to belong to the Diocese. Construction of the orphanage began immediately and on October 24, 1978, the Governor of Chonburi Province issued the Pattaya Orphanage establishment license. Official adoption from the orphanage was granted on March 27, 1981, when permission was received for the orphanage "to be a child welfare organization operating for the adoption of both Thai and foreign children."
Through the years, Father Ray added a School for the Deaf on the Orphanage property. Then he obtained another piece of ground and established an Old Peoples Home and a Vocational School for the Disabled, then a School for the Blind on another property and finally a Street Kids program on yet another property.
In 2003 a weekly British tabloid The People accused Father Brennan of offering indirect but clear advise to paedophiles and of expressing acceptance of sexual misconduct towards children. The means was two journalists who - as part of a three month undercover investigation - presented themselves under bogus identities as a wealthy lottery winner called Robert Merlin and his friend Kenneth Draper who wished to make a large donation to the orphanage. The newspaper published a taped recording allegedly from a poolside conversation with Father Brennan in which he seemingly had no reservations against adult males with inapporprate interest in underage boys, and even suggested a location in Pattaya where to contact boys. Also Father Brennan allegedly offered practical advise on how to avoid law enforcement investigation of video recordings of boys. The accusations were strongly rejected by co-workers at the Pattaya Orphanege. (See http://www.mail-archive.com/ctrl@listserv.aol.com/msg102428.html)
Since its creation the orphanage has continued to strive and develop. In 1995, a 3-storey building was constructed as the lodging or boys and mentors.
In 1999, a 5-story building was constructed as a learning place of Sot Pattana (Audio Development) Kindergarten for dumb and deaf children and as the lodging of both male and female small orphans.
In 2001, a 2-storey building was constructed, the lower floor being the dining hall, the upper floor being the multi-purpose meeting hall, the last piece of construction for the Pattaya Orphanage.
The Fr Ray Foundation is a Thai Foundation. It receives support from many other international organizations. Among there are:
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