Organizing fundraising IS HARD! Especially if you have zero experience and try to make it to $5,000 from scratch. But we did it, me, my mom, and my cousin. And it was a massive success. Here’s how we did it and what I have learned..
The Story behind the Project
This project initially aim to help renovate the monk house. Project location is at the forest monastery at Baan Noonyang, Mukdahan province, the northeastern part of Thailand.
Thailand – Febuary 2015, I had received this picture of very old and broken house of the monk from my mom couple weeks ago, telling me she has been trying to do fundraising to help renovate his home with people in the local town of Baan Nonyang Mukdahan Province, my home town, but no one seems to want to help.The monk doesn’t want anyone to spend too much money and only asked if we could simply replace the pillars. But I think the house is too old to just replace the pillars, it could break at anytime with strong enough winds….Can you imagine when it rains…cold winter….
So I want to start this project. And I believe that with all my friends and all of you, I think we can help and change the monk’s life and this will help him continue to impact the world for a better place to live.
What is the plan?
Surely, the pillars will be replaced. But after 30 years, much more needs attention.
The whole roof will be taken off and replaced. The cloth walls will be re-covered to include the first floor and second floor. Although the old monk insists on having only a 2nd floor, the doctor has been trying to encourage him not walk on stairs too much. So the first level will be given a proper floor, and covered. We also want to provide a toilet so he doesn’t have to walk further to go to a separate toilet in the dark moon light.
If we still have money left, I’d like to install a water purifier for the monk to have clean drinking water rather than direct rain run off water from the zinc roof.
What are the goals?
We want to raise 150,000 ($5,000) THB for :
- Pillar replacements.
- Add flooring to first level.
- Replace cloth walls- and add to first level.
- Toilet & Plumbing installation.
- Water purification filter installation. *option
Schedule
Fundraising March – April 2015
Construction April (*Mid May is beginning of raining season)
Logical Layout Sketch
Project location
Wat Pon Sa Wang Forest Monastery, Baan Nonyang, A. Nongsoong, Mukdahan 49160 Thailand
Click here to view more in Google map
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Project Completion Report
We started the construction at the beginning of April and successfully finished the construction couple weeks ago. The whole house was turned down completely and built into 2 floors. The pillars, the roof, the clothed-wall were taken off and replaced. The toilet was built in the house so that the monk doesn’t have to walk further in the dark night. We also bought the new water purification so that the monk will have clean water to drink.
Before
After
Contribution we made
Indiegogo 1,458 USD
Direct donation 104,097 THB
Total contribution 150,753 THB
Expenses
Reclamation 6,000 THB
column pillars 4,200 THB
Roof and scaffolding 26,700 THB
Bricks and cement 17,000 THB
Labor 15,000 THB
Tiles 2,400 THB
Canopy 12,000 THB
toilet and plumbing 10,200 THB
water purification 5,000 THB
Total expenses 98,500 THB
Summary
Contribution 150,753 THB
Expenses 98,500 THB
Balance 52,253 THB
So, with contribution just over a hundred fifty thousand baht and expenses just under one hundred thousand baht, we have about fifty two thousand baht remaining. We would like to propose to use this balance towards renovating the main hall as much as possible.
I am honor for all of the generosity to help support renovation to Pra Luangta Mai’s house. I am humbled by how many people reach out to us. Friends and family, we are thankful to have all of you. Your heart is as huge as the universe 🙂
Monk Luangta Mai’s Biography
Left : Phra Luangta Mai
Right : Imm, my brother
Phra Luangta Mai is currently 70 years old. He was born in Mukdahan, a northeastern province of Thailand. He was ordained as a monk 45 years ago in 1970. He has been living in his hermitage situated in this forest for almost 30 years. He runs a very small temple where people come to pray, and funeral ceremonies are carried out. In his mid 50’s, he was offered a promotion to the position of Head Monk of his province. He humbly declined the offer, saying that he simply wished to keep the contentment and tranquility his path led him to by living in this big forest.
I have known this monk since my first memories. He is a rather quiet man with a serene peaceful smile and an incredibly calm nature. Whenever I go to visit, I feel the strength he shares to calm the mind. He has created a very calm and peaceful place that really makes you just want nothing else in life. That everything we have is already here. To help him with this humble home improvement seems the least I can do for the example he sets for us all to be better people.
The Team
