What a glorious day at Mercy Centre! Today 532 slum children received their diplomas at our annual Mercy kindergarten graduation ceremonies.

Some street kids call her “Teacher.” Others, especially the younger ones, call her “Mom.” To many kids who have known her for years, she takes on the honorific title of “Big Sister.”

Since we opened our first preschool forty-one years ago, we’ve built and operated dozens more. We build them in the poorest neighborhoods, where children have no access to a preschool education and no place to learn their Thai ABC’s or play with other children. Today, counting our Mokan “sea gypsy” school in Ranong, we operate 23 kindergartens for poor children, with a total enrollment over 2,500 students and an alumni population approaching 45,000.

This morning over 300 slum kids, ages three to seven, battled for victory in their first ever team competition during our Mercy Kindergarten Sports Day. The kids were divided into two teams – The Pink and The Blue – in contests that ranged from relay races and musical-chairs to tug-of-war face-offs. The cheers and chants were deafening!

Most people don’t go out of their way to visit our patch in the slums, known as “70 Rai,” between the port and a spaghetti bowl of highway on-and-off ramps.

It’s a beautiful day for street kids when they can have as much fun as possible without any fears.