This announcement may not seem like groundbreaking Mercy Centre news. After all, we currently operate 23 preschools and have opened and operated well over 50 schools at one time or another in the past 40 years.

What a difference a bowl of rice makes! What joy a toy brings to a child in our shelters!

Mercy Centre is hardly a household name in Spain, but we do have many kind friends, and we wish to thank them all for the concert they organized on behalf of our sister charity, Mercy Menorca. All proceeds from the concert, called “Semillas de la vida” (seeds of life), performed this past November in Barcelona, will go to support our program to protect and defend Bangkok’s street children. Our heartfelt thanks ring out to all the performers, including dancer Ayako Zushi, pianist Gloria Argany, and the poet Luisbel Rodriguez, who conceived of the concert and brought it to fruition. Thanks also to all guests who helped make the concert a beautiful event. And most special thanks to Mercy Menorca! For more information on how we care for street children, please visit our program page here. (Photo below by Ian Taylor: a Mercy social worker with a child beggar on the streets of Bangkok.)

In celebration of Thai National Children’s Day, each of our 23 kindergartens held a spectacular sports competition this morning that featured running races, musical chairs, and even a highly skilled balloon-popping event. 

Our Mercy Christmas Pageant, spiritually joyous, beautifully choreographed, featured performances by our Mercy children, our Mercy Kindergarten students, and the poorest children in our community whose education we sponsor from kindergarten onwards. The pageant energy reached its peak with a final performance by our Mercy boys band, aka KIDS ROCK, who brought all the children to their feet, plus most adults, to dance to the joy of the beat. Photo gallery on our facebook page here.

Even in forgotten places, there’s a touch of Christmas in the moments families share together.