The Citylife Garden Fair Charity Committee, lead by Dr. Joanne Robison, received numerous applications for funding from a variety of foundations across Northern Thailand.
The Citylife Garden Fair was first held in January 2005, bringing together a few dozen clients of Citylife Media Group as well as a few hundred readers to our then-garden to raise funds, through a fun and fabulous community-driven day filled with shopping, entertainment and activities. Businesses were asked to donate vouchers, goods, gifts and services towards an auction as well as a tombola-styled raffle. That day, we raised over 40,000 baht which we spent packing a truck filled with necessary supplies to be sent to those in need along the southern coast. Following the success of the first event, Citylife began to host two Citylife Garden Fair events per year, having only missed three years during the pandemic. Tens of millions of baht has been raise to support the needs of dozens of foundations, charities and causes. Today we only hold one Citylife Gadn Fair per year, where over 300 booths feature products and services from businesses mostly here in Chiang Mai. The one day fair is attended by up to 10,000 Thai and expatriate residents as well as tourists from across Thailand and beyond. All goods kindly and generously donated are put towards the popular tombola-style raffle and the live auction (which is held mid to late afternoon each year) with 100% of all monies raised going towards one to three causes chosen by a small team of independent members of the charity committee.
After much deliberation, the following two charities were selected to be beneficiaries of this year’s funding:
Burma Children Medical Fund – Health for All (BCMF-HFA)
The Burma Children Medical Fund – Health for All (HFA) Foundation is a non-profit organisation supporting healthcare access for people in need in Thailand and in Burma. The donation from the Citylife Garden Fair will go to support reproductive health & rights (RHR) workshops and the Rights to a Clean Start project. These projects provide essential education to support the health of refugees, migrants, and other underserved communities on the Thai-Burma border. During RHR workshops, young women also receive menstrual supply kits, while the Rights to a Clean Start project provides supplies to new-born babies. For more information on BCMF-HFA and its projects, please visit the website at burmachildren.com.
Children of Chiang Mai Foundation
The Children of Chiang Mai foundation has provided a home for over 30 boys since its inception in 1996. These boys faced a bleak life of poverty and despair prior to coming to the home. Some were living in abusive situations, others were homeless having lost their parents to AIDS. The foundation believes that every child should have the opportunity to live without fear of abuse, have a loving home where they know where their next meal is coming from, and an education to help them reach their full potential. The home currently houses 13 boys.
The home is in urgent need of a new large washing machine. Funds from the Citylife Garden Fair will pay for this much needed addition to the house, given limited foundation funds are currently being used to provide tertiary education for the boys in its care. For more information on Children of Chiang Mai, please visit the website at childrenofchiangmai.org
