Dickey Orphanage

On May 9th and 10th the famous Belgian folk singer/songwriter Willem Vermandere performed at Theater aan de Stroom in Antwerp, Belgium for the local Spring fundraising event for Dickey’s. 237 people attented the wonderful concert. We collected 2000 euro for the orphanage.

From Friday January 9th until Thursday February 5th you can visit the exhibition ‘Mongoliez’ in Den Hopsack (Grote Pieterpotstraat, Antwerpen) with pictures by Kees Meijer and Sarah Buys. During the exhibition photographs and photo cards are sold to raise money for Dickey’s.

Despite recent turmoil in the region, the children and staff at Dickey’s are all safe and ok. The new home is located quite far from the downtown area where most of the troubles took place.

From July 15-28, 2007, family physician Dr. Minh Han in a team of 19 people from Innovative Humanitarian Solutions went to Lhasa, Tibet to care for the people there. Specifically, they wanted to study and find a cure for Kashin-Beck Disease, a debilitating arthritic condition beginning in childhood. But, they also wanted to see what other needs were there that they could make an impact on. So, they ended up doing much more than just seeing patients in villages.

The team visited the Dickey Orphanage on July 22. They brought medical supplies for treating the kids as well as donated beanie babies, toothpaste, and toothbrushes. Most of the kids had diarrhea from a recent picnic. Some had perforated eardrums from untreated ear infections. Most of the kids though were happy and healthy. As the medical staff took care of the kids, the rest of the team played ball, colored, taught English songs, and horsed around with the children. At the end of their time, the children lined up and sang several songs to them. They felt that were definitely the ones who were more blessed through their visit to Dickey.

Read more about their work here: http://minhsmissions.com, Innovative Humanitarian Solutions

by Lydia McCallister (Pulaski VA, USA)

I’ve decided to call her “Xingfu” for her face has brought me much happiness. I stare at the picture on my desk and wonder what ‘my little girl’ is doing. My visit to the Dickey orphanage three years ago has had the most profound effect on how I have accepted each day since. My travels have taken me far away from home, and Tibet, and yet I am drawn to that smiling face from Lhasa. And, even though I was quite “blown away” by the country and the Potala, it was the orphanage that had the greatest emotional impact on me. The tour group that my husband and I had traveled with had planned the orphanage visit in its itinerary, and I am extremely grateful that OAT (Overseas Adventure Travel) for the inclusion of these types of visits in all of their tours. I have been searching the web for a while in hopes of finding more information about the orphanage. When I discovered your website, I was drawn back to a place and time that three years could not diminish in my mind. Our small group entered the orphanage, not too sure of ourselves or how to react to homeless waifs. But, what we discovered was that these children did indeed have a home, and the warmth and love that they freely gave away to strangers touched us all very deeply (so much so that we all had teary eyes upon our departure, as I am sure countless other visitors since then have experienced). BUT, one little girl grabbed my hand and clung to my little finger for almost my entire stay at her adopted home. She sang songs with the other children, but quickly grabbed my finger again when she had finished. I did not get her name for our visit was all too brief and Mama Dadhon (Dazhen) was so busy answering everyone else’s questions that I could speak with her. So, “Xingfu” and I just stayed close together and exchanged emotions with the ‘language of eyes.’

I had hoped to make a return visit to the orphanage before leaving Lhasa, but my plans were circumvented by pseudo-military types who came to our hotel in the middle of the night demanding passports from the foreign visitors. Our guide was able to defuse the incident, but another trip (other than our departure to the airport) was out of the question. My hope is to establish some small conduit through which I could communicate with “Xingfu” The Internet has definitely helped, and quite significantly, in providing the means. Now, if I could discover her name, perhaps we could renew a connection begun three years ago and I could reciprocate with the same love and warmth that was so freely offered then, bringing to mind that love is the only thing that is not diminished when given away.

In June, Chinese authorities have given the official building permit for the new orphanage. They can go ahead with the plans as long as the financial support continues. Please make a donation and help build the new home. Thank you.

On Saturday November 24th 2007, stand-up comedian Nigel Williams gave a 2-hour blasting comedy performance at the Sint-Andries Cultural Centre in Antwerp (Belgium). We want to thank all the people who made this possible and Nigel of course. This benefit raised 1850 Euros for the orphanage. Indymedia.be (Dutch site) made a report about the evening.

Mark Dimond from California has started his own project to help Dickey’s. The local newspaper, Laguna Woods Globe, wrote an article about his dream of the Dickey Mouse Club….

VILLAGER CRAFTS TOYS FOR TIBET ORPHANS
Hopes to raise money to better young lives

by Cheryl Walker

Mark and Riva Dimond thought their Grand Circle trip to Tibet would be an adventure. Little did they realize it would also be a quest: to bring warm clothes, heat and school supplies to 87 orphans. China supplies the instruction, not books and supplies. The youngsters live in the DeJi (Dickey or happiness) Orphanage where they jam into three rooms in pairs on bunk beds. The rooms are unheated. The orphanage was started in 2002 by Tamdrin “Mama” Dadhon who sold family items, added that to the proceeds from a teahouse and started the refuge for kids in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet on Sept. 10
which became all the kids unofficial birthday.

“I pledged to raise the money to improve the children’s conditions,” said Mark Dimond. He and Riva figure it will take about $10,000 to do so. “We’ve raised $500 so far, says Mark proudly. Now he’s going to better the chance of raising more by making for donations “never-ending friendship mice. He is asking for donation of $10 each. “I’m the only person I know who makes them, he said.”

The mouse has a five square design on its back. “Each one is unique and takes about three hours to make,” says the retired computer programmer. “I’m very fussy.” The frame is four plastic squares, woven first separately and then joined on the edge to make a little mouse face, eyes, ears, and tail. When the sides of the mouth are squeezed a little folded paper is inside that says: “Hello, I’m your Tibet Orphanage

On Sunday June 25th 2006 there was be a benefit day for Dickey´s Orphanage on the Sint-Andriesplaats and at the Sint-Andries Cultural Centre in Antwerp. There was a flea market, an Asian market, raffle, lucky bag, exhibition, postcard sale and food and drinks. Three bands performed live music: the local brass band followed by Two of a Kind. Top op the bill was Fried Bourbon with a dazzling blues session. We would like to thank al the people who made this benefit possible. A sum of 2300 Euro was collected, including the donations on the Dickey bank account. All the money was sent to Tibet.