Village elder and midwife Liya Pramongkit, skin brown and furrowed as a walnut, spent her early life living as a nomad aboard handcrafted wooden boats called kabang. They were fashioned from giant rainforest logs; planking held together with vines.

On April 24 a devastating fire struck a slum community in the Rama 9 area of Bangkok. Fifty-one homes were destroyed leaving 178 people homeless, including 61 children and 117 adults. Among the homeless are four children with severe disabilities and 11 elderly residents.

We wish to share with you a feature article about Fr. Joe and Mercy Centre recently published in Ireland’s Sunday Business Post Magazine. You can view the article here. Please be a little patient – it may take a minute to download.

In receiving his promotion to Second Lieutenant within the Port Authority Precinct of the Royal Thai Police, Khun Aumnaj Boonyamatee asked Fr. Joe to pin his new insignia to his police uniform.

A major fire occurred earlier this week in the Rama 9 slum community. One community member died; another is still missing; and forty-eight homes were destroyed. Mercy Social Workers are assisting the community – cooking food, bringing bedding, securing life’s daily necessities, and ensuring that the children are safe and healthy. We are coordinating with community leaders as well as housing and government authorities to rebuild every home lost to the fire.

We wish to share with you a feature article about Fr. Joe and Mercy Centre recently published in Ireland’s Sunday Business Post Magazine.