On October 14, 2023, “a mother” in Toyama prefecture delivered two children’s wheelchairs to my house in Fussa, by driving herself. The wheelchairs had been used by her daughter, who passed away two years before.
“I do want to see the children who will use these wheelchairs. If they are sent to Thailand, I can go there. Is it possible to send them to Thailand?” she asked. That’s the beginning of the Mother Project.
Our current partner in Thailand is mainly RICD, and we decided to tell RICD about the mother. We asked if they could follow up on the two recipients of the wheelchairs and if it would be possible for the donor mother to meet the children later.
Mr. Joey Tell, manager of the Wheelchair Project in RICD, gave us consent by saying, “This is a very touching story and we will be doing whatever we can to help on our end.”
Instead of sending the mother alone, we decided to send our director and his wife to support her. Though our NGO has sent wheelchairs to RICD so far, there have been no meetings between representatives of each group.
In addition to the supportive role of the Mother Project, we decided to take this opportunity to make a formal courtesy call to the RICD by the director.
For RICD, which handles many wheelchairs, it must have taken a special effort to give two wheelchairs special treatment. However, it is wonderful that our NGO and RICD were able to make this Mother Project a reality.
February 18, 2024 Hirokazu Morita
<Mother with children who received wheelchairs>
(Left) 11-year-old boy on the donated wheelchair.
The right side of his body is a little limp.
(Right) 6-year old girl on the other donated wheelchair.
Almost blind, but full of energy.
<Mother’s comments>
Thanks to the Mother Project, I was able to meet the children who received the wheelchairs. It was worth the long trip to Thailand. It’s all thanks to RICD and the Wheelchair Sending NGO.
Although it was a short stay, this trip to Thailand was an unforgettable experience for me. Thank you very much.