Our Story
Helping Young Girls Help Themselves
Friends of Thai Daughters provides education, shelter and emotional support to girls at risk of being trafficked in Northern Thailand.
Seeds of Change
While traveling through northern Thailand in 2002, Jane McBride and Patricia Zinkowski discovered fifteen girls trying to survive with little adult supervision in an abandoned school in an area known for human trafficking agents. The situation was extremely worrying.
Jane and Patty provided financial help and later returned to Thailand and made a documentary about the girls’ lives. Each had a tragic story to tell. Many were AIDS orphans or had parents in prison. Most lacked ID cards, leaving them ‘stateless’ and highly vulnerable to traffickers.
The solution was to offer them safe shelter, education and support. Friends and family pitched in until Friends of Thai Daughters was incorporated as a non-profit in 2005.
Putting Down Roots
Once we had recognized the need, our program grew rapidly. Mee, one of our first graduates, pictured above, was determined to help, so we rented a small house for our growing family, which she ran and which we soon outgrew.
In 2015 we purchased a house in Chiang Rai that became our first Sunflower House. This permanent base provided a new sense of stability for both our organization and our Daughters.
We do everything we can to give our Daughters a well rounded upbringing. They take part in all the extra curricular activities available to them and, as funds allow, we have made it a priority to take them on study tours to different parts of the country. For many, it is the first time they will have left their immediate area and is an invaluable experience.
Growing Fast
With our Sunflower House in Chiang Rai up and running, in 2016 we expanded farther north into the city of Chiang Khong, located on the Laos border.
An existing girls’ shelter in the town was in danger of closing. FTD came to the rescue and created the Chiang Khong Sunflower House under the leadership of long-time collaborator Puangthon ‘Too’ Takan. The program was then expanded to mirror FTD’s more comprehensive and long-term program.
In 2019 we purchased the land to build
the Sunflower Farm outside Chiang Rai in Mae Chan, whilst also working hard on our outreach both in Thailand and overseas. We established popular volunteer and Daughter Sponsor programs, both of which provide important connections between our Daughters and the wider world.
Towards a Sustainable Future
For the past five years our emphasis has been on building for the future, moving from our ad hoc accommodation to purpose-built organic farms.
But while we celebrate these successes, we remain focused on preventing child trafficking by providing at-risk girls with shelter, education and love.
And that is about so much more than bricks and mortar. We also build:
- Trust – through working closely with the communities we serve.
- Resilience – by offering a good education and strong family values to our Daughters.
- A Sustainable Future – incorporating social enterprise so that we can continue to support our Daughters now and for generations to come.
Our Program
Preventing Child Trafficking with Shelter, Education & Love
Our program is intensive, comprehensive and produces amazing outcomes, empowering vulnerable girls to become valued Daughters, educated women, and independent adults.
Protection Through a Safe Home Environment
FTD operates 2 residential shelters of up to 20 girls each, ages 8 – 18, who live in a family setting under the care and guidance of loving houseparents and structured to teach a healthy family experience.
Daughters help with household chores, cooking, and gardening. They enjoy music, dancing, hiking and field trips to different parts of Thailand. Volunteers teach English, arts and crafts, reading and sports.
Empowerment Through Education
A key element to our program is education. Several Daughters choose to live in our homes so they are closer to k-12 education. Beyond that, they receive funding through university to enable them to be self-supporting adults upon graduation.
Many of our Daughters attend Thailand’s top universities, going on to become nurses, dentists, business managers, accountants, teachers, artists and entrepreneurs.
Encouragement Through Mentorship
FTD is not just a program, it’s a family where older sisters help younger ones with homework and life skills. Houseparents provide a shoulder to lean on and the entire family celebrates each Daughter’s success.
After Daughters graduate from college, they remain family members receiving emotional and professional support as they forge their careers and build their lives as strong, self-confident, and independent young women.
Our Future
Building a Sustainable Future Together
At FTD we’re working to create a sustainable model to ensure longterm success. This will provide additional benefits to our Daughters and communities by promoting health, wellness, clean food, and community development.
Sunflower Farm
Completed in 2022, FTD’s Sunflower Farm at Mae Chan marked a huge step forward for the organization. Purpose-built with a long-term future in mind and staffed by program graduates, it has expanded opportunities for our Daughters beyond their immediate needs.
The organic farm and chicken coop are both outdoor classrooms providing healthy food for the table and a surplus for sale.
The pickleball courts and swimming pool are a source of exercise and teamwork for our Daughters and of community outreach and income in an underserved area.
FTD has partnered with neighboring luxury hotel Tantawan Tented Camp to provide high-quality employment opportunities for graduate Daughters.
Jasmine Farm
Encouraged by our success with Sunflower Farm, we purchased a plot of land outside Chiang Khong and, in the fall of 2024, Jasmine Farm opened its doors. Like Sunflower Farm, it is surrounded by an organic farm, chicken coop and fish pond, all built with healthy living, self-sufficiency and sustainability in mind.
The pickleball facilities will become a Pickleball Sports & Community Center, partnering with clubs in Thailand and overseas to host players. Daughters and community kids will benefit from exercise, teamwork and competition.
The Sports & Community Center will include a café, stocked from the produce cultivated on Jasmine Farm and staffed by graduate Daughters.
The Jasmine Farm complex will also include bunglaow-style rental accommodation for visiting pickleball players, generating both revenue and employment.