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Clinic Blog: Thailand 2 Clinic Blog

November 20, 2010

Final Days Summary

By markhilvert

We had been told on Wednesday that we had a special surprise for our last 2 days. We were to travel to Bangkok on Thursday where we would spend the day riding elephants, shopping and spending time together - then we would check in to a hotel in downtown Bangkok for the night. The following day we were to tour the royal palace, and have one final farewell lunch. We had a wonderful last 2 days together. Today (Friday) we toured the awe-inspiring royal palace, and were treated to a final thank-you lunch hosted by the former deputy prime minister. It is truly astounding to see the intensity of appreciation from everyone in this country. In a culture based on respect for the individual, gratitude and thankfulness for life’s blessings, and selfless humility we have learned so much that we take home with us. While brief, our time here has been rewarding on so many levels. I think one of our favorite partners and true examples of generosity, Thun Prins, put it best...at the core, we are all the same. The goal in life should be to love and respect other people. And to those of us who have so much, it is our duty to share those blessings with others. Certainly words to live by and a life philosophy to which we can all aspire.

A final thank you to all the friends and family that have followed along on our journey with us. A special thanks and note of regret to Alison Sadlier, the original creator of this blog and our team Facebook page, and a long-distance member of the team. Thank you for welcoming all of us so graciously, and starting the friendships. We wish you a speedy recovery, and hope to work along side of you soon!

November 20, 2010

Clinic Day #8 Summary

By markhilvert

The mixed emotions of excitement and sadness greeted us as we awoke this morning. Truly unbelievable that our clinic time has come to an end. To think that our daily routine of working side by side with each other and our amazing partners will be no more after today is extremely saddening. However, to know that the body of work we leave behind will have lasting impact on this community brings a joy and comfort to us. We’ve done what we’ve come here to do, and exceeded our goal in doing so. Over 15,000 lives changed in such a short time.

Today was a very simple day at clinic - only seeing 500 recipients in the first half of the day, and packing up the equipment & cleaning the facilities for the second half. We’re leaving behind a good deal of equipment for our local partners, Gift of Sight, so they can continue the work in our absence until the next OneSight Thailand clinic. As with everything this team has done together, the break-down was seamless. There was a lot of t-shirt signing and picture taking as well, trying to hold on to our last moments in the clinic together. One last team photo, and we headed down to the banquet hall for our team “pinning ceremony.” Those who have been on clinic before know this tradition well - but for those who don’t I’ll just say that it was a wonderful and emotional exchange of sentiments from each member of the team. After the pinning ceremony, it was off to the busses to get ready for a final farewell & thank you dinner back at the clinic provided by our gracious hosts.

Once again, the Gift of Sight team and the local community leaders lavished appreciation on us. We had a wonderful buffet dinner outside of the clinic, complete with Thai music and dancing, award presentations, and (of course) KARAOKE. Despite this amazing event, the highlight of the evening came at the finale as our hosts invited us to join in a sneak preview of a Thai tradition that would take place the following weekend. We were each presented with a disc containing a beautiful floral bouquet and three slim wooden sticks on the top. We then proceeded down to the lake where one by one we lit the top of the sticks, made a wish and placed our discs into the water - symbolically thanking the maker for the gift of the water. After placing the disks, we were given a bag containing several fish to release into the lake - symbolizing our desire to add life back into the lake. After this beautiful ceremony, we were lead back up the hill to a patch of grass where we released illuminated cylindrical “balloons” of rice paper into the air. We were extremely touched by the beauty and simplicity of the ceremony, many emotionally embracing each other as we put the final touch on our time together. It was almost as if each balloon represented a life we had touched while we were there.

As if the ceremony itself wasn’t enough, our host also invited those who were interested to a local dance club to continue our celebration. Who were we to turn that down? We danced the night away together (a good deal of it!), once again celebrating our accomplishments and our newly found and sure to be life-long friendships.

November 17, 2010

Clinic Day #7 Summary

By markhilvert

There comes a time on any vacation where you begin counting down the days until it’s end - often with great regret. That was the case this morning when someone pointed out that today was our last full day of clinic. Amazing how fast this time is going, and we know we have to really let these last few days soak in. With that in mind, we began the clinic today with our team optimally matched at their stations. (When it gets to be this late in the clinic, you want to have the real optical experts at IMS working together with the doctors to find the absolute best prescription available for each recipient within the remaining inventory. You also want to have those that have become experts at any particular station in place to make up for whatever extra time may be necessary to find that perfect match.) At the end of the day, we saw that the streamlining worked wonders. Over 2500 recipients, over 100 manufactured glasses, and many extremely grateful recipients...one of which was 43 year old Nittaya - yet another first-time glasses recipient, dispensed by Julie, who was living life with a -4.50 prescription. Another grateful recipient was 30-year-old Nam Pet, who came into clinic with a -8 prescription. The glasses she had currently were well under-scripted, and when Dani dispensed her newly manufactured chabellas - she received not only a smile, but a hug of appreciation.

At night we headed out for a family-style dinner at a local Italian restraunt. Using our Italian contingency as a barometer, the food was “very good.” While we have enjoyed the many different tastes of this region, it was good to get a little taste of home.

November 16, 2010

Clinic Day #6 Summary

By markhilvert

Hard to beat a day like yesterday when it comes to excitement and the overall “vibe” in the clinic. However, today we continued our push to reach our final goal of 15,000 recipients. Working diligently as ever, despite the continued absence of an autorefractor, the team kept each other’s spirits up with uplifting and amusing notes, lively music, and the always amusing visits from Miguel, Ailysa and Steve. A particular thank you goes to the Oakley Team and Store 765 for their uplifting notes that accompanied some of our recycled glasses (see notes below). A thank you also to Gary Wolf - an optician for Sears Optical in Slisbury, Maryland whose recycled glasses were dispensed today. A few stories of note today as well. One of a 74-year old woman who was a +10 in one eye, and blind in the other. She hadn’t worn glasses in 5 years as they had been broken. Needless to say, the glasses we provided were met with great joy. Another was a gentleman named Ga Won - a 63-year old who had never worn glasses, and had a -6 prescription. Carol and Dani sent him away with not one but two pair - one for distance and one for reading. Overall, 2454 lives touched today.

November 15, 2010

Clinic Day #5 Summary

By markhilvert

We returned to clinic today well rested (well, some of us) and ready to get back to work. There was an additional level of excitement today as, for the first time this clinic, we would be seeing a good amount of children. It was also “crazy hat day” - and our team brought the funk (see pictures below). Even some of our host team members showed up with some amusing gear. It set the tone for a very entertaining and enjoyable day.

So many stories from the day, but just to note a few...
Mark Hilvert was able to dispense a very important gift today. While it wasn’t glasses, his daughter had given him one of her favorite dolls (Dora the Explorer) to “find a new family.” I’m happy to report that Dora will be staying in Thailand with one very happy little girl. Another recipient was 48 years old, had never had glasses before, and had a -5 prescription (extremely nearsighted). We found a bi-focal lens to meet her needs, and she was overjoyed. Her reaction upon receiving the glasses said it all...”This is crazy!” she kept repeating over and over, while bowing in appreciation to Carol Ebersole - who made the dispense. Many of our recipients like to place their glasses in the provided bag once we dispense to them. Not this one.

While the day was certainly fun, we weren’t messing around. 2543 people received the gift of sight today (many of which also received the gift of candy!)...a record day for us. A note of interest as well after our dinner tonight: a random elephant showed up outside of the restaurant where we were dining. Within minutes, Dr. Ron Spalter and Arnie Hiltabidel were aboard, taking the elephant for a stroll around the block.

November 15, 2010

Mid-Clinic Shout Outs #2

By markhilvert

Here’s Ailsa saying a HUGE hello to friends and family following the blog. I’m having  great time here in Thailand helping 1000s of people here in Korat. As most of you know, this is my first mission as a leader, but with the GREAT team we’ve got here, this job has been wonderful! Roll on the last few days of clinic! Thanks for the phone calls, messages, shout outs on the blog - missing you all but will see you soon!

Arnie says “This is a dream come true ... The people of Thailand are some of the most gracious in the world!” What an amazing honor to be taking part in this incredible journey!

Hello from Laura to everyone back in the UK!  We are having a wonderful time in Thailand and not looking forward to coming back to the cold.  I have so far managed to keep Fahad out of trouble, in fact he is the king of haggling over prices!  The clinics are an amazing experience and I have learnt so much already.  E ciao a tutti in Italia!

Bob Bubak wants to thank his wife Kate, his daughter Michelle, both sets of parents and friends for helping out and making this opportunity a reality. This is a great experience, one that I will never forget, and will share with you the best that I can. I love you all and cannot wait to spend time with you on my week off and share my experiences. MWAAAH!

November 13, 2010

Rest Day #2 Summary

By markhilvert

We began the day today at 7:45 after a short breakfast. Our first stop was a boat festival on the outskirts of Korat. We knew we were there when the bus moved to a very slow steady pace - we looked outside, and saw that we were following an elephant. We stepped off the bus into what seemed like another world. There were festival games, rides, and booths with foods of every shape, texture and color (a favorite of the group was a fried green batter that tasted exactly like a funnel cake). We were escorted through the sea of sights and sounds and led to the upper platform of the “main stage” area to watch the boat races. The narrow, 25-person boats competed in sets of two and three in an event set to run the entire day. The crowds lined the lake area, dancing and cheering them on. We were escorted by our host down to the front of the main stage to get a view from the center of the action - the finish line. Just when we thought our seats couldn’t get any better, we were escorted onto three different boats that toured us around the lake - allowing us to completely soak in all the sights and sounds of the festival. The crowds waved to us as we passed - making us feel a bit like celebrities. (Either that, or they were shooing us out of the way so they could get a better view of the race). On the way out, we noticed a crowd up ahead of us. As we approached we could see people feeding a baby elephant. Everyone took turns holding out pieces of food while the elephant wrapped its trunk around it and shoveled it directly into its mouth. Pretty impressive to see up close and personal.

After the boat festival we headed to the oldest pottery-making shop in Thailand, where we first watched a video about the history of the shop. After the video we observed the various stages of the pottery-making process first-hand. We learned that the typical artisan who created the amazing works of art we had witnessed brought home about $10 US Dollars a day (average yield of 10 pots at 22 baht - or less than $1 US Dollars). With this information in hand, we hit their market - where somehow haggling just didn’t seem appropriate. The team enjoyed exploring and purchasing some beautiful pieces of art. Now if we can just figure out how to fit them into our baggage.

After lunch, we headed out to the capstone of the day - the Chiang Mai Yee Peng Festival. Once again, the bus pulled up to a plethora of festival booths filled with foods and ware. And once again, our host navigated us through the festival to its centerpiece: the temple. Outside of the temple a traditional Thai dance was taking place with very extravagant costumes and dance. (Side note, it was quite amusing to watch the actors, dressed in historic garb, texting while on break.) We toured the incredible 17th century temple for a while, had some dinner just outside of the temple area, then returned for an astounding theatrical reenactment of the temple’s history which couldn’t be described in words.

I’ll post pictures tomorrow. It’s too late now - and we have a full day ahead of us tomorrow. We’re all looking forward to it, as it will be the first time we’ll be seeing children at the clinic. Being such, we’ve also chosen tomorrow as our “crazy hat day” - so look forward to some fun pictures. Goodnight everyone!

November 13, 2010

Mid-Clinic Shout Outs #1

By markhilvert

We thought it would be appropriate at this point to allow everyone to post a quick hello to their families and friends back home...

Mark Hilvert wants to say thank you to all who are reading the blog and sending support, love and prayers our way. It’s an honor to be representing our company and our individual families in this amazing country. If only you could all be here to help, and to enjoy the experience with me! Special thanks to my extremely thoughtful family and friends at home/Lux - can’t tell you how much I appreciate your support for this incredible experience...especially my wife Jill for flying solo over this time with the kids and holding the fort down! Finally, to the amazing OneSight team back at the CSC. It’s one thing to see what you do every day in the office, it’s another thing to experience the fruits of your labor first hand. Thank you all so much for the opportunity, and all of the hard work that went into this and every clinic. What an amazing job you all do! Talk to you all very soon.

Thomas Neff wants to tell everyone hi back home in Florida. and for all the generosity given towards this clinic. The people are truely amazing here and I am so grateful for the opportunity to come here and serve them. Also a Special thanks to My Aunts who have contributed so much thanks Aunt Wanda and Aunt Sue! Lastly I want to say I love my wife Devi and can not wait to share all the wonderful memories with here. See everyone very soon!

Melanie Riley wants my family, Mom Dad Anita & Justin, as well as Jim, Tonia, Sarah, The Taylors, The Treehouse Guys, and all other close friends to know at we are all well here, safe, and enjoying bringing the people of Thailand wonderful eye care as well as much needed good vision with the glasses donation.  Thank you so much for your moral support, as well as generous donations, as it is being put to great use here in Thailand.  The people are so gracious, kind, and appreciative of all that we are doing, and it feels good to be able to come and make a difference.  I love you all and miss you greatly.  I will see you soon, and have many wonderful stories to tell when I get back.

Kate Michaux wants to say “Hi from Thailand” to all her family and friends.  Thank you all so very much for supporting me in my venture here.  We have an amazing team of people, I wish you all could see what your donations are doing for these people here in Thailand!  We as a team have been ‘spoiled’ here as well, the culture is very welcoming and gracious!  I can not wait to share this all with you!  A special thank you to my sissy for her support!  I can only wish and hope that one day you will be able to join me!  See you all soon!  *hugs*

Michelle Brehm wants to say hello to all her sweet family and friends back home. We are having such a phenomenal time. Everyone is so kind and generous. They treat us like kings and queens here. It’s so beautiful and unlike anywhere I’ve ever been. We are all so unbelievably lucky to be getting this amazing experience. I can’t wait to show you all my photos. I wish you were all here w/ me. I miss you dearly and look forward to seeing your smiling faces next week. Thank you for all the support

Danielle Jakatt says sawadee kaa from across the pond.  The people here are taking very good care of us and are making it possible for us to experience their country and culture.  We still have another week of clinics left and couldn’t do the work we do without the support from all of you.  I’ve taken a ton of pictures and can’t wait to share my memories with you.

Julie Blenker says “Hi” from across the world to all my family and friends!  It has been an amazing experience thus far.  It gives new meaning to being a doctor here.  We have been treated extremely well.   Thank you for all your support.  The donations are being put to great use and the people of Thailand so desperately need it!  We have heard many stories from the people and been thanked enormously.  See you all soon:)

Luis “Papi” Santiago sends hugs & smiles to all his peeps in the US, Canada & Italy.  We are having an amazing time in Thailand. The people are so kind and friendly.  It is a real privilege to be giving the gift of sight here. Thank you so much for all the encouragement and warm wishes.  Cannot wait to cross paths with many of you and share stories or just to reconnect. Much love & respect.

Christy Hayes says hi to all my family and friends back in Missouri. I have been having such an amazing experience here in Thailand, everywhere we go we have gotten V.I.P. treatment. We have been so lucky to experience a side of Thailand most tourists would never see. I am taking tons of pictures and making memories of a life time. Can’t wait to tell you all about it when we get back. Lots of love.

Jolie Curammeng sending her Aloha from Thailand!! So far, this experience is AWESOME!! The people here are so friendly and welcoming. It’s a nice reminder how far a smile goes :) Thank you all for keeping in touch and supporting me through this clinic! <3 Yah!

Giulietta Grillo is writing on behalf of the italian/greek/polish/french team (you know, Europeans always try to be different!): we are enjoying this beautiful experience with such amazing people, so warm, that gave us an incredible welcome. Every day we receive hugs, smiles and thanks, we are so grateful of having had the opportunity to meet people who have very different lives from ours, maybe more simple, but with an incredible capability of passing love. When we will back home (with laptops, tv, restaurants, ...) we will better understand the value of each single small thing of our life we are now giving for granted. To all our families: for the next 3 months please do not cook for us rice or spicy food, we are done for a while with them!   

Fahad Anwar says Hi to his family, even though I am having an amazing time here in Korat I am missing everybody and especially my gorgeous little daughter Anaya. This has been an amazing experience which I will never forget. The people are so nice, warm and friendly, we have been treated like royalty where ever we have been and I will definately be sad to leave. Hi also to everybody in Lux UK, I hope all is well in there and everything is running smooth. Lastly thanks to Mark who is doing a great job managing the blog. Cannot wait to share my experience with everybody.

Sara Schalk says hello to everyone back in MN and WI.  We are having a blast here and really appreciate the wonderful hospitality of the Thai people.  They are so warm and generous I feel we are indebted to them.  Can’t wait to see you all again and tell you our storied, especially our crazy tuk-tuk ride.

Martha Skokowski is having a blast! The Thai people are wonderful and this is a great experience. Dave, Nik and Alex- I MISS YOU!! Keep the house clean. Steve and Ian-thanks for holding down the fort! Mike-thanks for the opportunity. See you guys soon!

Janice Lau says Hi to everyone back in CA. Thailand is amazing. The people are wonderful and the food is delicious.

Pentru fmilia mea din Romania si America si pentru toti prietenii romani de pretutindeni: va saluta Simona din Thailanda! Ma gindesc la voi in fiecare zi si Mi-e dor de voi toti! Pupici!

Ron Spalter says hello to all my family and friends back in Detroit and beyond! Thailand is an incredible country, wonderful people. I will definitely be back. I love and miss you all!

Hello to all my family, friends and co-workers from Carol!!!   What an amazing experience this is!  The people are so kind and friendly, and are making sure we are well taken care of!  We are currently off to visit a temple, and have dinner there.  Can’t wait to share my pictures and stories!  Miss you all!

November 13, 2010

Rest Day #1 Summary

By markhilvert

A bittersweet day today as we bid farewell to one of our most valued teammates. Lukas Rueker was summoned back to the home office in Cincinnati for some important business (but, as he pointed out, certainly not MORE important). We will miss Lukas’ calming presence, insight into Thai culture, ingenuity and leadership (but not so much his karaoke talents - kidding...kinda). We have officially named a row of product “skinnies” in his name. Once we bid farewell to Lukas, we headed out to a local silk manufacturing village to experience first hand the origin of many silk products used throughout the world. Once again we were overwhelmed by not only the dedication and skill of these artisans, but their generosity as well. After explaining to us that a day of work may yield one or two single products per machine, we were each presented with a hand-made scarf as a gift. Yet another gesture of selflessness and customary respect. We were able to purchase some items as well from a local store, whose owner explained in a tearful thank-you that we were her first customers since the flood waters had subsided, and that today was “a very good day” for her.

After visiting the village, we headed out for a quick lunch and a stop at the Korat Zoo. Groups of team members explored the zoo via different modes of transportation - some on bicycle or golf cart, some on tram, and some chose the good old-fashioned way. The vast size of the zoo was remarkable - allowing the animals ample area to roam about. The method of viewing the animals was also very unique - many areas had constructed “viewing towers” where you could actually walk into the animals’ habitat and look down on them. From watching extremely playful monkeys walk across a tightrope to feeding the giraffes, everyone had a great time. By the time we got home and grabbed some dinner, we were all ready to hit the bed as we needed some sleep before our 7:45 start time the next day.

November 13, 2010

Clinic Day #4 Summary

By markhilvert

From my understanding, Day 4 of clinic can be the time that fatigue begins to set in. Often the novelty of the experience has begun to wear off a bit, and the intensity of the work has taken its toll, and the team is looking forward to the next day off. Today, 2347 individuals would disagree. Despite the loss of one of our six autorefractors, a new set of translators and volunteers, and one sick teammate (who pulled through despite his ailment - big ups to Diego Berado for being such a trooper), our team stepped up in a big way. Dr. Ron Spalter stepped in to replace the injured autorefractor (we hope to replace by Sunday) with his hand-held version, and kept the line flowing smoothly. In the midst of all this effort was one particularly rewarding story. Dr. Simona Grosa examined a 17-year-old recipient named Nasap. Nasap said that she had been given glasses as a child, but hadn’t worn any for many years. This patient was extremely nearsighted, with a large discrepancy between the prescription for each of her eyes. Once again, chabella manufacturer Dani Jakatt came to the rescue with a brand new pair of glasses that fit her very unique need. Once the glasses were placed on Nasap, an immediate smile came to her face. The smile only grew as she looked around the room, then held her patient information sheet up to see that she could now read what it said.

We wrapped clinic around a little after 4pm today - quite impressive given the amount of recipients and challenges we faced. Again, our team chemistry has proven to be a huge asset. Tonight our hosts are taking us out once again for dinner for some more authentic Thai (the real kind this time). We’re looking forward to that, and whatever festivities may follow as we look forward to a hard-earned day off tomorrow!

November 10, 2010

Clinic Day #3 Summary

By markhilvert

Today our team hit its stride. With 2 days of training under our belt, we have become a well-oiled machine. 2258 lives touched today, and it seemed like the day ran even more smoothly than yesterday. We have connected very quickly, and our chemistry is really helping to make the days even more enjoyable. Tonight, some authentic Thai cuisine...at The Sizzler.

November 9, 2010

Clinic Day #2 Summary

By markhilvert

As we pulled into clinic this morning, we noticed a little more hustle and bustle than usual. There was a large gathering of people in an outdoor shelter, and banners hung around the clinic welcoming and thanking us for our work. Members of the government had put together an “opening ceremonies” of sorts to kick off the partnership with OneSight and the local Gift of Sight program here in Korat. The warm welcome gave us the extra boost we needed for what we knew would be a very busy day - the goal: 2,000 recipients. The entire day moved very quickly - a large number of volunteers (including local schools, Gift of Sight volunteers, and even a local soccer team) helped us seamlessly move traffic through the different stations. It seemed like no time before it was 4:00, and we were escorting the last few recipients through. All told, we ended up touching 1,997 lives. The day was filled with great stories, but none more impactful than a 54 year old woman named Tavee. Melanie Riley examined Tavee, and found her prescription to be a -18, -1.50, 52 and a -15, -1.50, 40. (To those who aren’t Optometrists, that’s incredibly high). Despite this need, Tavee had never owned glasses. The OneSight wheels were put into motion, and the word quickly spread that we needed to help Tavee in any way we could. Using our IMS system, a little ingenuity, a little teamwork, and a lot of heart - the team found the solution. Tom Neff and Arnie Hiltabidel scanned the system to find this incredibly rare prescription - one lens from one pair of glasses, and one from another. Then it was over to the chabella making system where Tom worked with Dani Jakatt to combine the two lenses into a matching frame. Within 20 minutes, the team had developed a pair of glasses to fit Tavee’s need, and Tom was actually able to enjoy the fruits of his labor...placing the glasses on her face. Once again, a reaction of disbelief as this woman who had spent her life in near blinding conditions was able to see for the first time.

After a day of intense work, we were invited to a dinner with the owners of the clinic location. Our ever-gracious hosts once again showed their thanks with a wonderful dinner, and some incredibly entertaining karaoke and dancing (in which several members of the team participated - the names will not be mentioned here, to protect the innocent - but pictures and video will certainly be posted on our team Facebook page shortly). A suitable ending to an exhausting, yet rewarding day. Tomorrow, we face our biggest challenge to date - 2,400 recipients!

November 8, 2010

Clinic Day #1 Summary

By markhilvert

The team awoke today refreshed and ready to begin the work that we came here to do. The excitement at breakfast was palatable, as there are many here for whom this is their first global clinic experience. Each member of the team was trained in every step of the process, from auto-refracting to dispensing - and quickly found their niche in one of the stations. Around 11:00, we open the gates and began giving the gift of sight. Kate Michaux dispensed our first pair of glasses to a grateful recipient, “Carl” (pictured below). These glasses were recycled by Amber Hering, an associate at EyeMed. Miguel Morales made a remarkable dispense as well - a woman in her late 80‘s with an extremely high prescription. For the first time in her life, this woman was able to read. The look on her face was priceless. A local Bangkok news station has joined us this week, not only to document the clinic and stories such as these, but to actually work side by side with us! Not surprising, given the generous spirit of the amazing people we’ve had the pleasure of meeting. The recent flooding in this region has caused many of the local community to lose not only their primary food source, but their primary source of income for this year and most likely next year as well. Despite this disaster, the people here are so wonderfully upbeat and gracious - many of us have discussed the kind of perspective they have already brought to our lives. We can’t wait to continue helping in any way we can over the coming days.

Overall, the entire day went very smoothly today - as half of the day was training, we ended up seeing 699 recipients. We’ll add the balance of our daily goal to tomorrow’s clinic, and look forward to adding more great stories.

November 7, 2010

Team Arrival Day

By markhilvert

Our US/Canadian group of 18 arrived in Bangkok around 5:30 this morning after meeting in LA. Many friendships have started already. Visited the very impressive clinic site before heading to the hotel...the leadership team, who arrived earlier in the week, had everything mapped out and ready to go. (In this area of Thailand, there is a tremendous need for our services. The average yearly income is approximately $4,000 - $10,000 US Dollars per year. The goal of this clinic is 15,000 lives touched in 8 days...pretty amazing to think about it.) Tonight we headed out for some authentic Thai cuisine (see image below...toothpick not included), then returned back to the hotel to meet the European members of our team who had just arrived. We’re all so excited, although we’re still trying to orient ourselves to the difference in time. A good night’s sleep should do the trick.

October 27, 2010

Welcome, Welcome, Welcome to Team Thailand’s Blog!!!!

By asadlier

Hello!
If you're interested in virtual participation in our upcoming OneSight Clinic to Thailand, you've landed on the right blog! Our team of volunteers and doctors will spend two weeks in Nakhon Ratchasima,Thailand providing complete eye exams and recycled glasses to thousands in need who could not otherwise afford to see the world clearly.

Each day, right here on this very page, we will be posting highlights from our global clinic including stories of our recipients, the team experience and a little about Thailand itself. We land in Bangkok on November 7th and will be posting messages and photographs through November 19^th. Be sure to log on every day so you don't miss a minute of the excitement! And, if you’re interested, our team is also raising money to help fund our Clinic. Help us reach our goal and MAKE YOUR DONATION to our team today! http://onesight.donordrive.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.team&eventID=502&teamID=5045