It was such a great event! I got to see so many friends, show a movie and spread the word about the kids in Northern Thailand and the help that they need. I really need to thank everyone that helped make it all happen. Jason and Greg from Bodega, Wade, Monique, Shawna, Jenna from Susina bakery, Deb from Lunchbox Catering, Joanna, Matty, Chris, Bunny and Sandor from the Green House, Nick and Brooke from Tripel, Lori from Westside Tavern and everyone that showed up to support.

We are getting close to our goal, not there yet but there are still donations coming in from paypal. I am so grateful for all of the love and support to the kids. I know they are so happy to know that there are people that care and want to help with their futures. Thank you all so much, pictures to be posted soon….Peace, -Stu

The fundraiser at Blueplate was so amazing and I am hoping that the one I am having this Saturday will be just as good. www.stuandthekids.org is having a fun, relaxed evening at The Grey Lodge in Northeast Philly (6235 Frankford Avenue  Philadelphia, PA 19135
(215) 856-3591). We are starting at 5PM and going until…Well not so sure so if you can’t come at 5, call me to see if we are still there. My number is 1-310-666-9721.

We are going to have a 50/50 raffle which means you can win 1/2 of the money raised from the sale of the raffle. I normally raffle off great prizes from local businesses and hand-made Hill Tribe bags and things but this year I am a bit light on those items. So when a friend suggested this type of raffle I figured “why not”. Also there will be other people at the pub that have no idea about the charity and we think this could get them interested. You know spreading the word and the message more could not hurt as well as making more money for the projects……

Hoping to see you all there on the 1st of September. Peace, -Stu

On the 19th of August www.stuandthekids.org had an amazing fundraiser at Blueplate in Mullica Hill, NJ. 53 people showed up to help support us and to eat some really good Thai food (I know I made it, LOL). It was so great to see new friends, family and some friends that I have known since grade school. The love and support is awesome and I am growing a nice following. I think next year we may have to do 2 nights of fundraising and I am fine with that. We raised for the one night $3335 and since I have been here in the states the total is now $4100.

I am very excited and so looking forward to the event at the Grey Lodge on the 1st of September. There is no charge for this party but we will have a donation box for people to give what they can, everything helps. We will also have a 50/50 raffle. This is the first time I have ever don this but I think people will enjoy the chance to win 1/2 the pot. At Blueplate we sold $350 in raffle tickets so with the chance to win money maybe we can even sell more tickets. I am also looking forward to see more long time friends and family.

We have also received several donations on paypal, thank you so much for all of your support and well wishes from a far. OK so there you have it, an update……I will fill you in more later, peace.

Hi everyone, I just wanted to keep you up to date about what is going on. I will be back in the states for a couple of months and I am so excited to see everyone. I will be there for a bit of of a holiday, some work as well as fun and fundraising. The first event will be on Sunday, August 19th at 6:00 PM I will be having a fundraiser at Blueplate Restaurant in Mullica Hill, New Jersey. This year my fundraising will focus on helping 3 older Hill Tribe kids to continue their education by having a chance to go to University. The boys really want to continue learning to be able to have a better future and to help their families improve their living situations. Tanagone, Soreset and Tamasot were my 3 top students for the last 3 years at the Wat Don Chan. I see so much in them and really want to help them continue with their education. Your donations will help the boys with their rent, food, books and school supplies, school tuition fees and uniforms. Below is a copy of the menu, I hope you will join us for this fun evening, please call Blueplate to make your make a reservation,      1-856-478-2112. I want to thank Jim and Michelle Malaby from Blueplate for all of their help with making this annual event possible. Coming soon will be info about a few other fundraisers, 1 in Philly at the Grey Lodge and 1 in LA at Bodega Wine Bar in Santa Monica, stay tuned. Thank you…. -Stu

Dinner Served Family Style

Authentic Thai, family-style dinner prepared by Stu

 Pad-Thai Goong (Thai Style Noodles with Shrimp)

Gang Kheow Waan Gai (Northern-Style Coconut Curry with Chicken)

 Som Tom Tang Wa (Spicy Cucumber Salad Salad)

 Pad Gra Pow Moo (Stir-Fried, Spicy Ground Pork with Green Beans, Garlic, Onions and Thai Herbs)

 Kow Suia (Steamed Jasmine Rice)

 Dessert

 Gluai Taut Ice a Cream Ma Plow (Warm Fried Bananas with Toasted Coconut Ice Cream)

Yes I guess it has been that long. You know to be honest sometimes when things get crazy here, it really is hard to write or better said, type it out…….

Since I have been away for www.stuandthekids.org, I have been sooooooo busy. I took some time off from volunteering and doing charity work everyday to do some actual work and make some money so I can continue on this path. I got my DREAM JOB! I had the amazing opportunity to work on my favorite show of all time, SURVIVOR, maybe you have heard of it?????? I was the breakfast and lunch Sous Chef, working from 4 AM to 3 PM, 6 days a week, cooking for the 300 plus crew. It truly was an amazing experience to be in the Philippines and working with the most talented group of people I have ever met. Everyone worked so hard and wanted to do the best job they could and this was so helpful to push me everyday to cook the best food I could. The production takes such good care of everyone, planning parties, sporting events, art shows, a film festival and they even helped out with giving back to the community.

One day they had a boat race with locals involved and the money raised from that went to a local school to get every kid a back pack to carry all of their school supplies. At the Art Show most art was auctioned off and that money went to a local hospital. There was also a Raincoat Fund which was headed up by my new friend James and myself. This fund got even kid and teacher at another local school a raincoat as well as some other learning supplies. Everyone from the crew donated and made all of these projects a great success. I know the locals, kids, teachers and doctors were grateful as well so was I. To see so much love and care by so many great people was just amazing, I was overwhelmed with joy.

Did I mention I needed spinal surgery? I know I didn’t but now I am. I had so much fun seeing how the show is made and even had the opportunity to get involved with challenges and such. And that is were I hurt my back, yup trying out one of the challenges. I knew it right away, the pain was bad but I kept it cool and thought I would be fine but a few days later it got worse. After getting jostled around on a short boat ride about 4 days after that it was time to fly to Manila and get it checked out. After an MRI I was told I needed to go under the knife, I was scared but I had great support from the Production and Medical Team. This is where I give a BIG shout out to Dr. Erika, she was great. SHe dealt with the hospital staff, production and even brought me food for even meal, again, thank you so much Erika. And this happened on my birthday and when I got out of recovery my room was full of Sushi and Pizza! Awesome……

OK so now to fill you in on my old charity, Hilltribe in the City, we had to shut down. I won’t bore you with all of the confusing details so here is the short version. When you volunteer here in Thailand and have a work permit, like I have. It clearly states what you are here to do and what charity you work for and that id ALL you are allowed to do. My work permit says I can volunteer for the Wat Don Chan and here I was having my own charity and working toward making it a full foundation. One night while collecting donations at the Sunday Night Walking Street here in Chiang Mai, like I had done for almost a year, I was approached by a man and he said he was the “one” that signed all work permits. I called my lawyer right away and he said go home and come see me this week. I was told until Hilltribe in the City became a foundation, I could no longer collect donations and if I continued with the charity I could maybe have to pay a fine of 85,000 baht ($2830) and I could lose my work permit and visa. Now this might not happen but it could and if I lost my visa I would have to leave and would not be able to volunteer here any more. There are several other happenings that took place that added to the reasons we needed to discuss our continuing or not.

After lot’s of thought about the charities future, financial future, the kids, donations, legal fees, etc. the decision was to shut down Hilltribe in the City, I was crushed and still am, I really miss the kids so much. I know what we did for them the pervious year will stick with them forever as well what they did for me, I will never forget. I just really wanted to do right by the folks that supported us. The other thing here is that having a non-profit charity, needing an accountant, a lawyer, board members, official visitors, blah, blah, blah, took away a lot of the time to do the actual work, which is why I do this.

The good news is now I am just one guy, working alone on several smaller projects and I only need to answer to the people that support these projects. I say smaller but for the kids that will receive the benefits from this do not think they are so small, these things will help change their lives as well as their families lives forever. I am now in Chiang Mai and have been gathering all of the information I need to go back to the states for 2 months and do some fundraising. I will also do some work and have some time to see friends and family which I am so excited about. Back to the information gathering; first I will be raising fund to help 3 kids continue their college education. Tanagone, Soreset and Tamasot were students of mine at the Wat Don Chan for the whole time I have been here in Thailand and they were the top 3 students. After graduating they were going to get jobs to save for school but sadly the money they could get would be needed to live their daily lives with little extra to really get into school. So I said what if I could help by collecting donations to help you out?

Tanagone was thrilled and having such good grades he was able to get into one of the best Universities here in Chiang Mai so I paid for his first semester and gave him my motorcycle to get to and from school. For Tanagone I am looking to get funds for his next 3 years of tuition, school uniforms, books, 2 extra curricular activities per month, 2 meals for everyday he is at school and gas money to get back and forth to school. This cost is $2000 (60,000 baht) per year so that is $6000 (180,000 baht) for 3 years. For the other 2 boys Sorest and Tamasot that are going to a Technical College the cost for their rent (they share a small room near the school), 1 meal per day at school, books uniforms and tuition is $1800 (54,000 baht) per year or $5400 (162,000 baht) for 3 years and this is for the 2 of them total.

I am now working on having 4 fundraisers to achieve  these goals to help the 3 of them, 1 in Delaware, 1 in Philly, 1 in New Jersey and 1 in Los Angeles. If you would like to help by contributing you can just hit the paypal button on this site to do so. I have a few other small projects that I will be working on while here and they are to continue teaching at the Wat Don Chan 3-4 days per week, helping to teach Novice Monks (young Monks) at the Wat Doi Suket by teaching them how to cook for themselves with once a month classes. There are a few other “irons in the fire” but these need to wait until I come back here at the beginning of October so I will fill you in more once I know what is going on. Mainly I want to make sure the 3 boys are taken care of so they can get the education that they deserve to better their lives as well as the live of their families………

Thank you so much for taking the time to read about my projects and the kids. Peace to you all, take care. -Stu

So many things have changed there, some good and some well not that great. I was away from there for a few weeks because the kids had mid-term exams and then a 3 week holiday break. When I was living there I would get to see all of the kids all the time but now having Hilltribe in the CIty, I am really busy. It was nice to have a break from the but when I got back I was amazed at all of the changes.

Now the boys and girls eat separately and the food is cooked in 2 different kitchens. The girls have tables while the boys eat on the floor but this is not a big deal here in Thailand. At the Hilltribe in the City house we eat 95% of the time on the floor, picnics everyday. The new school is built and the old school is now being used for more girls dorm rooms. The boys dorm is getting an extension built on it as well as some new toilets and more space to bathe and wash clothes. They have planted more tress and cemented a few other areas where the kids can play on a flat, not to dusty surface.

The only thing is now they have room for more kids and they are getting them. There were about 640 this past year and the plan is to have about 900 next year. When I asked if they were getting more Monks or other helpers since there will be so many kids, I was told, “not sure”. Really, I mean 250 more kids and no more help! CRAZY! I was also told that they do not want to have any more foreign volunteers there to help, why I don’t know, again, CRAZY! I will always be allowed since I have been helping so long and I love those kids so much so I will do my best with what they allow me to do. There is a picture of where the garden I planted with the kids was, you will see it is totally flooded and everything is gone.

Mainly I have been teaching English to the older kids and we have plans to do a short course about ice cream making, coffee and fruit drinks (these are very popular here) and some baking too. I hope this happen sooner then later. Unfortunatly since there has been so much flooding in Bangkok some of the budget for these classes have had to go to Bangkok to help the schools there. The kids are still super sweet and always bring a smile to my face when I see them.

As you can see from the pictures, the bear is still there, sad. I was told she will soon go to the Zoo and I hope this is true, I think she would like some other food since she only eats cabbage, bananas and coconuts. Lucky the monkey is still there too but not going anywhere and he love bananas…..

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The kids are so sweet and we are so happy to see them doing well in school. When Bon got here he could not even write his name, he is almost 6 years old and now he is doing so good. Nopamot and Sudaporn could not speak to much Thai, they are from the Karen hill tribe and only spoke Karen and now they are chatting up a storm in Thai. The teachers tell us they are improving everyday and they are pretty well behaved in class, we are grateful.

We have been very lucky to have some people come over on weekends and teach some Thai, English and Art, they really like to have visitors. Also from 6-7, 5 days a week we do little lessons for them too, math, Thai and some English. Two weeks ago a couple of people came over with a projector and we watched a movie on the side of our garage and we ate popcorn and just had a blast. They plan on coming over once a month to do this, thanks John and Lois.

I have been doing most of the cooking so you know they are eating well and staying healthy. I have taught myself how to make many Thai dishes as well as introducing them to other foods, egg sandwiches, burgers, tacos, salads, pasta, oatmeal, etc. It is funny to see them eat some of these things over rice, I mean oatmeal and spaghetti over rice, LOL.

The kids just got back from a 10 day holiday from school, they went back to their villages. We feel it is so important to have them stay connected with their families and their culture. At the Wat I was at the kids only got to go back to see family for 2 weeks every year, not enough. We plan to have them home for even holiday, summer break and since we plan on helping in the villages, we will take them once a month when the weather is OK. During the rainy season it is hard to get them there since the roads are really poor and there are land slides.

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May 5th, 10 days before the kids come to the Hilltribe in the City house, I am leaving and heading to the states for 2 months. I had mixed emotions, I was so excited to see my friends and family but sad that I was going to miss the first few months of the kids being in the house. It was definitely weirded out when I got in to LA, culture shock. It had been close to 2 years since I was in the states. Jenna picked me up, it was so great to see her then we headed right to Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles, Herb special #2 please, extra hot sauce, AMAZING! The next day, Joanna picked me up, so great to see her too, gotta get a phone then on to Venice Beach…….

When I got to my old hood it was amazing to see everyone and all of the changes there. Wade and Erin left my old place (sad to give that place up) and moved all of my things to their place, thank you guys, I know it was a ton of work. 4 days of seeing people, WARREN and ROSA HAD A BABY and SUSY is PREGNANT! preparing for the East coast and planning all kinds of sales and yard sales since I needed to get rid of everything.

The East coast was amazing, my folks look great. I got to see so many people, met tons of new people and reconnected with family. My buddy Jim from Blue Plate in Jersey let me plan a fundraiser at his place. We had a blast finding all of the ingredients and cooking all kinds of Thai food for the event. We had 47 people, food, raffles slide shows, and stories about all the kids here, it was a great night, I even had a friend from college drive all the was from Connecticut for it. Thanks Mikey and thanks to Jim and Michelle for the use of Blue Plate and all ou always do for me. Then I was back to Delaware to speed more time with my folks and more planning for the Philly fundraiser.

That was another great event, it was at the White Elephant. They gave us an amazing deal and 68 people came. A big thanks to my folks for calling a bunch of friends too. It was like being on This is Your Life, everyone was there. My third grade teach, friends that I have not seen in as many as 25 years and several new people were there to support the cause too. Also other friends from college, Anna, Joe and Leslie. Some friends even helped by getting me a projector and raffle prizes. It was just the best, we got to catch up but sad we did not have more time together, they were so great to show up and support, www.hilltribeinthecity.org.

One more day to see people and it’s back to LA to sell the rest of my things and have a fundraiser at the new Bodega, in Hollywood. The yards sale were great, friends came by and also sold things and donated the money to our cause. I also got to go cook for Larry Hahn again, I was his chef for 9 years. Larry and a friend of his each us a huge donation, thank you, thank you, thank you, we are so grateful. Fun, fun, fun everyday and planning for Bodega. For this one we had 90 people and everything was donated from Susina Bakery, Bodega Hollywood, Adam, Wade, the Bodega crew as well as all that gave raffle prizes. The Farm, DNA Studio, Greenhouse Smoke Shop, Aunt Jackie, Casey, Westside Tavern, Jar, Susina Bakery, thank you so much. I raised much more money then I thought I would. THANK YOU SO MUCH everyone that came out to support us.

I got to eat well and see so many amazing people, I even got to go to the Conan show. That was sweet, my buddy Mark-Paul was promoting his new TV show and asked me to go watch it live. We got picked up in a really nice car, did the show (backstage and all) then had a great dinner and a bunch of wine, thanks to TNT for that, LOL. Now in between all of the fun, I would talk with Greig and hear how crazy it was at the house. 6 kids starting school, living in a new house, not even speaking Thai that well (they speak Karen, they are Karen children from Northern Thailand). I was excited and nervous to be going back. One last party for the 4th of July at Clubhouse on Venice Beach, the 6th is when I left to go back to Chiang Mai…….

So after our Hilltribe in the City fundraiser we headed up to the village to bring the kids here to see the house and the school to make sure they were happy with everything and we planned to bring their families here too. When we got to the village no one came to us and this was weird, the always come running, strange right. We had a translator with us and he helped us to find quickly that a woman that I used to volunteer with told everyone horrible lies about Greig and I. She said that we might sell there kids, crazy, I know. This was one of the worst things that has ever happened to me. I would never ever hurt a child. There were other things too but I am over it and I need to keep my focus on helping these kids and not worrying about why or what she has said. Things are great right now and we are gaining the trust of the village again. We have one kid from there now, Sakorn. He is going to university to be a science teacher. Needless to say I no long and never will work with Toys for Thailand again. I wish them well in all they do and thankful for the lessons, good and bad while with them.

We then met kids from Mae Cham that needed and wanted a better eduction, we met them through a teacher near their village. Their families want them to have a chance to have choices with what to do with their lives. They are here now. We have 3 from the village, 2 from Muser Nai in Om Koy and 1 that used to live at the Wat Don Chan. We have a Karen woman, Siporn living here and helping with all of the days to day things. She is great to help us translate from Karen to Thai, thank you Siporn.

When I came back, it was instant Mr. Mom. Driving to and from school, cooking, cleaning, helping with homework, laundry, bed time, you parents know what I mean. We are now a super fun, mixed family. I have even got the kids liking some other food, other then Thai. I mean I cook ton’s of Thai but also pasta, burgers, tacos, salads and sandwiches. On Saturdays we try to get someone to teach to the kids or we go to a swimming pool or to the park. The kids also really like going to the market, Big C and Makro. Sunday nights we go to the market to collect donations. During all of this I am still volunteering, teaching English at the Wat Don Chan, 4 days a week and doing some private teaching too, BUSY. Once and a while I also do a cooking class or 2 at a school for other kids.

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Ok so it seems like every time I start a blog post it starts off with “sorry it has been so long” or WOW, so much has been happening”. Well it is true again, both of those statements.  About 6 weeks ago we had our Fundraising/Launch party at Westside Restaurant and Pub, it was a TON of work but so worth it and a lot of fun. We had lot’s of food donated, volunteers to work the bar, sell tickets at the front door, sell raffles, grill sate’s, sing, set-up, clean-up, etc.

Here is where I try to thank everyone….Thank you so much and I love you all for your help and support. It mean so much to everyone involved with www.hilltribeinthecity.org. Lynn, Charles, Ester, Sondra, Game, Book, Scott, Paul and the Mrs., Steve, Richard, Jon, Bruce, Menno, Wisit, Mr. Sawang, Nick and friends, David and Bpuy, Gallery Bar, Butter is Better Cafe and bakery. And also for the people that helped us to sell tickets before the event and those who gave us prizes for the raffle, Jiriporn, Vishian, John, David and Bpuy from Yokka Dok, Justin, Tony and Eve from Red Mango, Scott from Soho, Krit from Nimmon Kitchen and Nimmon Massage, Mark from Miguels, and Flight of the Gibbons. I sure hope I have not forgotten anyone.

It was a super fun night, people came in went to see the beautiful people serving drinks at the bar then moved on to get some really good food, of course, LOL. We had pictures and a good mix of Thai and Farang music, as well as several singers and they were great. Greig and I both spoke a couple of time through out the night, to fill everyone in on all of the happenings and the intention for Hilltribe in the City. Everyone also loved winning massages, dinners, zip-lining adventures, wine and whiskey from our raffles. I was running around like crazy and hope that next time I will get to speak to each and every person.

I am so bad, 6 weeks and no thank you note yet….I am sorry and feel bad but I do plan to do it this weekend, so important. I will also post another blog this weekend since there is so much more going on, good and bad….

Last night was really great, we had another meeting with 2 of the kids coming and their families, they got to see the house and loved it. We are so looking forward to having that good, fun, kid energy around and getting them into a good school, good tutors and to have chances that they never could have had before. Thank you also to the supported from all around the world that have sent donations, love to you all.

I will be going to the states very soon and having 2 or 3 fundraisers so if you are near by, please come join me…..Until next time, -peace.