Rainbow House is a project for children in the village of Sonpinnong, home to several Thai Daughters who wanted to share the skills and talents they have developed at FTD’s Sunflower House.

The house belongs to two Daughters who inherited it when their mother died of cancer likely related to her decades of spraying pesticides without protection as a day laborer. They decided to dedicate the property as a community learning center.
With lots of help, the house was cleaned, painted and furnished with books and supplies. FTD’s Khun Lan takes care of the maintenance and transports the Daughters to the village to lead workshops and activities.

The Daughters named it Rainbow House because rainbows “appear brightly after a heavy rain and bring joy and hope” – and the seven colors of the rainbow spectrum reflects the Seven Strengths.

Twice a month, Thai Daughters conduct workshops at the Rainbow House focused on one of the Lessons. Sixty children participate, divided into two groups.

“Leaders” – 30 girls aged 11 – 17
“Little Ones” — 30 boys and girls 4 – 10 years old

For the Leaders, mornings are focused on humanitarian issues such as child rights, human trafficking, environmental sustainability, climate change, personal health and safety, and reproductive issues. Experts from NGOs, social workers and health care workers come and share information with the Leaders.

Afternoon sessions are spent on activities and projects such as learning to make reusable sanitary napkins, hygienic face masks, hair clips, hair bands and other products used in every day life. Leaders have also made notebooks and embroidered purses they sell for pocket money.

For the Little Ones, mornings are spent learning to speak Thai (as the children are from ethnic hill tribes and do not speak Thai at home), basic arithmetic and science, proper hygiene and hand washing, anti-littering and other life skills. Their afternoon sessions include arts and crafts projects, coloring and painting, outdoor games and activities.

Asked why the Rainbow House is so important, Thai Daughter Jun explained, “ I can see the problem. The crucial problem in our village is that girls aren’t valued or treated equal to boys. They are forced to get married at a very young age, like when they’re 12 years old. They stop going to school and start having children, even though they are still kids themselves. Their parents are too ignorant to recognize the importance of their daughters being educated. “

But thanks to FTD, we are different. We are girls and we are getting educated all the way through university. So it’s our responsibility to prove to others in the village that when girls get educated, they can get good jobs, and earn money to help their families and improve their lives. It’s hard to change old ways of thinking but this is our goal and our dream and we can already see signs that things are changing.”

Daughter Nakhamsee added, “for me, the objective of Rainbow House is to be a place where children, especially girls, can gain the courage to express themselves. With more self-confidence, they will be able to have a greater impact in their community. I want to show them a bigger world — even if it’s just through pictures and storytelling. It’s important for them to know that they have the right not just to dream of a better life but to pursue one.”