Some of our fondest memories from our journey were from our visit with Maggie Doyne and her children in Surkhet, Nepal.  All the kids were such a joy to be around.  This young boy at the Kopila Valley Primary School glowed with enthusiasm.

Just when we think that we’ve found all of our people to feature, another person pops into our lives. I’m excited to announce our newest subject – Dr. David Mar Naw and his organization Where There Is Not a Doctor.

“Dr. David,” as he is affectionately known, is an experienced doctor who got fed up with the corruption he found while working with an NGO that provided medical supplies to the poor hill-tribe villages in Chiang Rai, a city in northern Thailand. He decided to part ways and travel himself between the villages, providing free medical treatment to the villagers who lacked these resources, and receiving food and a place to stay in return.

Dr. David has continued these visits, and is now often accompanied by volunteers, including many medical professionals, through his program Where There Is Not a Doctor. Dr. David set up this program in order to recruit volunteers and seek donations to fund his visits to the hill-tribes and the medical supplies that he brings with him. Now, in addition to providing medical treatments, he has expanded his activities to include teaching languages and first aid, building water supplies and bridges, and many other projects to benefit the hill-tribes. There are countless ways to volunteer and aid Dr. David with his projects, and people may stay with him for a minimum of one week to up to a year.

We are currently making arrangements to visit Dr. David in Chiang Rai and shadow him during his visits to the hill-tribes. We’re very excited to meet him and share his incredible story with you!