Laos children

Multiply this photo 16 times.  16 pre-schools in Laos now have this same pile of toys.

When we visited a pre-school in Laos in 2009, we were dismayed there were no toys for the children. None.

Room to Read has plenty to do building libraries and schools and providing books and it's vital they stay on the mission for literacy.  But, the pre-schools were there. Wouldn't they be more valuable if equipped?

We came up with an idea to outfit them. Room to Read was willing to let us run with it. We made a list and found the toys. As a non-profit, RtR negotiated an attractive price with the company and co-ordinated the purchases. Most importantly, RtR added the toys to a shipment of books being sent to southeast Asia on a flight donated by Cathay Pacific.  Toy Project Laos was a success!

The pre-schools are in remote places. Travel can be difficult. But, by late summer, the in-country RtR team had distributed the toys. In September we visited a pre-school and saw for ourselves the result.

In the photo below, I had just given this little boy a toy car.

He didn't seem to know what to do with it.

I showed him how it worked.

And, waited for a smile.... that didn't come.

It was then, I realized how much these children didn't know how to play with toys.
They truly had never seen them before. It broke my heart.

But I have a feeling they will catch on quickly. They will learn to count and know their colors.

They will string the beads, master the puzzles,

and pound the pegs.

And soon they will be ready to learn to read.

The toys will last for years. The value of their learning will last a lifetime.