Ellie and her cards for a cause

Ellie's story... 

"While pursuing a lifetime goal of teaching ESL in the slums of Bangkok, I noticed a lack of "healthy" employment opportunities available.

An idea formulated and before long, a card making business began using local materials. A team of 4 Australians with various skills of design, teaching and organisation spent a fortnight helping the participants make 1,000 cards. This micro enterprise continues today, about 10 years later!

Our team found that card making was such a good money raiser we began producing the cards ourselves. Again various skills are sourced with designers, makers, sales people, packers, advertisers, promoters from 6-10 volunteers in total. Some contribute 10 hours/week, others 2 hours/month. This group evolves continuously - some are Uni students and others are retired.

At a church card sale I was approached with the suggestion this would be useful for the Rescue Mission For Children. Our group have all visited Thailand and have a heart to help those struggling with poverty. We  believe education is the key to financial independence, especially for stateless Akha children. All are enthusiastic to see the funds build a common purpose of funding for career based education expenses while we are also receiving the blessing of enriching the lives of others."

The photos below are of some of the card-makers when they visited the Rescue Mission for Children and shared their skills with the girls.

Left - Lexi; Middle - Laurie; Right - Ellie

become a global parent 

The RM4C Child Sponsorship fund is a three tier structure that provides a home, shelter, three healthy meals per day, clothing, medical care, and an education for the children in our care. This is the very core of our existence as a mission to rescue and protect those children who are at risk.

Tier One Child Sponsorship:

$45 per month will provide food and educational fees

Tier Two Child Sponsorship:

$35 per month will provide health care, uniforms and all other essentials

Tier Three Child Sponsorship:

A monthly amount of your choice will be put towards providing facility maintenance, electricity, water filtration and transport.

To find out more about sponsoring a child like Meega (who currently needs a Sponsor), please click on the link below: 

Child Sponsorship

Victorians, we have an exciting opportunity for you to view a beautiful art exhibition, with all proceeds generously being donated to the Rescue Mission for Children. Ira Turner is a talented artist who has painted 50 oil paintings depicting the changes of the rural township of Officer, Victoria, over the past 40 years. "Officer- A Celebration of the Way We Were" will be exhibited at the Officer Public Hall from Friday the 28th of September- Tuesday the 2nd of October. 

Ira and Trevor Turner have been loyal supporters and volunteers of Rescue Mission for over 10 years, having visited many times, sponsored many children and completed projects onsite with humble service and love.

This Art Exhibition is a culmination of gifts to the Officer Community, advocacy and love for the hill tribe children they have supported for so many years. We extend our thanks to this gracious couple and hope the exhibition is a resounding success.

Orphanage Tourism - Ethics and Alternatives Conference

RMFC Board member Alissa Miller recently attended the 'Orphanage Tourism - Ethics and Alternatives' conference in Melbourne. Alissa is passionate about child protection and providing the best possible care for our children at the Rescue Mission. 

The conference was facilitated by 'Rethink orphanages' and 'Save the Children', and provided important information and advice on how to stop corrupt people in developing countries from exploiting children in order to make money from well meaning westerners. 

The Rescue Mission for Children board are committed to the genuine health and wellbeing of the children in our care, and we are categorically against orphanage tourism. We have many protective measures in place to ensure transparency and integrity, and we are committed to being good stewards of the money donated to our organisation. Although some of our children are orphans or have been abandoned, there are other children that have a single parent or extended family that are too poor or sick to feed and take care of them. Some of the children's parents are opium addicts and some are imprisoned and cannot provide a safe home. These children spend school holidays with their extended families in their home villages and we promote opportunities to spend time with family and village communities whenever possible.

 Each child living a the Rescue Mission has a family history and profile, and is known and cared for as an individual. Our wholistic approach is directed at providing the best possible care for each child, including medical care, dental work, immunisations, education and support with homework, vocational training and learning life skills. Our children are not recruited, they are referred to us and assessed by a risk matrix so that we can make sure we accept the children who are the most vulnerable. 

For more information about the Rescue Mission for Children, and for ways to get involved please visit our website: