20-24 DEC 2021 - 1,077 MEALS; 550 Christmas Grace Bags Given Out

Leading up to Christmas has been so busy for the Hot meals team. Sunee and Aland have been running the kitchen, making meals but also gearing up to pack and give out 550 Grace Bags to needy families. This has taken them months to interview and identify the right families that are in need of our help. The Christmas Grace bags were kindly donated by expat and overseas donors and even came packed in recycleable IKEA bags. As we give, we also hope to mind the environment and in any case, those IKEA bags are amazing for everyday living. We are pretty sure they will get at least 100 reuses.

MENU/ MEALS Served

20 Dec: Tom yum soup with vegetable glass noodles; Fried rice; Chicken porridge [209]

21 Dec: Spicy winter melon soup with boiled eggs and rice; Chicken porridge [285]

22 Dec: Garlic chicken with eggs; hot dog and rice

23 Dec: Mince chicken with eggplant curry; vegetable chicken soup and fungus [298]

24 Dec - Grace Bags Packing

Total Meals Served: 1,077

The queues to collect our food boxes remain so long. It is important to remember and reflect that as we celebrate the wealth of our holidays, that so many need our help. One food box costs US$1 for us to provide, please help us by donating.

CHRISTMAS BIG PACKING - 550 bags of basic staples were put together and distributed over 2 days. To manage the crowds and covid spread, we arranged scheduled pickups by families that have been pre-identified based on prior interviews and needs. A HUGE Thank YOU to the amazing kind donors who have contributed to these bags. Each bag contains, rice, oil, noodles and many basic items that can last a family 1-2 weeks.

And of course, big thank you to our kind volunteers that have given time, sweat and muscle to carry these super heavy bags!

Have a merry christmas everyone!

13-17 Dec 2021 - 1,232 MEALS SERVED; Christmas Grace Bags; Children's Toys and Clothes

This week, we did a good 1,200+ meals to the needy. Thank you to our volunteers and tireless Sunee, Poo, Aland for cooking and doing this work all week. Also note, on 24 Dec Christmas Eve, Aland and Sunee will be packing 550 Grace Bags, containing rice, oil and other cooking staples to distribute to the needy. It has been months long work to identify the needy families, getting them registered to receive these bags of food and staples, on top of running the kitchen!

Also, we will be distributing pre-loved children's clothes, toys and books, all kind donations from good folks in Phuket. We hope this Christmas to bring some needed cheer, given the Omnicron climate has dented some of the hope around full economic revival.

Menu/ Meals Served:

13 Dec - Panang curry chicken with vegetables and rice (220)

14 Dec - Fried noodles; seaweed chicken soup; chicken porridge (254)

15 Dec - Noodle soup with chicken (270)

16 Dec - Spicy bamboo shoot with eggs and chicken stir fry with vegetables (249)

17 Dec - Spicy basil mince chicken; macroni, chicken porridge (300)

Total meals = 1,232

Yummy Panang curry

Volunteers at work

As always, we appeal for donations as the threat of Omnicron has arrived in Phuket. Borders are shutting again and quarantine reinstituted. For Phuket, the sandbox program is still allowed (ie. tourists will need to stay in a SHA+ hotel for 7 days). This would certainly mean less tourists wanting to take the risk to apply and come here, for fear that the government will change travel rules overnight. With the sandbox model, small, indpendent hotels, hostels and private apartments will not benefit as all tourists will only stay in the big chain hotels. How this will impact the local economy is no surprise. We will have to see how long the small guys can keep their shops, small hotels open at this rate. In the meantime, we still see long queues for our food boxes. We continue to deliver meals to the Burmese camps as well.

6-10 Dec 2021 - 1,258 MEALS SERVED

Menus/ Meals Served

6 Dec - Spicy chicken with fried noodles [220]

7 Dec - Seaweed chicken soup with vegetables, tuna and rice [254]

8 Dec - Garlic chicken and rice; chicken porridge [250]

9 Dec - Salted vegetables chicken soup with rice [254]

10 Dec - Curry chicken with vegetables; chicken porridge [220]

Total Meals Served: 1,258

Christmas is just around the corner. The kitchen will be closed on 24 Dec as Aland and Sunee will be distributing c. 500 Life Bags in Phuket town. Should you wish to donate items or money to help this one-off effort, please email info@hotmealsforall.org.

Daily Queues snake around the block

Local food distributors that take our packets to needy in Burmese camps

Should you wish to donate, please click here. Should you wish to volunteer or donate items, please contact info@hotmealsforall.org.