About sixty kilometres northeast of Bangkok in Lamsai, Pathumthani Province in Thailand, we can find a haven of peace. In a quiet area surrounded by ponds and beautiful gardens there is a place for praying and caring created and supported by the Franciscan Friars Minor.

In 1985 the Friars returned to Thailand where in the late 1500's they were among the first to evangelize, celebrate the Eucharist and build a church. Now they returned as an international community to share an experience of prayer and to engage in the dialogue of life and ministry.

The Cardinal Archbishop of Bangkok made a tract of undeveloped farmland available to the fraternity. The first endeavor was to establish a center for prayer and contemplation - a significant element in the Thai culture.

The number of people of the Catholic Faith, of the Buddhist Faith and of other religions seeking an opportunity to meet the Lord grew. The Friars provided a place for such an encounter and offered spiritual guidance.

Development: As the Franciscans became more acquainted with the social realities in Thailand, they began to see a great need for some way to care for the poor who were suffering from AIDS. Eventually they decided to adapt some of the guest facilities on the Garden of Gospel Peace property to establish a hospice for poor people dying of AIDS. Saint Clare's House received its first patients on July 5, 1993

The aim of the Hospice is to provide a clean, dignified and caring home for those who are dying. It welcomes those unable to care forthemselves and who have no other recourse to care and treatment. To be admitted one must be diagnosed by a qualified physician as being in the end stage of AIDS, i.e. having a prognosis of death within six months. The capacity of the hospice is ten to twelve patients at any one time.

Since 1994 nursing care has been provided by the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent DePaul, trained and licensed nurses. Other helpers, both paid and volunteer, assist the Sisters. Medical treatment is provided by physicians from Médicins Sans Frontières (Doctors without Borders). These physicians visit the patients at Saint Clare's Hospice twice a week to prescribe courses of treatment and to arrange appointments for hospital visits and examinations as necessary. The Friars offer spiritual consolation and sacramental support.

Statistics: Since its opening in 1993, 243 persons entered the facility with a stay ranging for one hour to eight months. The average stay is approximately three weeks. The youngest patient was just two years old, while the oldest was 64. The average age is 32. 158 persons died at this location. Some, however, are discharged to other facilities or homes before death.

Budget: In 1997 operating expenses totaled US$ 46,000 to provide food, medicine, medical supplies, equipment, staff services and maintenance. On the average patient care cost $ 88 per month per patient. It is projected that the figures for 1998 will be similar, after allowance is made for inflation.

Looking at the campus of the Garden of Gospel Peace, Franciscan Brother John Summers, the Superior and Director, sees that $38,000 for extraordinary expenses are needed to make the facilities of Saint Clare Hospice adequate for this purpose. As he observes, "The buildings were not originally designed for hospice care of terminally ill persons."

When the project began, there was a certain amount of improvisation and now it is time to make some permanent modifications in the structure by making the buildings more easily accessible for handicapped persons, providing better ventilation in the humid climate of Thailand, and repairing storm damages to water and sewerage systems.

The Royal Ministry for Health of Thailand provides Saint Clare Hospice with a grant of US$ 20,000 for the care of the residents. The remainder of the budget for operating costs and all the extraordinary expenses depends on the support of private donations from our benefactors throughout the world.