Letter from Brett and Shelly Faucett in Thailand
December 1, 2008
World AIDS Day
The estimated population of Thailand is 65,493,000 people, of which approximately 614,000 are living with HIV/AIDS. Adults 15 years and older comprise 600,000 cases. Women aged 15 years and older make up 250,000 of the total adults. Children from birth to 15 years old account for 14,000 cases of HIV/AIDS. The estimated adult HIV prevalence rate in Thailand is 1.4%. Total number of AIDS-related deaths in 2007 is 31,000 (UNAIDS).
December 1 commemorates World AIDS Day, but due to Thailand’s unstable political circumstances the World AIDS Day celebration was quite subdued, unfortunately. The original plan was to have a march of WAD participants from each corner of the moat to the center of town. (The central part of Chiang Mai is surrounded by a moat.) Speeches were to be given and lots of networking between HIV/AIDS organizations was expected. This was curtailed by the government’s fear of large numbers of people gathering due to the recent protest activity. Keep reading.
Read more mission updates by Brett and Shelly Faucett.

Mission Partnerships Strengthened on Trips to Egypt, Thailand and India
Two diverse contingents of new and veteran
mission co-workers, congregation mission
leaders, representatives of the Medical Benevolence
Foundation and staff of IHM traveled
in Egypt, Thailand and India recently,
deepening their understanding together of
how PC(USA)’s partners are working to
address the health and development issues of
their communities. Read the rest of this story in the International Health spring 2008 newsletter.

Meet the Faucetts
 Faucett family
Brett and Shelly Faucett began service as regional consultants for health and HIV/AIDS in South Asia in September 2007. Brett and Shelly are based in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Most recently Brett, a registered nurse, was on the staff of Hoag Presbyterian Hospital in Newport Beach, Calif. He is a graduate of Maric College. Brett and Shelly served for two years with the Peace Corps in Moldova.
Shelly, a graduate of the University of California at San Diego, has had special training in teaching English as a Second Language and has worked as a literacy specialist as well as an ESL teacher with the Peace Corps.
The Faucetts are members of St. Andrews Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach, CA, and are accompanied by two daughters, Acacia Joy, and Annapurna Nai. Their position was funded through the Mission Inistiative Joining Hearts and Hands. |