Our Mission
Direct impact, full transparency β and we pay the transport and admin ourselves
The People Behind the Mission
Meet the dedicated individuals who make Rice Runs possible
Rice Run Organizer
Driven by a belief that small actions can create significant impact, Giovanni coordinates these rice runs from Thailand. Every donation is personally managed and transparently tracked, with Giovanni providing personal guarantees for all funds raised.
Medical Doctor & Partner
MD, BSBC, General Practitioner
An ethnic Karen whose family fled to Thailand during his early childhood. Despite initial challenges in refugee camps, Dr. Mowae excelled academically, earning a Bachelor in Bioscience with honors and later graduating as a Medical Doctor. He now coordinates charity work, leveraging his unique perspective as someone who speaks Karen and understands firsthand the challenges faced by the community.
Orphanage Founder
Bilay House Orphanage Director
A courageous refugee from the Karen ethnic group who, despite living with polio, has dedicated his life to caring for 59 children at Bilay House Orphanage. These children have lost everything to the violence that has plagued the region, yet under Bilay's care, they find safety, education, and love.
Partnership in Action
Dr. Mowae and Bilay coordinating rice deliveries and care for the children
Why Rice Runs Exist
CharityRiceRuns started with a simple observation: orphanages on the Thai-Myanmar border needed consistent food supplies, but traditional charity models involved too much overhead and not enough transparency.
Founded by Giovanni van Dam, a Dutch expat living in Thailand, CharityRiceRuns operates on a radically simple principle: we pay the transport and the admin ourselves, so your gift buys food. No salaries, no office overhead, nothing deducted for running this β the one exception is the payment fee, which card and iDEAL gifts lose to the provider and Thai QR and cash do not. We are a food security charity: the money buys staple food, in bulk, delivered by us to the children who eat it.
How It Works
We run funding drives every 6 months to stock up orphanages with essential supplies.
Donations come from individuals around the world who want direct impact.
We buy rice, mung beans, oil and salt in bulk from Thai wholesalers like Makro.
We personally deliver everything to the orphanages and document the entire trip.
The Orphanages
Bilay House Orphanage
Located on the Thai-Myanmar border in Ratchaburi Province, Bilay House has been our primary partner since Rice Run 1. It cares for 70 children who fled conflict in Myanmar. Founded and run by Bilay β a Karen refugee living with polio who has dedicated his life to these children β the home provides shelter, education, and love to children who have lost everything. Our medical partner, Dr. Mowae (MD, BSBC), herself a Karen refugee-camp survivor, provides medical oversight and helps coordinate every delivery.
Samson House
Since Rice Run 4, we support Samson House, which cares for 20 migrant refugee children from Myanmar. They welcomed our rice and basic food donation model, and have expressed particular need for kitchen supplies.
Our Promise
- β Direct Impact β transport and admin are paid privately, so your gift buys supplies; card and iDEAL lose only the provider's processing fee, Thai QR and cash lose nothing
- πΈFull Documentation β All donors receive photos and videos within 1 week
- π§ΎTransparent Receipts β All purchase receipts are publicly available
- π¬Direct Communication β WhatsApp or email Giovanni directly with any questions
The Impact So Far
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Completed Runs
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$0 Β· ΰΈΏ0
Total Raised
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Donations
0
Children Fed
Why No Official Charity?
Setting up a registered charity in Thailand costs thousands of euros, requires extensive bureaucracy, and is nearly impossible for foreigners. More importantly, it would introduce administrative overhead that we want to avoid.
Instead, Giovanni personally receives each gift, converts it, and spends it in Thailand with zero markup. This keeps things simple, transparent, and radically efficient β apart from a small card processing fee.
For any questions or concerns, you can WhatsApp or email Giovanni directly. He responds to every message personally.
Get In Touch
Have questions? Want to get involved? Reach out directly.