NAKHON RATCHASIMA: Donations reached 1.2 million baht as of Friday for the 12-year-old boy who recently sought a one-year school break so he can take care of his younger siblings and relatives while his grandparents are out scavenging to support the family.
Donors transferred money to a bank account that local authorities opened for Arthit "Arm" Moedkhum, who is studying at Ban Mai Patirup School in tambon Non Rang of Chum Phuang district, after media reported the life of his poor family.
Immediate assistance from local officials and teachers allowed the boy resume his studies.
Arthit earlier sought permission from his teacher for a one-year school break because he had to take care of four children aged three months to six years who lived under the same roof.
He said he was deeply grateful for the donations and the generosity shown to him and promised to be good and study hard.
Uthai Yuyen, his 64-year-old stepgrandfather, said the donations were enough for the family and he would spend the money carefully.
Local administrators and the management of the school intend to keep some of the money to pay for the education of all the young members of the family while a portion would be spent on improving their house.
Arthit lives with his maternal grandmother, her new husband Uthai, three younger siblings and a five-year-old son of the 44-year-old grandmother in their small makeshift house made of bricks and mortar put together with no plaster.
The house was built on the land plot of his stepgrandfather's son in Ban Phan Charoen village in tambon Chum Phuang.
Daeng Tempimai, the grandmother, said she, as a widow, had lived with four children in a garbage dump of Chum Phuang municipality for over a decade.
Later, the family was expelled. She then moved to live with Mr Uthai. Her daughter had four children, including Arthit. She left the house to work in Muang district after her latest divorce, Mrs Daeng said.
She and her husband earn 100-200 baht a day while it costs about 200 baht a day to keep the family, Mrs Daeng said.
Wattana Khankhaeng, director of Ban Mai Patirup School, said that regulations prohibited a pupil from taking such a long school break during his compulsory education.
Besides, Arthit was smart and thrived academically in his 24-student class. Despite his frequent absences from school, he remains among the top 10, the school director said.