While many orphanages emphasize the benefits of tourist volunteers, it is unclear whether these visits actually benefit the children. This research draws from original qualitative data highlighting the voices of nine young Thai adults who lived their childhoods in an orphanage run by Christian, foreign volunteers in Thailand. The paper examines the data taken in interviews, a focus group and member checking and reports on the young people’s relationships with volunteer tourists. Their narratives reveal the ways the orphanage positioned the children as the face of the institution to promote financial gain. Now as young adults they describe being placed in precarious positions and at the mercy of tourist volunteers who were unfamiliar with their history, their language, their culture and their needs. The participants expressed deep disappointment when visitors gave hollow promises of ‘forever love’ but left never to be seen again. However, one volunteer was remembered for creating opportunities for the children to become leaders, showing the tourists Thailand and diverting the gaze away from the ‘poor orphans’. The paper argues that the business model of orphanages, financed by foreign visitors, must prioritize the unique needs of the child in the orphanage rather than privileging tourist volunteers.
