It is four years ago that my father introduced me to his friend Father Joe Maier,

co-founder and director of the Human Development Foundation in

Bangkok.

Through him I got the opportunity to visit the foundation's Mercy Centre in

the slaughterhouse slum district. That visit had a profound impact on me and over

the following years I invested most of my spare time taking pictures and doing

the research collected in this book.

The publishing of Slaughterhouse Angels took a considerable amount of trust on behalf of the

children. Over time it became a mutually affectionate relationship, with these children showing me love

and warmth despite their deep traumas. It is that love and that warmth that makes them angels to me

and will drive me to continue my close relationship with the Human Development Foundation.

Vanessa von Zitzewitz