"Charity founder emerges among leading humanitarians of the twenty-first century"

Dr. Joseph Lam, the founder and president of World Children’s Fund, grew up in a world of turmoil that could have easily turned him far away from a lifelong service to humanity.  Instead, he chose to live for the needs of others.

     Born in Hong Kong in 1958, the son of a refugee from the terror of Mao Tse Tung and the Cultural Revolution, Dr. Lam emigrated to the United States in 1966 with his mother, the Rev. Nora Lam.  As her youngest child, Joseph played at his mother’s feet while she washed dishes in Chinese restaurants to survive.

   When Nora Lam gained notice and impact as a renowned missionary speaker, Joseph was at her side, traveling the world and seeing need and service at every turn.  It was during these years that young Joseph began a personal search to determine the course of his own life—to find a way to make his mark and leave the world a better place.

   In 1982, Joseph had a life-changing encounter with Mother Teresa in Calcutta, India.  Seeing her devotion to the sick and dying opened Joseph’s compassionate eyes to a whole new way of service. 

   Mother Teresa showed him another way to lead—by humanitarian service rather than charisma.  This earlier training and experience left him with a deep concern and empathy for needy and endangered children who want to help themselves, but can’t.

   Eventually, this led him to devote his life to helping others, especially needy children.  He began with a natural involvement in his mother’s orphanages and children’s projects. There, he found, he could modestly and quietly work behind the scenes to make a difference in children’s lives.

  “Today, Dr. Lam is a visionary leader in relief outreaches throughout the world,” says Bill Bray, International Program Director for the World Children’s Fund Global Care and Share Network.

   In 1993, Dr. Lam started his first children’s project and later that year incorporated the non-profit World Children’s Fund.  From the start, he used mass marketing and direct mail to build up a strong base of caring contributors.  This combination of technology and mobilizing concerned people characterizes everything Joseph Lam touches, and gives the World Children’s Fund Network a unique personality in the world of modern charities.

       Dr. Lam has traveled the world helping local leaders organize similar charitable outreaches.  These local charities work together informally through the World Children’s Fund Global Care and Share Network to reduce costs and increase the efficiency of providing services and relief to children at risk.

   Groups in 22 countries have organized or are now organizing these separate, local organizations in the Global Care and Share Network.  Each national World Children’s Fund-related organization has its own local board of directors. Each is organized as required by local laws, and is an independent charity, non-profit foundation, or group.  All are Non-Governmental Organizations as defined by the United Nations.  The organizations work together to co-sponsor projects, deliver relief, and save funds by avoiding duplication of organizations and facilities.  Each has its own history and story to tell of how local leaders became interested in helping children the “World Children’s Fund way” through the inspiration of Joseph Lam and his team.

   In 1996, before reaching 40, Joseph Lam was honored with an honorary doctorate from Liberty University (Virginia, USA) for "distinguished humanitarian service.".

   “No child should go hungry, naked, or unloved,” says Joseph Lam.  “Everyone can be involved in saving the children, and we can put an end to child abuse and exploitation.”

   (Updated March 27, 2003)