A 13-year-old orphan turned down Kim Kardashian‘s adoption offer after orphanage directors showed the kids photos of the reality TV star’s family.
Kardashian fell in love with an orphan named Pink when she and her family visited an orphanage in Thailand’s Phang Nga province, a region where more than 4,000 people perished in the 2004 tsunami. The two bonded during Kim’s brief visit, which was taped for reality show “Keeping up with the Kardashians.” During the show Kim revealed her desire to make the teenager’s life better, even calling then-fiancé Kanye West to share her excitement. Little did Pink know the invitation would come after the cameras stopped rolling.
Pink, an educated scholar whose mother sent her to the children’s home when she could no longer care for her, turned down the reality star’s offer after considering the possibility of her future. Pink admitted she “shook with excitement” when she heard the news, but felt her impoverished homeland of Thailand was a better fit. Pink, whose given name is Laddawan Tong-Keaw, plans on continuing her studies to find ways to help the country still broken from the tsunami a decade ago. She plans on being a tour guide to show people everything the country has to offer.
The teenager said, “Everyone wants to have a different or a better life, I suppose. But when I thought about it I realized it wouldn’t be good for me, because I would have to leave so much behind. I wasn’t ready for that.”
Orphanage directors told Daily Mail that since the adoption offer Kardashian hasn’t contacted the orphanage. The family also hadn’t made good on a donation of a pool to the facility. When Kim’s spokesperson Ina Treciokas was asked to comment she replied, “[Kim] is working and unavailable.”