ABOUT
The Laga Handbags Story
The earthquake and subsequent tsunami that struck off the coast of Southeast Asia the day after Christmas, 2004, reportedly killed over 285,000 people of which 185,000 died in the province of Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia alone. Homes and loved ones were swept away by the water. In Orange, California, day trader Roy van Broekhuizen received a call from Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, asking if he would lead tsunami relief teams to Indonesia to help with the relief efforts. Roy arrived with his 1st volunteer team from the church a few weeks after the disaster.
The memories of dead bodies, destruction, chaos, disaster, helplessness and more will remain in his mind forever. Crying over bodies, bandaging the injured and working with the people to rebuild tattered lives, that first trip to Banda Aceh changed Roy’s life forever. He arrived back home after that first trip with his suitcase full of cashews, coffee and anything else he could think of to sell and raise more money for these survivors.