New photos from November 2010

We have received the photos and report from the second donation of $500US which was used for new uniforms, schools supplies, shoes and school bags. Vuthy also let us know that they are not able to get enough food for the children to meet their needs as they grow - a shortfall of $12US per day for meat and eggs. Any help would be gratefully received!

ART Funds sent to Cambodia

Thanks to the generosity of those who attended the ART show and others who gave donations we have been able to give $1100 US to Help for the Poor. This has been sent up via our account in two payments - the first of $600US sent in June was used for education expenses, to fund International Childrens Day celebrations and to purchase a better water filtration system. Vuthy has sent me some updated photos as you can see to the left.

The second photo is of the girls dancing as part of  the International Childrens Day celebrations - they are performing in the small church building situated next to the Home. Help for the Poor hosted over 100 people from their local community .

At the time of this photo the children are on holiday break for the rainy season hence the planting of the vegetable gardens to make use of the water.



We have now sent up the second payment of $500 US so that as they start the new school year they can get some badly needed new  school     uniforms and school supplies such as stationery, bags and pay teacher payments for this term. We look forward to the updated photos for this in the coming month

ART Event

On May 18th & 19th we were able to host two performances of the comedy play "ART" at Detour Theatre in Tauranga, due to the generosity of Legacy Trust & Detour donating the tickets to us to fundraise for Help for the Poor and Home for Life Home in Thailand. We also provided supper and pre-show entertainment. We are still finalising the proceeds but it looks like there will be approx $1000 available for each Home which is great! Thank you to everyone that came along and supported the show - it was very funny and a good time was had by all, at the same time raising funds for a very good cause.

Cambodia Trip 2010

I have recently returned from another trip to Phnom Penh, the highlight being my stay at Help for the Poor centre for 3 nights/days. It was great to see and be a part of the childrens daily lives - going off to school, doing chores, playing, eating, socialising and studying. I worked hard on learning the childrens names and got to discover their personalities better. It confirmed for me to continue the relationship with HFTP and to do all I can from NZ to support their future. Unfortunately due to a lack of funds the preschool that was also run by HFTP closed approx a year ago, they hope to open again in the future but there also may be other options for use of the building.

A STORY

I was also able to see first hand what it was like for 2 new children who arrived that weekend. They were sisters aged 6 & 7 who were abandoned by their mother in their village in Kandal Province. The father is in prison having been charged with domestic violence. The girls were picked up from a neighbour by a colleague of Vuthy and brought to Phnom Penh. I will watch with interest what becomes of them - at this stage they are in a welcoming and loving environment, the older girls quickly took them under their wings and cared for them. They had a haircut and got some new clothes from money given to them by another Kiwi girl visiting for the first time. I so hope that her mother can be found somehow and supported so that she can have her girls back at home with her or perhaps other relatives may be found who can take them in. Seeing one of the girls cry each day for her mum was so sad and I was really torn in getting to know them as I knew that I was going to leave as well.
I was able to talk with Vuthy further about the needs of the orphanage and future options. At this stage the only regular income they have is the monthly food costs covered by a business run by the owner of the Centre whcdih is great - this happened recently as the business has grown enough to do this. They really need further help & support to generate their own regular income which can in turn enable them to pay their staff, pay for the childrens personal & education needs, upkeep and improve their facilities, cover medical/dental expenses and enable further training/ skill development as the children get older.

Feb 2010
The ATM card arrived safely in Phnom Penh in February so we were able to give HFTP $350US thanks to donations from the Banyard & Jackson families plus proceeds from a DVD project that Dave & I did at school. With this money they were able to fund shampoo, kitchen supplies, a repair, reading book, medicine and teacher payments.