Full Circle

Dear Friends,

Hope all is well? Many of you may remember the story of Sopeak. We first met Sopeak in the countryside outside of Siem Reap 11 years ago. We were delivering food, household supplies and clothing to her village, where some of the families were so desperately poor many kids did not have clothes.

While in the village, from the edge of the circle which formed around us, a woman pushed her daughter forward and told her to speak to us in English. Sopeak was very small and shy but spoke to us in very clear and accent free English, which was quite astonishing as she lived so far out in the countryside. She had learned some English from an American teacher who had taught her while in her village.
The short version of the last 11 years is that K.I.D.S. sponsored Sopeak's education from that point on to complete elementary, high school, English classes and university. Sopeak rode many, many kilometers in her 12 hour days to and from school on her bicycle through the choking dust of the dry season and the muddy, rutted, water filled potholes of the rainy season. After high school K.I.D.S. sponsored Sopeak to live in the the city, in a rented room, and we provided a small living stipend for her while she attended university. Through elementary, high school as well as university Sopeak received top marks in all her classes; all the while struggling with a 50% hearing loss, due to infection that was left untreated, as the family could not afford medication.

Last year we attended Sopeak's wedding, she married a gem of a man, they love each other very much and they now have a beautiful and happy 4-month old boy.

When Sopeak was young, being the eldest child, she and her father would hunt frogs and fish to try to feed the rest of the family through very difficult times. We are so happy to see the outcome of Sopeak's dedication to education and fight to improve her lot in life. She and her husband have bought a small piece of land behind her parent's house and are working on a simple basic house and have planted fruit trees to establish a future home.
We recently went out to visit her family, the family has improved their lot in life by working together. Inspired by Sopeak, in her quest for education, her 4 younger sisters have learned or are in the process of learning English and the two older ones have good jobs as well.

But the best thing of all is that Sopeak is now a school teacher in the very same village school that she went to as a child. She has truly come full circle in her life and is now passing on both the goodwill that all of you have shared by supporting Sopeak and the knowledge that she has received through education to other children. As well Sopeak hopes to teach English to village children.

We hope that Sopeak's story will bring some joy to your hearts and a smile to your faces at this time of year.

From Sopeak and the many students and families, under your collective wings, and ourselves we thank you and wish you all the best this Holiday Season and may you be surrounded in a circle of love of friends and family.

Till Next Time
Rick and Adrianne

Human Rights Day

Dear Friends,

Hope all is well? Today it is World Human Rights Day and a holiday here in Cambodia. Rather ironic as a vast amount of the people here still live without many of these human rights.

 

We have been busy since getting our feet back on the ground and trying to level the human rights playing field for more children and families here. We are expanding our Smart Kids education sponsorship program and the other day we visited some new students and families living in and around the brick factories. These families eke out a subsistence living by working incredibly long days fishing, making bricks or bagging and carrying rice. The resilience of humanity and these particular children and families never fails to move us deeply.

We know that education changes lives! We also know that having a decent and hygienic living environment improves the health, hope and well being of children and families. We are working hard to be able to improve the living conditions of some of the poorest families with new or renovated houses and bathrooms. After the home visits we have to assess who is in the greatest need and make difficult heartwrenching choices, not an easy job.

The families are all so grateful to be given a helping hand. One young woman, who is 29, and has three children, lives in a very poor house with her husband and kids, as we chatted with her, her daughter (who will be joining our Smart Kids program) came back to the house...after having to go to a dirty pond to bathe. Although we cannot afford to build them a house this year we are able to tell them that we can build them a bathroom/bathing room...the mother's face lit up and she was very grateful.

Another boy named E, who is in our sponsorship program, is now living in the city attending a training program. E was going home every weekend to carry and haul rice bags to help his widowed mother and family. E weighs about 42 kilograms and he carries and loads trucks with 50 kg bags of rice....about 150 bags a day. He is 17 and every weekend he returned from his home tired and sore and was having trouble concentrating on his weekly studies and training.

We were able to help E's family with a stipend of $50.00 a month so he does not have to ruin his body while trying to help his family survive. When E finishes his training program he will be able to will find a good job and help his mother and family again.

Thank You!! for supporting KIDS and improving Human Rights and changing lives for the better.

Until next time,
Adrianne and Rick