Smart Kids Program

Dear Friends,

While here in Cambodia we often visit a K.I.D.S. project that we believe is truly changing the future of young people in a positive and practical way. Along the banks of a small river to the Tonle Sap Lake is a district called Kompong Kleang, here families eke out a living either fishing or working in the brick factories. Often their houses are crammed together and the conditions are very difficult with little access to clean water or sanitary facilities.

Many children are forced to work in the brick factories from a young age, continuing the cycle of illiteracy and poverty. Some families live in the brick factories and have little chance of ever getting out.

A few years ago, K.I.D.S. implemented the Smart Kids program to assist students with their education so they could eventually get out of working many hours at the brick factories. We started out with eight young people who were attending school part-time and mostly working full-time. We now have 33 young people who are attending both Khmer and English school, learning computers and going to high school. K.I.D.S. provides them with their tuition, bicycles, school supplies, uniforms, computers, English lessons and English tutoring.

Although some of the student still work part-time to help their families, they are excited, happy, encouraged and grateful to have this opportunity. The parents are also happy that there is a chance for a better future for their children.

Thanks to all of you for supporting these hardworking, enthusiastic young people to live better lives and to change the future of their families and their communities.

Also, included in the post is a short (7 min) video of the life of one of the boys in the program, filmed a couple of years ago. Some of you may have seen it. Since making the video, this boy is now attending school full-time and is only working at the brick factory a few hours a week. He heads into grade 12 next year.

A Day in The Life of Pisu

All the best to you and yours,
Rick and Adrianne

K.I.D.S. Kindergarten

Dear Friends,

We recently returned from a trip to Stung Treng in the N.E. part of Cambodia. We went to spend some time at another one of our favourite programs, K.I.D.S. Preschool and Kindergarten. K.I.D.S. has been funding this program for the past 8 years and it is always a
pleasure to see the little ones attending school, so happy and healthy. The school is on the grounds of the Stung Treng Women's Development Weaving Centre. Two very inspiring Cambodian people Chan and Chantha founded this innovative and sustainable program for women in 2002. Here women learn to spin, weave, and dye silk and make beautiful scarves and products. The women receive a good salary, have regular days off, receive free medical care (for themselves and their families), a free lunch program and thanks to K.I.D.S. donors, they can bring their children to work with them to attend our preschool kindergarten.

Each day 50 to 60 children attend the school, some of the weavers children and some are from the local village. The teachers are very committed and nurturing women who work hard at giving these kids a head start in life.



Where once these children would have been wandering around on the dirt paths of the village, they are now playing, learning, doing morning exercises, singing and napping. They all get a good nutritious lunch and can visit their mother's at break time. Before most of these women were struggling to feed their families and find work, now they are
producing some of the best silk in S.E. Asia and are able to educate their children at the same time. As we know, most women in developing countries have a difficult time finding employment because of the responsibilities of caring for small children.


We support the teachers to learn and develop their skills and we provide good educational materials. As it turns out, once the children from K.I.D.S. little school go to grade one in the government schools they are often top of their class.

 We have added a little video of the children enjoying their morning routine!!


Youtube video - click to view

Thanks for all your support and for giving these young children a great head start to a better future.

Warmest wishes to you all,
Adrianne and Rick

Water for Kids!!

Dear Friends,

Yesterday we went out to Damnakslan Elementary School, north of Siem Reap, to meet the school principal, teachers, village chief, head monk from the local pagoda and members of the education committee for the school. The purpose of this visit was to celebrate the completion of the latest K.I.D.S. water project and to turn on the pumps and teach the children how to use the taps as they had not seen running tap water before.

After our meeting with the school and community members we took a couple of the classes and gave them some instructions and turned them loose at the taps. During these moments, seeing children who for the first time in their lives have access to unlimited clean, pure drinking water, it is hard to put into words. Perhaps we will defer to the words spoken to us by the school principal.

"We would like to thank K.I.D.S., Healthy Role Models and everyone else involved, for supporting our school with this gift of "tuk sa at" (beautiful water). Our children here at the school were always sick with stomach aches and diarrhea... their illness ends as of this moment."

We too would also like to thank Healthy Role Models of Nanaimo, founded and operated by Sarah and David Gilks and their terrific team of participants who volunteered their time and talents to fund-raise for this specific project. The water system has vastly improved the health of over 500 school children and their families. The children at school will be able to drink as much as they want during the day and the community will also be able to access this clean water for their families.

Hope your 2016 is off to a great start... like the children at Damnakslan School.

All the best to you and yours,
Rick and Adrianne

A New Year

Dear Friends,

As we reflect upon the past year and move forward to the new year we want to wish you all the best for 2016. This past year together we have changed many lives for the better, some in small meaningful ways such as providing a bike, flip flops or a small solar light to study by. We have also supported communities by bringing medicine, education and clean drinking water. We thank you all for being a part of these positive changes.

As the sun sets on this year, we look forward to continuing to work together for a more equatable and compassionate world where children and families can live with dignity and basic human rights.

We hope the road, river or path ahead brings good health, happiness, purpose and love to everyone.

As they say here........ Soksabia Now Tam Plough (Good luck on the road in 2016).

Adrianne and Rick

A Family Created

Dear Friends and Family.

At this time, as many families gather together to celebrate the season, our thoughts turn to home, friends and family. The closest sense of home and family we have here is when we are with the girls at the Girl's home we started in 2007.

The first girls of Samnang House, 2007

We have known some of the girls since they were rescued off the street and lived at a street children's centre 14 years ago. When the street children's shelter was closed down, the Director, You Vath, generously opened up her small home to six girls and we decided we would raise funds to support them.

Since that time, some of those girls are still with us and others have come to join them. We expanded the house and continued to take in more girls who have faced tragic and difficult situations or who were orphaned. Now 18 girls live there, ranging from ages 3 to 22. These girls have come together from various locations and situations and have found a safe and loving place to form their own family.

Samnang House today

Recently we had friends from home visit and we took them to meet You Vath and the girls. This is Trudy and Ian's description of their experience, which we feel describes aptly the wonderful place that these children and young adults have created out of  very difficult life circumstances.

"Last night we went for dinner at the girls home that K.I.D.S. started and fully supports. We bounced along "a dancing road" (aka a dirt road full of potholes) along a dark alley. However, we came to a veritable oasis of hope for about 18 girls that live in the house. These children were either orphans or from the poorest of poo families. Some lived on the street and were surely doomed to prostitution or worse. 

Now they live in a bright house with a caring "mother", go to school and even university, take English and dancing lessons, and have bicycles for transport. One could not find a happier, more respectful group of children. After dinner the music was connected to a speaker and we all danced and laughed."




Thanks to your generosity throughout the years these girls have been given not only a safe haven and a place to live, they have been given the opportunity to create a loving family that most had been denied.

Relaxing on a Sunday afternoon

 

 

 

 

Wishing you and yours a happy and peaceful holiday season.

With much gratitude,

Adrianne, Rick

and the Girls at Samnang House

 

The Lake Clinic

Dear Friends,
We hope all is well with you and yours. This past week we spent a couple of days with The Lake Clinic team down on the Stung Sen River. K.I.D.S. is pleased to be able to support this life-changing program on an ongoing basis. This year, due to the additional fundraising efforts of Doctor Suzanne Montemuro and the Scotia McLeod team in Victoria, we are also able to support the salary for one of their incredible doctors for a year.

Visiting these more isolated areas always holds a mixture of sights and feelings. The beauty of the rice fields, lotus flowers and temples is juxtaposed with the undernourished children, lack of electricity, sanitation and poor living conditions.







The Lake Clinic team travel long distances every week to stay on the clinic that K.I.D.S. and the Compassionate Eye Foundation built, to provide healthcare, education and free medications.








Villagers travel to the floating clinic weekly with a variety of problems. It is remarkable to watch the team in action as they document each patient, provide examinations, dental care, pre and post-natal care and visit local schools to track the children's health. They also do home visits for the more critical cases.

Through the challenging conditions of heat, rain and dealing with hoards of insects, these dedicated people alleviate suffering and improve lives. Thanks for supporting us in supporting them.

So long for now, we will be in touch again soon.

The best,
Adrianne and Rick

A Legacy of Opportunity

Hi All,

We have now arrived in Siem Reap and have settled into our small apartment and life in Cambodia. We are getting used to the 34 degree weather and learning to stay out of the noon day sun. We have been connecting with our friends, contacts, kids and as always it is great to see everyone.

Yesterday, we went to meet Saopoan, she is the young woman that recently received a scholarship through K.I.D.S. to go to University to study accounting here in Siem Reap. A group of family and friends of the late Ian Seal in Nanaimo decided to raise funds to support a young person to study accounting in memory if Ian, who volunteered as K.I.D.S. accountant for many years.

Saopoan attended a high school in rural Cambodia, north of Siem Reap, where we have installed a clean drinking water system and a computer lab. The teachers picked a student who was from a poor family and has worked hard to pass grade twelve without any outside help. Saopoan is 21, she started school later due to poverty and she has two younger sisters. Her parents are both subsistence rice farmers.

Saopoan recipient of accounting scholarship - in Memory of Ian Seal

Through the funds donated, Saopoan is provided with tuition, books, a bicycle and room and board. We met Saopoan at her one room apartment that she shares with another girl from her village. It is very small, they have to cook outside and share a communal bathroom, however, for Saopoan and her family, this is a dream come true. We brought some second hand donated computers from home and were able to pass one of these computers on the her for her studies.

Saopoan in her shared one room apartment, receives second hand laptop for her accounting studies

Saopoan told us she loves accounting and will work very hard to take advantage of this chance for a better life. She wanted us to thank everyone involved wit helping her and her family.

It is heartwarming to see how through the generosity of others, opportunity can touch another's life and give hope for future generations.

We have other projects underway and will write more later.

All the best to you and yours,
Adrianne and Rick