Bathrooms for Families

Dear Friends,

We hope all is well with you and yours. As many of you know K.I.D.S. is committed to bringing clean drinking water and hygiene to very poor rural areas in Cambodia. Bathrooms are something so many of us around the world take for granted however two out of every five people in the world have no access to safe toilets; more than 3 million people in Cambodia, still defecate in the open, such as in fields, bushes, or bodies of water The United Nations states that: Access to improved water supply and sanitation is one of the basic needs and rights of every person. Poor sanitation kills 1.5 million children a year.

With the wonderful support of our donors, K.I,D.S. is able to build bathrooms for families as well as for schools. This year our great team of builders has been busy building family bathrooms with small septic fields. Even though these bathrooms, which in our world would be called out houses, are very simple, they make a world of difference to the families. Building family bathrooms not only improves health it improves hygiene, self-esteem, dignity, safety for women, sleep quality, work capacity, school attendance and more. The families can also bathe and do their laundry in the bathrooms, rather than outside.

It is difficult to pick who we will build a bathroom for however in our rural education program, many families are in need, so the principal and our education manager choose the families most in need. The other great news is the families will often share their bathrooms with other neighbours or family members who do not have bathrooms and live nearby. It is no wonder that many Cambodians call the bathroom, The Happy Room!!!

We would like to Thank You All very much for your support for improving so many lives. We will you and your all the very best.
Until Next Time,
Adrianne and Rick

Healing Water

 Dear Friends,

We hope all is well with you and yours. As you know K.I.D.S is dedicated to bringing clean drinking water to children, families and communities. Each year, thanks to our donors, we are able to put clean drinking water systems at schools so the children, teachers and community members can access clean water and take it home rather than having to buy it.

Recently our great partner Kim told us about a medical clinic that serves fifteen villages, in a poor rural area. Most poor people cannot afford healthcare or going to hospitals in Cambodia however there are local clinics in village areas, and even though patients still have to pay, it is much less than going to a hospital.

The very basic clinic that Kim told us about has eight nurses who are trained to assess and care for those that need care and send them to hospitals if they are in need of further medical treatment. 

The clinic serves approximately 1500 people a month. One of the main issues they have is that they do not have access to clean drinking water and therefore the patients and staff have to buy drinking water…hard to believe!

So once again, thanks to K.I.D.S. donors, we were able to improve the healthcare of many by getting our terrific water team in there to put in a clean water system at the clinic.

Everyone is very grateful. The patients and staff can also take clean water home as many do not have access to clean water at their own homes. We are always moved by how hard people work in Cambodia and often under very difficult situations. Thanks for easing and improving the lives of many by bringing the gift of clean water healing to those in need.

Until next time,
Adrianne and Rick

Feeding Education

 Dear Friends,

We want to wish you all a Very Happy and Healthy New Year. As the new year begins we want to thank everyone for your continued support, kindness, and generosity and for improving the lives of children and families in Cambodia.

Many children in Cambodia go to school hungry or do not go to school at all because they lack the energy on an empty stomach. Thanks to some International NGOs and the government some schools receive funds for food. Each day students receive a meal at school consisting of rice, fish, and vegetables. In a country like Cambodia where almost one third of children under 5 are stunted as a result of malnutrition, school meals make a huge difference in their health and learning process.

Often the cooking facilities are very basic, and the schools cannot afford to make them better. Most of the cooking is done over wood fires. Thanks to our great team of builders, we were able to create two, safe clean cooking facilities. One is at a primary school for 650 children, where our Smart Kids rural education program is based.

The other is at K.I.D.S Farm School, where approximately 100 children and youth come after school to attend classes at different times to learn English. Sohing, the teacher and her family cook them a nutritious meal each day. Needless to say, the cooks and the children are very grateful to have this new facility.

Thank You for supporting these great kids to live healthier and happier lives by literally
Feeding Their Education
Wishing you and yours all the best.

Until Next Time,
Adrianne and Rick

Rainy Season

Dear Friends

We hope all is well with you and yours. Here on Vancouver Island, the rainy season has begun. The rainy season, which is coming to an end in Cambodia, is very challenging, especially in rural areas. Many students have a difficult time getting to and from school however they endure the flooded roads as do the teachers. Sometimes the schools have to close if it is too dangerous for children to walk or ride their bicycles. A bicycle helps, which we buy for the kids who travel long distances.

Recently we heard from our friend and K.I.D.S. partner that there was a small rural classroom that had a roof that was leaking and has been leaking for a long time. The classroom also has a dirt floor, which gets muddy during the rainy season. The school asked us for help. We will start replacing the roof as well as put in a cement floor in the next few weeks. The teachers and students will be very happy!!!

One of the women we know sent us this picture of her at work!! Yes! That is her standing and working in her office, she is booking hotel rooms for when the floods subside. We are always impressed with the endurance the people have and they rarely complain.

On behalf of all of us at K.I.D.S. we want to Thank You for making life much easier during the rainy season.

Until Next Time,
Adrianne and Rick

Giving Thanks

Dear Friends,

Here in Canada today is Thanksgiving, a day when family and friends gather to share food and appreciation for what and who we have in our lives. Today all of us at K.I.D.S. would like to sincerely Thank You for your support, kindness and generosity. Together we can celebrate the difference we have collectively made in many children, youth and families’ lives

We regularly hear from students, teachers, medical staff, and other people we have been supporting. Their message is always one of gratitude. They are thankful that collectively we can help them with some of the basics in life such as clean drinking water, bathrooms, bicycles, education, decent housing and receive needed medical assistance. Over the years we have seen how the ripple effect of kindness and giving changes lives and the lives of future generations

Today we Celebrate All of You and Thank You for helping to make the world a better place for so many.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Until Next time, all the very best,

Adrianne and Rick

TLC

 Dear Friends,

We hope you are all doing well and enjoying the summer. One of the programs we have been involved with since its conception is The Lake Clinic, Cambodia (TLC). As some of you may remember in 2002, we volunteered at The Angkor Hospital for Children in Siem Reap, Cambodia. We met Jon Morgan, the director of the hospital, an amazing man, who was about to leave the hospital as he wanted to start helping people who lived in the most isolated part of the country the Tonle Sap Lake.

We went out to the Lake with him in a long-tail boat and were incredibly moved and shocked by how people had to live. Being fishing families, they lived in basic shelters on the Lake in small villages, in incredibly poor conditions, with no bathrooms, running water or access to health care or education.

We decided that we wanted to help Jon Morgan build a floating clinic. So with the support from K.I.D.S. donors, that is what we did. We hired local people to help us build the clinic at the city port. Jon started The Lake Clinic organization, and today we are pleased to say they have five floating clinics and serve hundreds of people each week on the Lake and the Stung Sen River (another isolated area). Also, thanks to K.I.D.S. donors, we have been able to build two floating schools so children can get an education, which has made a world of difference to the kids and the families in these floating communities.

We have seen many difficult situations through the years. However, none can compare to trying to live and survive on water. Without medical care, so many people died needlessly because they could not access or afford medical treatment. Now women have pre and postnatal care, families can get free medication and medical care. TLC also offers dental services, mental health support, family planning and home visits. The exceptional medical teams live in the clinics for three or four days a week, and they travel to different villages, as there are now five floating clinics. The trips can be grueling, especially in the rainy season. K.I.D.S. has also helped to bring a clean water system to one village and other smaller water filters for families.

Words cannot truly describe what a positive, life-saving difference TLC has made. KIDS provides support for nursing staff and, when we can, other needed support for medicine, care and equipment. These pictures say it all. We cannot Thank You enough for bringing health care, hope, life and care for children and families. TLC stands for The Lake Clinic and they truly deliver Tender Loving Care!

Until Next Time,

Adrianne and Rick