Distribution of Days for Girls Heavy Flow kits, to villages in Cambodia
In early April 2019, three Days for Girls - Mackay volunteers headed to Siem Reap Cambodia, to participate with a RAWCS team building schools for Cambodia for a two week period.
In addition to the school initiatives, the team was afforded a number of other opportunities whilst visiting this diverse country during Khmer New Year.
Denise Randell, Janine Bell and I, have all been actively involved in the establishment and the success of the DfG Mackay Team since its inception on the 4 November 2017; so it it was only to be expected that we should undertake a distribution of DfG kits to rural hospitals in villages more than an hour drive over pretty horrid terrain from Siem Reap.
Prior to our departure, the DfG Mackay Team concentrated on producing our very first Heavy Flow kits, as we anticipated that would meet a real need.
Unfortunately, we were only able to take 25 Heavy Flow kits and 25 Regular kits due to flight weight restrictions, and our other educational resources commitments.
The DfG education was provided to the midwives at the two hospitals, and staff were encourage to take a kit for personal use, thereby being able to better promote the use, education and benefit to the new mothers and other patients.
Many of these women have never owned a pair of underpants previously and use various methods to manage their post-partum and menstrual flow.
Upon our return to Mackay, we were delighted to receive a photo of one of the midwives distributing a DfG Heavy Flow kit to a new mother. The photo (below) tells a thousand words.
What an amazing journey, and such an honour and privilege to be able to undertake a DfG distribution and make an ever so small headway into villages with limited or no access to personal hygiene products and education.
Pamela Bazin
Letter of appreciation from RAWCS - Rotary Australia World Community Service
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Volunteering Video | eOcambo Hospitality Group
From Little Things, Big Things Grow
This is a long
story but worth the telling.
In January 2019, my husband Tony and I travelled to Cambodia for a quick visit.
We were fortunate enough to be there when a water well was handed over to a poor family in a rural area about an hour’s drive outside of Siem Reap.
The well had been donated by Denise’s family from Sarina.
We were fortunate enough to be there when a water well was handed over to a poor family in a rural area about an hour’s drive outside of Siem Reap.
The well had been donated by Denise’s family from Sarina.
Fast forward to
April.
Denise, Pam and I paid the family a visit when we got to Siem Reap and saw that
they were making brooms - using water from the well.
Sales from the brooms were
obviously going OK because they had begun preparing foundations for a new
house.
Changing the subject dramatically for reasons that will become obvious; whilst in Siem Reap we discovered a great place for coffee and treats called
Brown's.
Now. Back to the original story.
Late one
afternoon, we were passing the family's home and called in to give them some
gifts that we had brought for them - buckets, cooking utensils and clothes for
their two sons. The father stepped out of his humble abode looking very dapper!
We jokingly said from afar… "bet he's off
to a Rotary meeting"…
No! He was on his way to a new job. It was his first
day.
Without the money from the sales of brooms he would not have been able to
afford the petrol for his scooter to even go for the interview.
His new job? A Security Officer at... you guessed it!
Brown's Coffee Shop!
Footnote: A Security Officer is what we, in
Australia, would call a Parking Attendant.
Janine Bell
'Official' Handover day in January. Note the family house in in the background.
Also proudly lining up for photo opportunity is the next door neighbours, who will also benefit from the well.
Denise meets the family
Denise being presented with one of the home-made brooms
First day at the new job...A happy Security Officer / Parking Attendant!
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Cambodia - Health Clinic
Towards
the end of our two weeks stay in Cambodia, our good friend Chann, took us to a brand-new
medical clinic which was situated in a rural area outside of Siem Reap.
Everything
was so clean and neat, and our initial reaction was - Wow! Finally, a Clinic
that looked like something you may see in Australia...WRONG!
💗
Janine Bell
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Chann
Let
us introduce Mr South Chantha Chann (known to us as Chann).
Denise
and I had met Chann on a previous visit to Cambodia in 2015.
Chann
is an extraordinary man with an extraordinary story.
He grew up in an
impoverished Cambodian village under very difficult circumstances. When he was a
young child, his father disappeared during the civil war and as his mother had no
way of caring for him, he was sent to live with extended family in another
village. He was not a welcome addition, and became the child slave of the
family where he was severely treated and put to hard labour from the ages of
four to thirteen.
One day, while caring for the family cows, one slipped away and walked back home without him. As a punishment, he was viciously beaten with a bamboo pole and then tied to a mango tree for two days, where red ants began to eat him alive. He begged God to let him die, but that was not where Chann’s story was to end.
One day, while caring for the family cows, one slipped away and walked back home without him. As a punishment, he was viciously beaten with a bamboo pole and then tied to a mango tree for two days, where red ants began to eat him alive. He begged God to let him die, but that was not where Chann’s story was to end.
His entire childhood Chann struggled to get a basic
education against the wishes of the family. At thirteen years old, he
desperately wanted to attend secondary school, but his legal guardians denied
his request because they did not want to lose their slave labour. This only
strengthened his resolve, so one night he walked out of the village with 10
cents in his pocket, no friends or relatives, and no specific destination.
He just walked in the direction of the nearest town and arrived at daybreak. He made his way to a Buddhist monastery where he was taken in by monks and provided with a safe and stable environment to learn and grow.
During the following six years, he excelled in his studies and eventually became the English language instructor at the monastery.
A university degree and a career as an English-speaking tour guide was to follow, but he never forgot his childhood, or the many rural children in similar circumstances.
He just walked in the direction of the nearest town and arrived at daybreak. He made his way to a Buddhist monastery where he was taken in by monks and provided with a safe and stable environment to learn and grow.
During the following six years, he excelled in his studies and eventually became the English language instructor at the monastery.
A university degree and a career as an English-speaking tour guide was to follow, but he never forgot his childhood, or the many rural children in similar circumstances.
Chann’s upbringing instilled a
fundamental sense of empathy and charity. As the founder of Vision Cambodia, he
has worked with rural villages to provide clean water, education, and supplies
to thousands.
Vision Cambodia began in 2016 when a tourist travelled to Cambodia
for a vacation with his wife. They initially went to see the tourist
destinations, but quickly became intrigued by the charming and earnest
locals. They wanted to learn more about the Cambodian way of life, so their
tour guide, (Chann), shared his story.
Chann was already involved in
humanitarian efforts with local villages and communities, but he needed
structure and funding to take his service efforts to the next level.
He told the travellers about other humanitarian groups that came and went with water well building projects which didn’t last long in the local communities.
Chann claimed that he could build wells at a lower cost, and with a higher quality that would allow communities to have access to clean water for decades to come.
Finding Chann’s claim almost too good to be true, they took a chance on Chann and provided the funds for a well to be built in the local community.
He told the travellers about other humanitarian groups that came and went with water well building projects which didn’t last long in the local communities.
Chann claimed that he could build wells at a lower cost, and with a higher quality that would allow communities to have access to clean water for decades to come.
Finding Chann’s claim almost too good to be true, they took a chance on Chann and provided the funds for a well to be built in the local community.
Within the next two days, Chann was
able to build the well from start to finish. Not only that, but the well was built
at a higher quality than others that had been built in the area, and it was far
cheaper to produce.
The travellers asked Chann how to scale these projects to more communities throughout Cambodia. They began to supply Chann with the tools, structure, and supplies needed for him to expand the projects he was providing.
Vision Cambodia has been finding new ways to continue to give aid to the Cambodian people through a wide range of humanitarian projects ever since!
The travellers asked Chann how to scale these projects to more communities throughout Cambodia. They began to supply Chann with the tools, structure, and supplies needed for him to expand the projects he was providing.
Vision Cambodia has been finding new ways to continue to give aid to the Cambodian people through a wide range of humanitarian projects ever since!
While we
were there, we bought a well and were very happy to pose with the community
members who will benefit from it. The man in the picture lost a leg in a land
mine explosion and the children are from neighbouring houses.
The other pictures are other wells that we have been involved with.
The other pictures are other wells that we have been involved with.
Not only has Chann’s vision helped over
three hundred rural families, (73 from Australian donors) by providing them
with clean water. His organisation has also built seven schools in rural areas, all of which offer children the chance to learn English – Chann's belief is that
without being able to speak English, their chance of employment is next to
none.
Siem Reap depends heavily on tourism - and so the children dream of being a porter, a waiter, a tour guide, all of which require a knowledge of English as an essential qualification.
Siem Reap depends heavily on tourism - and so the children dream of being a porter, a waiter, a tour guide, all of which require a knowledge of English as an essential qualification.
Please note the school walls in one of
the schools. Made from bottles. Ingenious!
Chann’s organisation has now also embarked on providing assistance to pregnant mothers. A donation of 25USD allows them to go to a medical clinic to have their babies, instead of risking the lives of both mother and child by giving birth at home.
15USD goes to the hospital/clinic and 10USD goes to the family – regarded by them as a small fortune.
Chann is an amazing young man. He may be
only in his mid-thirties, but he has accomplished more than most of us who are
decades older.
His love for his country is demonstrated by his actions, he is
truly a great man.
We had the most wonderful fortnight
with Chann, he was our driver most days. With his patience and humour - he
is very funny - he made our stay very, very memorable.
Chann still works as a tour guide - in his spare time - and manages all facets from the Cambodian end of VisionCambodia singlehandedly.
Chann still works as a tour guide - in his spare time - and manages all facets from the Cambodian end of VisionCambodia singlehandedly.
Chann has also learnt to speak fluent
German. He is a very accomplished man with a dream that is coming true.
He wants nothing for himself, he lives in a one-bedroom flat which doubles as his office. Chann is highly respected among his countrymen – from politicians to farmers. Children, parents and elders love him equally and that love is certainly reciprocated.
A true hero in our eyes.
He wants nothing for himself, he lives in a one-bedroom flat which doubles as his office. Chann is highly respected among his countrymen – from politicians to farmers. Children, parents and elders love him equally and that love is certainly reciprocated.
A true hero in our eyes.
Janine Bell
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