It was so heartwarming to see the children, performing, singing enthusiastically, at the end-of-semester Closing Program two weeks ago in Cambodia! Over 30 children were presented with medals after successfully completing another grade at the end of an eventful school year at the Goducate Children’s Home in Prey Nob, Cambodia.
Many of these children came from impoverished backgrounds – their parents too poor to provide even a meal a day for them. They had worked long, hard hours as soon as they could walk – collecting used aluminium cans and plastic bottles from the garbage to recycle, hauling cement and bricks at construction sites, selling home-cooked food from door to door – such were their sad lives before they were admitted to the Children’s Home. Here, they had a chance at education, and within months, they flourished and blossomed into happy, confident kids.
Goducate sponsors have adopted individual kids, providing funds monthly for their welfare and education – so that these poor children will have a future, and contribute to the society they live in.
“Help, please help! Your younger sister was cooking food by herself”, shouting by the uneasy neighbour who went inside the class to call up the eldest sister.
The two sisters
The eldest sister was 10 years old and attending class in one of our Goducate centers, learning how to read and write. The youngest sister, 5 years old, had been left alone in the house after attending the first period class.
When she went home, she felt very hungry because of not having breakfast earlier so she decided to cook. “She is good in opening the gasoline tank”, said the uneasy neighbour. When she saw the girl cooking through a window, she is very concerned what might happen – “I tried to open the door of their house but it was locked so I kept knocking but the girl don’t want to open it because she’s afraid of me but still the gas tank was open, I was worried it might be the cause of fire!”.
So the eldest sister hurriedly went home and was able to stop the youngest sister. She cooked the food for her sister and went back to the center to learn but this time she brought along her sister who was full now in stomach. “Thanks for the fast response of the concerned mother who lives nearby”, said one neighbor.
I wondered and asked “where are the parents of these two girls?” One mother who was our teacher in our center answered me; these two girls are left by their father who was working in a construction site to earn extra money not just for food but also for the release of his wife who was in jail. In spite of the risks; parents are still willing to let their children go to the center to learn just like the father of these two girls. So our teachers was giving their best also to double their time to educate the children with love so that whatever may happen; these children were able to survive the challenges of life.
I believe that there are many kind people who will readily give to help the hungry and helpless but do not know how to reach them.
As I drove around the flooded province of Laguna, Philippines, I saw people carrying on with their lives in their flooded homes. Their homes had already been flooded for a whole month and according to the governmental authorities the flood waters would not fully subside for another 4 months because the outlet of the large lagoon (from which Laguna gets its name) into the South China Sea is obstructed by illegal housing and garbage which hinder the outflow of flood waters into the sea.
flooded streets
It was indeed a strange sight to see a housewife wading waist deep in water in her own house carrying a child and watching her TV which is set on a table that is placed on another underwater table. I presume the whole family sleeps on that elevated table since it is the only part of their house that is not submerged. An enterprising lady pulling a little boat laden with daily necessities goes past the house but no one seems to buy anything, probably because no one has money to purchase anything.
As a doctor, I know that these waters are not a mere inconvenience but a deadly danger to the entire population. The filthy water is a perfect media to carry many types of deadly bacteria. There are already outbreaks of dengue fever and leptospirosis (a potentially deadly disease from the urine of rats, etc).
flooded homes
But even more deadly to the population is the contamination of their water sources (eg. wells). The poor cannot afford bottled water, nor can they afford fire-wood to boil their water and many young children will die from diarrhoea, cholera, dysentery, etc. Because of malnourishment many young children and babies will perish after a short bout of untreated diarrhoea.
I was told that the local authorities were already out of vitamins, medications and food for this area. When I asked a local how the people got their food since most of their sources of livelihood (ie, the farms) were destroyed, he answered me “Whenever a good Samaritan gives them something.”
In our experience with feeding children in poor countries, we have found that for about US$0.15 to US$0.20 cents per child, we can provide a simple meal of chicken flavoured rice-porridge with bits of chicken in it.
Two large buckets of rice porridge with chicken (costing US$20.00) can provide a meal for a hundred hungry children!
I believe that there are many kind people who will readily give to help the hungry and helpless but do not know how to reach them.
Goducate must be the voice of the helpless to the helpers, and the channel of the helpers to the helpless!
More photos (click thumbnail to view photos):
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