Mama’s Kitchen in Shanty Town

 Mama's Kitchen is a project born in response to the global pandemic Covid-19 with a mission to deliver plant-based nutritious food to the most vulnerable in our society. They believe that no one should ever go hungry, be it humans or animals.

Shanty Town Spirit Association is very grateful to Mama’s Kitchen for their food deliveries they were able to organise for the families in the Community in Boeung Trabek.   They were able to provide 150 nutritious delicious vegan lunches to the most vulnerable people - children, elderly and disabled - in the slums.

Mrs Yulia Khouri, the head of this new Program of Mama’s Kitchen is really trying her best to provide food to the poorest.

Clearly there is huge need of nutrition in the large impoverished pockets of this city. Yulia can be very proud of her fantastic & very hardworking team she has, and she is very happy to be able to support manies communities in need. . 

Mama’s Kitchen, at the beginning of the Corona Virus, came three times a week to deliver those meals, but now the situation is getting better in our community, it turns to be one time a week, because the Association wants to help other poor people. 

People in the Shanty Town are waiting for those meals, distribution is made every Monday  , the beneficiaries of this programme are coming with a provided ticket.

At first, the target are children, elderly, and families who lost their job.

They are very excited, waiting for the Association to come.

Mama’s Kitchen and Shanty Town have a very good communication, turning around the slums after the distribution and planning the next distribution.

Everything is going very well.

Thank you to all the team of   Mama's Kitchen for your support during this difficult time.

Srey Nett touche à sa réalité

Srey Nett touche à sa réalité

Srey Nett et Ermine 

Srey Nett est une jeune fille de 18 ans, qui fait partie du programme de Shanty Town Spirit depuis 8 ans. 

Elle fait partie de la communauté de Boeung Trabek avec ses parents et ses 4 frères.

Comme de nombreux enfants, elle collectait les poubelles afin de gagner un peu d’argent.

Son père, avant était moto dop, maintenant il est conducteur de tuk tuk, sa mère a travaillée pendant 7 ans, mais désormais, elle peut rester à la maison pour cuisiner et s’occuper de la famille, car sur ses 4 fils, 2 travaillent. Les deux plus petits frères sont Ron et Rath et vont à l’école, ils sont inclus dans le programme de Shanty Town Spirit.

La famille de Sret Nett 

Lorsque Srey Nett a commencé l’école, elle avait d’excellents résultats, elle voulait devenir médecin ; mais au fur et à mesure qu’elle s’apercevait que le chemin était long et difficile, ses résultats scolaires devenaient de plus en plus mauvais.

Elle a été totalement découragée par le parcours.

Shanty Town Spirit étant toujours derrière « ses » enfants, à profiter de l’invitation au forum de l’Université de Puthisastra (UP) le 28 et 29 juin 2018 pour amener Srey Nett et l’aider à identifier la carrière qu’elle veut avoir.

Pendant toute la matinée, elle a ainsi pu participer au cours et ateliers de présentation dans les domaines tels que :

-       Dentisterie,

-       Infirmière en laboratoire,

-       Pharmacienne,

-       Infirmière en médecine,

Elle a également visité la bibliothèque ; les salles de médecine, le laboratoire de simulation dentaire.

La bibliotheque 

Labo en pharmacie

Srey Nett, Ermine et 2 étudiantes en médecine 

Tout cela l’a beaucoup intéressée, elle est très enthousiaste à l’idée de rejoindre l’université.

Il lui reste trois années encore, pour améliorer ses résultats et avoir un dossier présentable pour pouvoir entrer à l’université.

Shanty Town Spirit va participer aux frais pour les cours privés d’anglais. 

Elle doit avoir d’excellents résultats en maths, physique, chimie et anglais.

De plus sa motivation comptera énormément dans cela.  En fonction de son dossier, de ses résultats et de sa motivation, l’Université pourrait décider de prendre en charge sa scolarité, ce qui représente 2500 dollars à l’année.

Bonne chance Srey Nett.

Elisa, Srey Nett et Ermine 

Merci pour la matinée aux étudiants 

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Srey Nett's dreams come true 

Srey Nett&Ermine

Srey Nett is a young lady of 18 years old,  part of the Shanty Town Spirit program for 8 years now.

She come from the Boeung Trabek community with her parents and her 4 brothers.

Her father was a moto dop in the past, but now he is a very serious  tuk tuk driver.

 Her mother, can now be a house wife, taking care of her family because there is three salaries come in from her husband and the two biggest sons .

Over the four boys, two are working, the other two, Ron and Rat, are going to school, they both are, also part of the Shanty Town Spirit project and excel very nicely at school.

 Srey Nett, as many other kids, she was forced to collect the rubbish to be able to earn some money.

When she started school, she had really good results ; she wanted to become a doctor ; but with the time she realised that the road was really hard, and the results started to fall down.    She lost faith and was completely discouraged.

Shanty Town Spirit has the goal to always be there for the people. We took the opportunity to attend a Discovery Festional on 28 – 29 June at The University of Puthisastra (UP). This Discovery Festival was meant to introduce high school students to the degrees and programs that they offer and to campus life at UP.

Midwife class 

pharmacy labo

There was a campus tours, career talks, mini-workshops with the different academic departments, experiential activities in the department booths and many more. UP students, faculty and staff were there to share what it is like to pursue careers in the health sciences and technology fields.

Srey Nett during this event could therefore attend workshop on :

-       Dentistry,

-       Nursing laboratory,

-       Medical laboratory lab,

-       Pharmacy laboratory,

-       Medicine class,

-       And also visited the library,

She came out of the Discovery Festival  very enthousiastic and has the real goal to be better in school.

Presentation of the Forum

Shanty Town Spirit will pay for additional private english lessons, to improve her skills.

She has now, three years, to keep progressing and to have a good follow up file on her results in maths, chemistry, english, and physics.

Moreover she also has to demonstrate her motivation, together with her good file, to be able to join the University.

 If she is accepted, the University will pay the full scholarship, which represents 2.500 dollars for a year.

So all the Best for Srey Nett.

Elisa, Srey Nett and Ermine

                                  One Spirit, One Heart, One Community.                                        

  You can help us by sponsoring the Shanty Town Spirit program:

                                                Click on Make a difference

                                                    OR contact                                                                        Ermine Norodom: +855 (0) 17 49 27 19 (French and English)

norodomermine@gmail.com

      Phirun Prak (Arun): +855 (0) 96 663 6666 (English and Khmer)

                                              arun.aenorodom@gmail.com

                      Nathalie Bonpain:  +855 (0) 15 652 691 (English and French)
                                               bonpainnathalie@gmail.com

  

words by Nathalie Bonpain

Solidarity Trip were a hit at local Hip Hop NGO Tiny Toones

Solidarity Trip and Shanty Town Spirit joined forces to visit local NGO Tiny Toones Cambodia to bring smiles into the hearts and faces of the 100 children who receive a free education everyday at the centre based in Chbar Ampov, just over  the river from Boeung Trabek.

Former Tiny Toones student and now teacher, bboy "Slick" doing what he does best!!

Solidarity Trip were so impressed by the talent of the children there, especially in break dancing and hip hop, they kindly decided to purchase and donate three fans for the dance to the hot and sweaty dance studio and a new t-shirt for each child. The t-shirt were a spritely yellow to match the bright enthusiasm of these students.

Solidarity Trip members distributing t-shirts

Tiny Toones manages to operate and provide educational services to children everyday aged from 5-18 years, who would otherwise not be in school due to poverty. They survive only through donations and all the teachers working there were former students as they use a peer model to teach and inspire.

Solidarity Trip family joining in the fun

It was a fun-filled afternoon with the Solidarity family joining group dances. Madam Stephanie even presented her moves, springing into a handstand as the audience cheered. So touched by the experience, Solidarity Trip plans to continue to support Tiny Toones alongside their support for Shanty Town.      tinytoones.org

Madam Stephanie showing her moves

                                     One Spirit, One Heart, One Community.                                        

You can help these kids

by sponsoring the Shanty Town Spirit program

Click on Make a difference

Or contact

Ermine Norodom: +855 (0) 17 49 27 19 (French and English)

Norodomermine@gmail.com

Jessica Sander: jessicasander87@gmail.com (English)

Phirun Prak (Arun): +855 (0) 96 663 6666 (English and Khmer)

Arun.aenorodom@gmail.com

Photography - Documentary: The Other Lives of Kattia

The team of Shanty Town Spirit has been helping the shooting of a documentary this weekend in Siem Reap about the life of the Kattia Huy (Shanty Town International), her tragic destiny and actual hopes. As many Cambodians, Kattia suffered during the civil war and the Khmer Rouge regime. Now, she wants to help her country.

Kattia with Ermine Norodom, Manuel Collas de La Roche and Jean-Yves Froissart

Born into a wealthy family, Kattia lived the happiness of Sangkum years before undergoing civil war and being thrown on the roads of Cambodia in 1975, she was then only nine years old. Yet she manage to survive and fled to Vietnam with her family. There, the situation was hardly less painful. No money, no job, the young Kattia also had to support her family. She would work in the markets as a seller, until she got the opportunity to obtain political asylum in France.

Kattia is talking to an old lady from Siem Reap, trying to understand...

In France, the first years will be difficult for the family until Kattia manages to attend school, to get an education and then to start a career in trading. After a failed marriage and the death of her first child, she finally met love with Jean-Michel, a french film producer.

Documentary: The Other Lives of Kattia

In 2010, during one of her homecoming to Cambodia, several members of her family are decimated in a terrible car accident on the road to Siem Reap. Kattia is devastated.

Kattia discovering again her country

The beautiful story with her husband will last over twenty years until fate struck again. In 2015, the man of her life died of cancer. Struck down by grief, but she decided that life would not stop there: '' ... I was lost, I still am a little, but I'm a fighter. It's hard, but now I want to understand what is happening in my country a little better, and to see if I can help ... ''.

Kattia discovering again her country. here in Siem Reap

Kattia then got closer to some friends, Ermine Norodom who manages the Shanty Town Spirit program in Phnom Penh, Manual Collas de la Roche, producer and founder of the forum Better World, and Jean-Yves Froissart, a friend who also help her prepare her humanitarian project, Shanty Town International.

The documentary is a first step towards promoting the project: building an educational project and a school in Siem Reap, showing the early years of her life until today, dramas, other lives and the unwavering energy a Cambodian lady , who was once little girl, thrown on the roads by the Khmer Rouge ...

If you wish to help and support her program, 

click on the Donate button

or contact 

Ermine Norodom : +855 (0) 90 22 74 33 (French & English)

norodomermine@gmail.com

Phirun Prak (Arun) : +855 (0) 96 663 6666 (English & Khmer)

arun.aenorodom@gmail.com

Thank you

Dicover the Better World Forum

A wonderful evening with our children from Boeung Trabek community

This night was a great time with the children. We brought them from their community to a dinner, at Domino's Pizza. It was a great pleasure for us to share an evening with the them, simple dinner that became a special night for all of us. For some of the kids, it was their first time at a Pizzas restaurant.  It's always amazing to to share happiness with them. Seeing them united and happy is so wonderful.

French Version

Une Magnifique soirée avec nos enfants venant des bidonvilles. Cette soirée a été un superbe moment avec les enfants.  Nous avons emmené nos enfants des bidonvilles pour un diner, dans une pizzeria.  Cela a été un enorme plaisir pour nous de pouvoir partager une soirée avec ces enfants, un simple diner qui s’est transformé en soirée très spéciale pour tous ces jeunes. Pour certains cela était la première pizza de leur vie. C’est toujours merveilleux de leur faire vivre ce genre de joie et de la partager avec eux.  Les voir unis et heureux est toujours fantastique pour toute notre équipe.

Madam Ermine Norodom with the kids from Boeung Trabek community

Miss. Jenna with the kids from Boeung Trabek community

Madam Ermine Norodom, Miss. Jenna with the kids from Boeung Trabek community

The kids from Boeung Trabek community having dinner at Domino's Pizza

Madam Hun Soeun Norodom, Ms. Jenna and Madam Ermine Norodom preparing food for the kids

Madam Ermine and Ms. Dane with the kid from Boeung Trabek community

Shanty Town volunteer team with the kids from Boeung Trabek community after dinner

If you wish to help and support our program,

click on the Donate button

or contact

Ermine Norodom : +855 (0) 90 22 74 33 (French & English)

norodomermine@gmail.com

Phirun Prak (Arun) : +855 (0) 96 663 6666 (English & Khmer)

arun.aenorodom@gmail.com

Thank you

NGO - Solidarity : Ermine Norodom, a princess heart

Ermine Norodom is a French national who used to work in fashion and design. Over the years, Ermine felt the need to change her life, to get back to essential things and then to focus on a more humanitarian-oriented action. The discovery of the kingdom of Cambodia, a country she will visit repeatedly, made a strong impression on her. Amazed, but also motivated by the emotion aroused by this country and the encounters she made there, Ermine Norodom quickly felt that she should get involved into the life of this beautiful, but still affected by poverty, country. Mother of two and married since 2003 to Prince Norodom Narithipong, she definitely settled in Cambodia in September 2010.

Ermine Norodom and her husband Prince Norodom Narithipong. Photo Christophe Gargiulo

Since then, Ermine Norodom got deeply involved and put much energy into the "Bang Paoun Project", a NGO that actively helps the children of the poorest areas and slums of Phnom Penh. 

The desire to give and the will to share brought her to spend most of her free time with this association as a volunteer. Later on, Ermine Norodom created her own NGO that bears her name and launched the Shanty Town Project, an initiative aimed at helping ten families of the poorest neighborhoods of Boeung Trabek, located south of Phnom Penh. This NGO basically supports the health and children's education while also providing support to mothers in their daily lives. Involved with a lot of energy and compassion to fulfill the basic needs of these families but willing to help other communities too, Ermine Norodom recently extended her network to other areas of Cambodia, and got quickly involved into helping some families and disadvantaged kids from Kandal Province (housing and education project), in Takeo with The NGO Mercy (Education and training for kids). 

Ermine Norodom and Arun with some members of the community supported by Shanty Town Spirit

Acclaimed for her action by other NGO managers, Ermine Norodom also coordinates some new programs in Cambodia such as the The kōya an aquaponics project that plans to work with local and international aquaponics experts to build small and inexpensive aquaponics systems in schools in the kingdom and worldwide. Ermine is also building a partnership with Huy Kattia, another devoted woman. Those two actually created Shanty Town International in order to facilitate the development of Shanty Town Spirit. Ermine Norodom also owns the boutique Le Marais Paris Fashion in Aeon Mall in Phnom Penh where some of the profits go to her charity programs. 

If you wish to help and support her program, 

click on the Donate button

or contact 

Ermine Norodom : +855 (0) 90 22 74 33 (French & English)

norodomermine@gmail.com

Phirun Prak (Arun) : +855 (0) 96 663 6666 (English & Khmer)

arun.aenorodom@gmail.com

Thank you

Van Syleang will be back in school in September !

We lived a very important moment for this young boy, Van Syleang, we know him since six years. After some issues with his teacher; he was not admitted at school anymore despite his efforts. As you know the scholarship of the children is our main goal, so we actually worked hard to find a solution for this young man.

Finally, we found an agreement with PSE, they admitted Van Syleang from September and for the rest of his studies. He also realized during this visit that he wanted to work as a chef in the future, a training proposed by PSE. We hope we will continue to work with PSE in the future, and that this young man will realize his dreams thanks to this joint work.  We want to thanks Pour un Sourire d'Enfant - Cambodia again.

French Version 

Van Syleang sera de retour sur les bancs de l’école en Septembre! Nous avons vécu cette semaine un moment très important pour ce jeune homme, Van Syleang, nous le connaissons depuis déjà 6ans, et après quelques problèmes avec son professeur, malgré tous ses efforts il n’a plus été accepté en cours. Comme vous le savez l’éducation des enfants dont nous nous occupons est notre but principal, donc nous avons fait tout notre possible pour trouver une solution pour ce jeune garçon.

Nos objectifs étant forcément les mêmes pour l’éducation des enfants défavorisés, nous avons trouvé un accord avec PSE, qui accepte Van Syleang à partir de Septembre et pour le reste de ses études. Durant cette visite Van Syleang a aussi réalisé qu’il voulait travailler en tant que cuisinier dans l’avenir, une formation proposée par PSE. Nous espérons pouvoir continuer à travailler avec PSE à l’avenir, et que ce jeune homme pourra réaliser ces rêves grâce à notre travail commun.

Nous remercions une fois encore Pour un Sourire d’Enfant pour son aide précieuse.

PSE Pour un sourire d'enfant 

Ms. Jenna, Madam Ermine Norodom, Ms. Dane and Syleang 

Shanty Town volunteer team and Syleang with PSE staff

Shanty Town volunteer team and Syleang

If you wish to help and support our program,
click on the Donate button

or contact
Ermine Norodom : +855 (0) 90 22 74 33 (French & English)
norodomermine@gmail.com

Phirun Prak (Arun) : +855 (0) 96 663 6666 (English & Khmer)
arun.aenorodom@gmail.com

Thank you