Dental care for underprivileged Children.

For the past two years now, our association Shanty Town Spirit has been accompanying every week a group of six to ten children to the Dental University of Puthisastra Dentistry. 

We would like to thank the dental University for their dedication to our association. Your amazing support and contribution help Shanty Town Spirit to provide essentials needs to some of the most vulnerable kids and families living in Cambodia.

https://www.puthisastra.edu.kh/news-events/dentistry/up-launches-curriculum-review-working-group-2/

                                                                                                    

               

These children and families are not fortunate enough to be able to afford dental care, and most of them have serious dental problems. That is why regular follow-ups are done at the University of Puthisastra, for many of these children it is the first time they go to the dentist. They are stressed but happy to have access to dental hygiene. The dentists offer their services free of charge, for scaling, tooth decay extraction etc…  A checkup is organized every 6 months. 

                                                                                         

     

Shanty Town Spirit Association still need to pay for the extra care such as, crowns or dental surgeries, so that the child can have a complete treatment when needed and provide the transportation by tuk-tuk, lunches and drinks. 

During the Covid19 period, the Dental University opens and closes its doors depending on government restrictions. We are looking forward to the reopening of the dental University so that we can continue the dental care of these children. In the meantime, and more than ever we continue the distribution of hygiene products so that the children can still have access to hygiene.  

One Spirit, One Heart, One Community   

                                   

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

             To support communities so as to improve their quality of life.

  Email us 

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

norodomermine@gmail.com

Make a donation

ABA account 000143748

Or PayPal us

https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/Shantytownspirit

True Heart : Maria Barbosa de Lima

Her name is Maira Barbosa de Lima, she is 65 years old, and Brazilian. She is graduated in Accounting, and Bachelor in Theology focused in Anthropology and Social Services. 

She is retired now, and before she used to work as a Financial Manager in different companies in São Paulo in Brazil. She worked for many years as a social worker in poor communities with the street’s  kids in São Paulo, where she even sheltered 15 of those children.

 Until today she keeps in touch with them and some are now married... 

She left Brazil in 2008 and went to United Estates to improve her English, she  then arrived in Cambodia in January 2009 and has been in there since.

 She is a Christian missionary and in the bottom of her heart she truly believes that God guided her where she is now. 

She came to Cambodia with the vision to communicate with people, in order to spread the gospel and helping the poor communities to transform they lives.. Firstly she learned khmer language, through this to built the relationship with local people. She focused on the vulnerable children with dysfunctional families in the poor communities.

 She connect the children with public schools, provide them all kind of support they could need : financial, counseling, professional training, spiritual guidance etc... 

She is helping different NGOs and Poor families from the poorest communities  supported by Shanty Town Spirit Ermine Norodom Association,  checking the school results, taking them to the dentist, doctor also when needed, visiting the families to get to know their physical and spiritual needs..

 Maira organized outdoor events, swimming pool, teaching English and bible studies. A lot of things to carry on, she is doing an amazing job helping everyone with all their difficulties she as a  tremendous amount of work and  she is so much  devoting to help Shanty Town Spirit and the other NGO’s. 

One very last project is to transform an acquired room in the Boeung Trabek slum to become an activities place such as  teaching all kind of subjects, English, extra classes, Art etc…. after the Covid crisis it is a project to begin. 

Maira is a multi task person, she is also teaching English to disabilities children  at Light of Mercy NGO. 

Maira is doing all that from her heart as a volunteer, she feels so much joy and happiness when she see people and families getting out of the slums, improving their life and having a good job or proper home. 

Finally not forgetting to mention that Maira is fostering a little girl : Sothea , for more than 7 years, providing her a proper living and a good education. 

Thank you very much Maira for the tremendous work you are doing with us, Shanty Town Spirit and all the other people you are supporting.

God bless you Maira for your kind heart helping everybody and everyone. 

                                   
                                             One Spirit, One Heart, One Community                                      

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

 Click on 
Make a difference 

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

norodomermine@gmail.com

Words by Nathalie Bonpain

Life amongst the graves

We paid a little visit to the community living in the slum of Smor San ! The particularity of this slum is that it is situated on the exact location of a cemetary. Indeed, its inhabitants installed their homes and live amongst the colorful graves of an old graveyard ! Important to know here is that no Cambodian people are buried here, since the khmer culture is opposed to cemeteries and preaches that people should be burned.

We began with a distribution of hygiene supplies: some toothpaste, toothbrushes, some soap and clothes. We had enough goodies for at least 120 people, everybody was thus very happy because they all could manage to get something of their own ! 

Then, we went to the house of a disabled family taken over by Shanty Town Spirit, including a grandmother, a mother and her four children. We talked with them for a while and they showed us around their little habitation. The oldest boy and the grandmother are the only members able to bring money to the family. The grandmother washes dishes and the boy manages to find small jobs around the area, despite his disability. Maira, with the help of Shanty Town Spirit, provides them basic supplies to support them (clothes, hygiene products, medicine, food). 

After that, we met another grandmother from the community, who told us that she had problems with her eyes and that she needed help. We noticed that she might be needing a cataract surgery. We spoke with her and managed to get her one since then. It is thanks to the dedication of volunteers and the generosity of the donors that grandmothers like her are able to be healed and to live freely in dignity ! 

Everybody deserves the right to have access to hygiene, health products and decent clothes. 

                                                 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

    words by Matthieu Membrez

Nice association gathering for a long-lasting partnership !

We had the chance to be invited by Flame to visit a new project of theirs: a youth center that they were able to build thanks to very generous donors in one of the poor communities of Phnom Penh. They are also paying the teacher themselves for a period of three years. 

The action of Flame is based on the idea of “The Full Circle”, which represents the process of a child from slums becoming a young leader: “The kids you help emerge as confident leaders in their communities, inspiring others in education, service and leadership.” (https://www.flamecambodia.org/our-mission ). Flame is an association that Shanty Town Spirit is used and very pleased to collaborate with. 

The center we visited is a day-center where the kids of the community mainly come to learn khmer basis. They can also be helped with some school homework and receive support if they have issues with their families.

We came with presents for the kids: each of them would get a pencil-case full of school supplies ! We also had a limited number of backpacks that the children would get if they won little games. 

They therefore played various little games in front of us ! They were all very happy to have some unusual company that morning ! 

At the end of the class, they all went back home in a special tuk-tuk set up by Flame for them ! 

Seeing those kids happily and safely gathering in this environment is such a heartwarming feeling. It is thanks to the generosity of the donors and the hard work of the volunteers of Flame that such things can happen. Thank you to Flame for their trust ! 

                                                        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

                                                          words by Matthieu Membrez

A precious afternoon with the kids of Little Hearts !

We came by the foster home of Little Hearts, in the countryside of Phnom Penh. This absolutely marvellous place is held by Tony, who decided to help orphans of the Phnom Penh province in need and give them a future. Without the intervention of an organization like Little Hearts, these children would have a bleak future placing them at risk of malnutrition, exploitation and abuse, severe poverty and at worse, an early death.

38 kids from 5 to 20 gather and play all around the vast green garden ! 

There, we distributed each kid a bag containing hygiene supplies, such as a toothbrush, a large tube of toothpaste and 4 bars of soap. Every child got one of his own !

Right after that, some of the children kindly offered to make us visit the foster home. So they showed us around the rooms where the kids sleep, divided into four different dormitories and beautifully decorated by them ! Then, they showed us the bathrooms, the kitchen, the computer room and finally the classrooms ! 

Some of the oldest girls then explained us the functioning of their aquaponic garden, which was installed a few years back by Koya Project and with the collaboration of Shanty Town Spirit ! Tony made up a special time table so that every kid gets to take care of the aquaponic garden and understand its functioning. This project turned out to be very useful for them ! Indeed, it consists of a fish tank constructed below ground level to keep the fish nice and cool. There is also a vertical garden for leafy green vegetables and 3 media beds which are already yielding bumper crops of the children’s favourites which include ‘morning glory’. (https://koyaproject.org/little-hearts/ )

While some of the kids were happily playing in the garden and others peacefully drawing the classrooms, we were chatting and laughing with a little group of them. They explained about how their life at Little Hearts was great and how they were always having fun all together ! 

This afternoon with the kids of Little Hearts was a precious moment of sharing and joy, and we are forever grateful for the work of associations such as Little Hearts ! 

                                  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

    words by Matthieu Membrez

NEW UNIFORMS FOR THE KIDS

Thank you to the WIG, Women International Group, to having had the opportunity to deliver new uniforms to our kids from the slums.

The WIG is an active group who bring a diversity of resources and experiences together for social, cultural and educational enhancement. They raise funds and donate these via grants to worthy community projects in Cambodia.  They represent a huge number of women, from various countries, who meet together every week and try their best to help the others.

We receive a donation from them.

Sokea helped us to build the list of the kids, age, heigh, school grade,  etc…  It represents a lot of work, because if sometimes the uniforms are not the correct size, Sokea help them for the exchange.

Each of them need 2 uniforms per year.

They are so happy when they receive their uniforms, it is a real gift for them to receive new clothes.

They use it on daily basis to go to school but also when they need to be well dressed.

This year, 65 kids received their uniforms, but we need more.  There are a lot more of kids who need the uniform each year.  One uniform costs 10 dollars.  Help us to be able to help more children.

                                       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

                           --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

LES NOUVEAUX UNIFORMS POUR LES ENFANTS

Merci au WIG, le Groupe International de femmes, établit à Phnom Penh, qui nous a permis de donner de nouveaux uniformes aux enfants des bidons villes.

Le groupe des WIG, est établit à Phnom Penh depuis de nombreuses années, groupe actif, organisant diverses et nombreuses activités afin de pouvoir collecter de l’argent et d’ainsi aider de nombreuses associations sur Phnom Penh.  Ce groupe est composé de femmes de toutes les nationalités, et elles organisent beaucoup d’activités pour arriver à mettre en place ces activités et donations.

Nous avons eu la chance de recevoir une donation de leur part

Sokea, qui est un des jeunes que nous suivons depuis le début, nous a beaucoup aider pour définir la liste des enfants.  En fonction de la taille, de l’âge, de leur niveau scolaire.  Sokea les aide également quand les uniformes ne sont pas de la bonne taille, donc il va procéder aux échanges.

Chaque enfant reçoit deux uniformes par an.

Chaque enfant est particulièrement heureux de recevoir ces uniformes.  Ce sont des tenues qu’ils sont très fiers d’arborer.  Ils les portent pour aller à l’école et également lorsqu’ils ont besoin d’être bien habillés.

Cette année nous avons pu délivrer 65 uniformes, mais nous avons encore beaucoup d’autres enfants pour qui nous ne pouvons pas encore leur fournir ces habits.  Donc nous devons trouver encore plus de fonds pour cela.

                                     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