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

Un Avenir assuré grâce à de bons résultats scolaires/Just study and believe in the future

Un Avenir assuré grâce à de bons résultats scolaires / Just study and believe in the futur

Comment réussir sa vie ? la meilleure façon de s’assurer un avenir réside dans les études que tout un chacun peut faire et dans les moyens qu’il se donne pour y arriver.

C’est pour cela que nous suivons les enfants sur le plan scolaire dans les familles défavorisées.  Nous sommes derrière eux pour les faire travailler et faire en sorte qu’ils puissent s’assurer un avenir, autre que ce qui pourrait leur être donner, en ayant eu la malchance de naitre dans un bidon ville.

Cela de manière régulière, nous surveillons les carnets de classe, s’ils vont bien à leur cours supplémentaire, s’ils suivent bien les cours en général.  Et dès que l’un d’entre eux à de bons résultats, il obtient un vélo.

Vélo, qui s’avère être le Saint Graal pour tous ces enfants.  Grace à cela, ils peuvent aller à l’école plus rapidement, moins fatigués, et ils peuvent s’amuser pendant leur temps libre.

C’est le cas de Nath Putheara, qui a obtenu un « Certificat d’appréciation » pour les cours d’anglais qu’elle suit, elle est en grade 4 et a obtenu la quatrième place.  Elle a eu son vélo, qu’elle voulait rose, très girly.

D’autres ont la possibilité d’effectuer un stage dans un établissement, comme cela a été le cas de Sokear, qui a fait un stage chez Infinity Insurance.

Ou encore nous leur offrons des sorties cinémas, Kids city ou faire un bon repas.

Les récompenses sont nombreuses mais ils doivent bien travailler pour obtenir cela.

Lorsqu’ils ont des difficultés dans une matière, nous nous assurons de leur faire suivre des cours de soutien dans cette matière, ainsi ils peuvent rattraper leur retard.   

Mis à part pour Ron, qui lui non seulement travaille très bien, mais qui aime tellement les maths qu’il veut continuer les cours de soutien même s’il en a pas besoin.

Toutefois, il nous est plus facile d’aider les enfants dès le grade 1, comme cela ils ont toute leur scolarité devant eux.  Nous rencontrons quelques difficultés avec les enfants qui ont commencés l’école à 13ans.  L’Association n’a pu les prendre en charge qu’à partir de ce moment-là.  Donc, nous faisons tout ce que nous pouvons pour leur faire comprendre combien il est important d’étudier pour avoir un emploi correct.

Just study and believe in the futur 

How can those kids be sure to have a real futur in life ? Well the answer is simple : STUDY, and then everything becomes possible.

This is why we are helping the kids in the poor families. We give them the opportunities to study properly by keeping track of their results.

On regular basis we are visiting them, questioning them if they are going to class, if they are following additional classes for which we pay for.  

And as soon as one of them is getting good results, he or she received a reward.  Most of the time they are expecting a bicycle.  But they have to be at least in the first five in class.

Having a bicycle is very important for them, they can go with it to school and it makes their life so much easier.

This is the case of Nath Putheara, who received a « certificat of appreciation » for her good marks in English.  She got her bike, pink, and was thrilled when she received it.

Others got the opportunity to do an internship in a company, Sokhear did one at Infinity Insurance.

Or we take them for a movie or to Kids city, or for a good meal.  All those things that they can’t have in their life.

There are a lot of rewards, but they have to study and get proper results

And when they face difficulties, we are giving them some additional support.  They can have support classes, so that they can keep on with the others.

Which is not the case for one of them, Ron, who is working really well at school, and gets very good marks, but love so much mathematics, he wants to have additional classes even though he is in the first one in class.

However it is easier to help those kids as soon as they start school, in grade one.  Like this we can be part of the entire scholarship.  It is more difficult for the kids with whom we started when the Association was created.  They were already 13 years old, so they have to get back with their delays.  Not so easy but we have success in this two.

Studying in class is the answer for a proper future.  

                                  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