Free education for 300 children in rural Cambodia

The last three months here at the Helping Hands School have been busy as we worked to progress our goals of community development and the protection of children’s rights. To make progress on these goals, we have welcomed new and familiar faces to Cambodia. We welcomed new interns and volunteers, and we hope that they will find their time with us enjoyable and rewarding.

There were some familiar faces that returned to Helping Hands during the past three months, and two of those that I would like to highlight are Sara and Yoeuy. Sara is returning to volunteer with us after 15 years. We are pleased when people return to volunteer with us as this indicates that they have enjoyed their time with us and that they support the work that we do. The second is Yoeuy, who returned to take up a position as an English teacher after being a former student and a volunteer at Helping Hands. Helping Hands takes great pride in being involved in the personal and professional development of Yoeuy and other students.

Education

In addition to Yoeuy, we welcomed numerous people to the Helping Hands School who volunteered to teach children. We are always filled with joy to see both the children and volunteers embrace the situation and have fun during the lessons. In order to keep the children engaged in their studies, we try to find a balance between work and play. Two ways we were able to do this during this reporting cycle was with a ‘Dance Day’ at the Helping Hands School, where a dance instructor danced with the children in order to develop their mobility, flexibility, and physical stamina. The children also went on a school trip to Siem Reap where they made memories that will last a lifetime.

Community

As one of our organizational goals is community development, the work we do is therefore not limited to the Helping Hands School. One such example of this is when we extended our support to Takam School by helping them with the installation of a water pump which is similar to the one at Helping Hands. The availability of clean drinking water prevents the spreading of diseases, it promotes the physical and mental development of children, and it helps the children stay focused in the classroom.

Food & Farming

We remain committed to providing the children at Helping Hands with a nutritious meal every day. To do this, we rely on food sourced from our Food and Farming Project. During this reporting cycle, volunteers worked with members of the community to prepare the land for planting. We are pleased that the garden continues to produce enough fruit and vegetables in order to feed children and members of the community.