a humbling and inspiring email

[Dadaist]

My friend Neil is in Cambodia at the moment, I just got this email from him. If you've got time to read it, I defy you to not feel a bit uplifted by the end!

Matthew

Hello all,
Cambodia is amazing. I had planned maybe 6 weeks here but now I'm looking at renting a place for at least 3 months... maybe longer. I am in a smallish town called Kampot. The local people are really friendly, and love to "make some fun". I have been invited to a local wedding tommorow, can't wait!

The average salary in Cambodia is about 280 dollars a year! The people work hard and seem happier than people in the west. If they are sick or out of work however then they are in big trouble. Only civil sevants get any healthcare or social security, plus every guide book says that if you get ill in Cambodia, get to Thailand as quick as you can!
Helping with the school is amazing. The head master Mr Thy (pronounced Mr T!) started the private school about 6 weeks ago to provide good English skill in a more remote area. The school runs 5pm-7pm Monday to Saturday, the kids (about 170 children) pay 2 dollars a month to study there. Some are free. The teachers get 70% of the income from there class so they must teach well or they lose money, unlike the public school. The other 30% is used by Mr Thy to pay for the running of the school. He has no money so the owner of a local geusthouse (where I stay ) lets him stay there rent free. He needed a moped to take him from his day time teaching job to his night time private school, so his parents sold their farm that was intended for all 8 of their children to buy him a moped.
Last month the school lost money so Mr Thy. had to pay this out of the tiny salary he gets for teaching at other schools. Each day he pays for gasoline as first priority and if he has money left he buys food.
Last week an organisation came to talk to the public school (The private school rents their building in the evening) about giving them a free computer... the public school didnt want it as they had no budget for the 2 dollars a month electricity cost! There is just no money here. Some students can't go to extra English classes because they cannot affor the 50 cents or 1 dollar to buy the course book. All the students really want to learn, and ussually they harass there parent to send them go to the English langauge school!
I have been talking with the computer giving organisation to persaude them to get a computer for the private school but this has fallen throo, I think I will get them one and try to raise the funds for a projector (I dont think mine would survive the trip from the u.k.)
I see how well the teachers teach and how devoted they are to having a good school. The headmaster knows exactly whats important in running the school and has many obstacles which he deals with tirelessly. They really care about the students. I am financing a promotion/advertisement for them to start 3 new classes starting on 8th January, and to get the students they need to make the school viable. This involves a christmas a party (costing a whopping 35 quid) to keep the existing students enthusiastic. The kids are so excited.
I think if I can help them start up a computer skills course then they will get the number of students they need (there isn't anywhere else viable for the children to learn computer skills)....maybe the head teacher will even be able to afford food AND rent! A western woman asked me the other day what Mr Thy's secretery does... I had to chuckle. He cant even afford a phone let alone a secratery. Its unbelievable how different things are here, the head teacher hardly ever visits his parents in the countryside because it costs about 3 dollars in gasoline to get there and back! We visited them last weekend which was pretty cool. They have a small farm with rice and some animals. The food from the farm feeds them, they have no car/moped, I wonder if they ever really deal in money?
The children have so many more opertunities if they know English. Tourism is obvious example but also to work in the government you need English. Prostitution is big business in Cambodia, and there are alot of sex tourists here. One guy told me that he never uses a comdom cause 'hell, were all going to die one day right!' Cambodia has an enormous problem with aids, I think its something like 1 percent of males from 20-45 have HIV. 10 or 20 dollars is a fortune here so I am pretty sure that if a foriegner pays this and refuses to wear a condom then a girl is still going to sleep with them. Education about aids is on the increase, but one local guy thought that you were more likely to catch AIDS if you wear a condom!
Its quite kick that for a bit of time and by western standards a little money I can make quite a big difference to the whole future of some children here. I am quite sure that with the better jobs the children can get with English and computer skills some will be able to afford medical treatment when really sick, and some will avoid prostitution because they have a better alternative.
I have made lots of friends here, local and foreign (there are some real characters here!) and I can see myself being here for a long time. I love the attitude of the people, and its truly amazing how optmistic and cheerful they are given the last 30 years of there history ( I seem to recall that the khmer rouge killed something like 20 % of the population in 3 years!)

Better sign off!
Hope things are well with you all.....go make some fun!

[Sandra]

Thanks for sharing this with us Dadaist

[ecm]

The thread title says it all really, Dada.

How has your friend come to be there? Is he doing voluntary work through some organisation or just travelling around?
He's obviously well taken by the place and people.
It sounds like his being there will help to make a difference to the kids at this school.

[bellybabe]

A friend of mine who spent the year travelling last year said that it was the most amazing place of his travels, and he begged us all to do something to help. For Christmas last year we managed to find a charity where you could buy a brick for £1 towards building a school. We take education so much for granted and it's so precious.

[Dadaist]

How has your friend come to be there? Is he doing voluntary work through some organisation or just travelling around?

A bit of both, I think. He was in India & Thailand before Cambodia and that was just for travelling.

I'd love to see Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos some day.

[Epykat]

They should send the badly behaved pupils from our schools to places like that for a couple of months to give them some perspective on how lucky they are to have free education. Maybe they'd appreciate it more when they came back

[Dadaist]

They should send the badly behaved pupils from our schools to places like that for a couple of months to give them some perspective on how lucky they are to have free education. Maybe they'd appreciate it more when they came back

Agreed.

[bearcub]

They should send the badly behaved pupils from our schools to places like that for a couple of months to give them some perspective on how lucky they are to have free education. Maybe they'd appreciate it more when they came back

A bit of perspective is essential for everyone at times.

[Dadaist]

Ha. It may end up being a happy new year for Mr Thy. Neil and friends are on the case. Watch this space...

[Dadaist]

Small update - I've seen some photos of this place now. I guess I have "city kid" written all over me as I was expecting some cramped place in a traffic-filled street - but the school is actually quite a large building and there's not a car in sight - just bicycles.

As you can probably imagine, people who got the mail from Neil have been asking how they can help, and he has been busy handling some donations and constructing a website for the place.

I'll maybe put up a couple of the photos when I get home today.

[Sandra]

Dadaist I was going to ask you about how to donate money? Also keep us posted re website etc.

[Dadaist]

Dadaist I was going to ask you about how to donate money? Also keep us posted re website etc.

That's a very kind offer, Sandra. Ideally what I'd like to see is Neil's site having a Paypal or Nochex button so people can donate money directly - I've asked Neil about this.

I'll certainly keep you posted with the site and the photos. I might also have a think about doing some organized fundraising.

[Dadaist]

Here's a small snippet of one of Neil's mails. Invernesian humour at its absolute finest. I've know Neil for 13 years now, and BB will testify that this is "one of Neil's stories" :

Yesterday I spent an hour yesterday talking to a monk in the internet cafe! He has been learning English but has a long way to go! He was asking about my emails and one from My friend Brett who is training to be a priest. I tried to explain the words priest, christianity, islam, religion, jesus christ, christianity and Christmas to him......Buddha knows what weird understanding he has gone away with!
He told me many times my English was very good, turns out he thought I was French!

[Dadaist]

Here are the photos Neil sent me :

http://www.radiofreeporty.org/neil/index.htm

[Sandra]

Great pics, the school is quite big and the kids look really happy

[ecm]

Nice pics. These kids have so little yet look at the happy smiling faces.

Please keep us posted on your friend's progress and on your fundraising ideas. Sounds interesting and extremely worthwhile.

[Dadaist]

...and I've only told you the half of it!

Neil is also helping adults whose written English isn't quite up to the (complicated) standard for US immigration forms - with which if you make a mistake, a complicated and time-consuming process must re-start from the beginning.

In one case, Neil managed to talk round someone in the US who had given an offer of work and were having to re-submit something due to a mistake made - and threatened to give up the whole thing and get staff somewhere else. When they heard this, the Cambodian couple involved were literally shaking.

As if I wasn't proud enough of my friend already!

[Sandra]

Neil is an absolute star

[Dadaist]

"Booze For Books"

I've come up with a small idea for fundraising whereby those of you who would like to make a donation will receive a bottle of Chateu De Dada (ie my own homebrew) Pinot Grigio. Beach Babe was present at the opening of the first bottle of the vintage this morning, and proclaimed that it is "surprisingly very nice" which I think was a compliment.

But first - here are a couple of updates from Neil - The first is slightly older and deals with the plan for the school, the second I just got today.

We join the first where Neil is talking about Mr Thy ...

He is very dedicated! The school lost money last month and he had to cover this loss from the tiny salary he gets from other teaching jobs.
The school started in November but is not viable with the present number of students (170). I have been around the community with some teachers and almost all the parents really want to send their children to extra English classes but they cant afford it, or they can afford to send only one out of four. The children really want to learn.
The school is currently engaged in a promotion to get more students, and start new classes mid-January, hopefully this will mean that the school can cover its costs each month. The school is also trying to work with the leaders in the local community to identify the poorest students and have them taught for free. Some are free at present as the head teacher wouldn't turn them away. It would be great if the school could start the new year with some security that it can stay open without wondering each day if the school can survive. The head teacher works so hard, but I think if he has this stress and uncertainty continually it will eventually be bad for the school. He has no financial support except from the owner of the geusthouse and me.
I have been researching alot about the country, its education, and how aid typically does (and mostly doesn't) get to the people who need it. Because I work directly with the head teacher, with no middle men, I know that any money that people can help with will go directly to the benifit of the children. The headmaster knows how to run a school well, but its very difficult with no money! I know that not much money given to the school can make a huge difference here in terms of children being able to have a future where they can afford treatment if they are ill, and avoid prostitution and the enormous aids problems in this country. Money will be spent on the following plan

Priority 1.) Make the school viable so it can support its costs.
this means:
a) Getting more students by offering the course book for free to new students.
b) Purchasing a computer and printer to help with creating teaching materials and admin documents.
c.) Starting a basic computer skills course to attract more students to the school.
d.) Moving the teachers to a fixed salary with some incentives when they do well (at present they get 70% of the income from their class, they would prefer the security of a salary).
e.) Providing some cash reserves for materials and unexpected problems (the school has zero cash reserves)

Priority 2.) Progress with coordination of project to work with community leaders to identify the poorest families and teach their children for free.

Priority 3.) Expand the computer skills class so that more students can have the oppertunity to learn a skill which is very difficult to get here.

I'm not kidding at all when I say that even 5 dollars will make a huge difference here! thats 5 free school books that could encourage 5 children to go to classes (some existing students dont even have the book and share with a friend). Also its a weeks petrol for visiting the childrens parents and community leaders in remote areas. I watched last week as a different local school turned down a free computer from an aid organisation as it had no budget for the 2 dollars a month elecricity cost!
If you can help please do. I will be here for the next 3 months so can give feedback on how all the money is used.

...and here is part of the one I got today - as I think I posted previously, some of Neil's friends sent him some money and he has detailed how it has been spent :

Hello All,
the school has been making alot of progress recently thanks to help from many of you.
The christmas party/promotion for 3 new classes went very well. I have financed this so far because I have had a good response from you guys about some money coming in to help with the school. I had to make a speech also! Then we had a few drinks with the cheif of police who was there. He now wants to send his kids to the school. Yesterday the school had 2 policeman standing gaurd making sure people felt safe and that noones bikes would get nicked!
We visited the head of the community the other day and he is very grateful for the help from abroad.
He told us that an NGO group has allready done a study identifying the approx 200 poorest families and 50 poorest of these (I will get exact figures for you)
2 teachers are out verifying that they are very poor, and as a first step will offer 20 children free education at the school! The plan is to use this as a pilot for the 'scholarship' program (for lack of a better word). The school will use funds later to extend this program.
Also the teachers are talking to the villagers to get the people who can pay information about enrolling in the school, this hopefully will get enough paying students to cover the monthly costs of the school.
Mr. Thy tells me that he has put on weight since I have been here (I buy him a good lunch and dinner most days), and that when he goes to sleep now he has happy dreams! Many locals tell me he looks very happy!

I have spent some money donated to finance the promotion for the next 2 weeks (New classes start on 9th Jan)
This expenditure comprises of:

2 teachers, 13 afternoons each, visiting the families in the community (total: 22 dollars petrol plus 40 dollars salary)

Phone card for Mr Thy to coordinate promotion (5 dollars)

Bill to Computer shop for all design and printing costs in promotion (30 dollars)

Salary for one month for Mr Thy (As he is not drawing on school funds) 55 dollars (22 petrol, 33 food and entertainment) Next month he should be able to take salary from school if it has more students. 55 dolars is quite high but his health is very important for the next month as he coordinates everything.

total (152 dollars = 88 pounds stirling)

Costs to come:

computer (The school badly needs one for admin, creating educational material, and providing basic computer knowledge to the children) 500-600 dollar

Educational material (Mr Thy to create budget)
Financing of free scholarship classes (Mr Thy to create budget)

We will think about extending to a full computer skills class, but wont do this if it jepordises schools finances, also we need to consider trade off between money spent on computers and money spent on scholarship program.

None of the above would have been possible without help from many of you. Thanks to those who have donated so far. More donations would be appreciated to finance the scholarship program. I will top up the total so far at the end of the week, bank holidays make it difficult to tell the exact total so far.
Feel free to ask for any info.

So there you have it. If you would like to make a donation, please PM me.

Matthew

[Maria]

I'm a bit confused about this venture Dada and don't want to doubt Neil's good intentions, but am I right in thinking that Neil's school is a private, language school that runs in the evenings (5-7 pm)?

Therefore presumably all the kids attend state schools free of charge during the day?

I notice from the first email that the kids pay 2 dollars a month to study at the private school. At the same time the public school has to turn down a free computer because it can't afford to pay 2 dollars a month for the electricity to run the computer. Looks like 2 dollars donated to the public school would benefit many more pupils.

[Dadaist]

I'm a bit confused about this venture Dada and don't want to doubt Neil's good intentions, but am I right in thinking that Neil's school is a private, language school that runs in the evenings (5-7 pm)?

Therefore presumably all the kids attend state schools free of charge during the day?

I notice from the first email that the kids pay 2 dollars a month to study at the private school. At the same time the public school has to turn down a free computer because it can't afford to pay 2 dollars a month for the electricity to run the computer. Looks like 2 dollars donated to the public school would benefit many more pupils.

You're right (I think!) - the school is a private enterprise. I'll forward this on to Neil and see what he says.

[bearcub]

I'm a bit confused about this venture Dada and don't want to doubt Neil's good intentions, but am I right in thinking that Neil's school is a private, language school that runs in the evenings (5-7 pm)?

Therefore presumably all the kids attend state schools free of charge during the day?

I notice from the first email that the kids pay 2 dollars a month to study at the private school. At the same time the public school has to turn down a free computer because it can't afford to pay 2 dollars a month for the electricity to run the computer. Looks like 2 dollars donated to the public school would benefit many more pupils.

Or why not give $2 to both of them Marya, it's not as if it's that much money (to us).

Neil's project sounds a great cause, and good for him on doing something about it. There will be so many other causes/projects that could do with help, but doing as much as possible for one is probably about as much (or more than) as anyone can do.

[Maria]

Bearcub, you'll never hear me say that education isn't a deserving cause and I'm sure Neil is doing the right thing focussing on one aspect of community life which he believes he can help.

[Dadaist]

Here is the latest mail from Neil. Thanks very much to those of you who pledged money.

Teaching quality, public and private schools:

Apparently many many (I think the vast majority but I will check) English teachers here have no training at all. The best teacher in Mr. Thy's school was originally a woodwork teacher at a public school and then the public school asked him to teach English as he new a little bit; no-one else did, and they needed an English teacher. No training was supplied. Fortunately he is a very dedicated man and years later he is now a fantastic teacher. Many other teachers are in the same situation, but are not dedicated and see english as their second hobby class (e.g. first and foremost I am a woodwork teacher) Many teachers in the public schools just write English on the board and tell the students to copy it! Pretty mental but then anything else would be really difficult if you have poor English and no training. The public school teachers get paid whether they teach well or not, the private schools on the other hand need to teach with quality or the children will decide not to attend and hence the school will have no income.
The school I help with is a private school, it cooporates very closely with the public school and rents its building in the evening. Public schools typically teach between 3 and 6 hours English per week. The public school encourages the students to go to the private school (which teaches only English) in the evening because they feel English is very important (this gives the students 6 extra hours English a week). Most students pay in private school but we have just set up a scholarship program for free education of the poorest students in the area which we hope to extend.

Importance of English in Cambodia (especially remote areas):

I get told by everyone here about the importance of knowing English for Cambodian people. Many job advertisements have it as the first requirement. All Government jobs require it and many others. The education board has a major push on teaching English as it recognises its importance. At first this meant very little to me (working in an English teaching school people are bound to say that its important). In the last couple of weeks however I have being going round the farms in the community and talking to many villagers with the teachers (In order to inform them about the new classes we are starting). Every parent really really wants to send their children to extra English classes. They all say that its very difficult to find a job if you don't know English. Many villager who are obviously very very poor are still paying 2 dollars a month to send maybe one of their children to extra English classes in the private school (many can only afford to send one of their children). 2 dollars is a lot for the people I have met, and this convinces me more than anything else how important it is to learn English here. Ther families want their children to have a good job, or even just a job when they grow up. If they are forking out money on extra English classes then this this convinces me of its importance more than anything else.

Footnote:
It is interesting to note theat or 2 years in the late 70's the Pol Pot regime wiped out all education in the country for 2 whole years and a lot of the people who where experienced in education were killed. I wonder what effect this has on an education sytem?

[Dadaist]

Latest from Neil :

Promotion



The schools promotion to get new students for class starting 9th Jan has been going very well.

100 new students have registered so far!



Books for existing students



This week we gave course books to all existing students who didn’t already have it. 60 students (about a third of the children) didn’t have the course book as it would cost them between 50 cents and a dollar.



Total cost: 40 dollars

Difference made: lots… the students can follow classes more easily and importantly they can review the lesson at home in their own time.



NB All students in the new classes will get the course book for free.



Free tuition for poorest families



We have started visiting the poorest families.

Many of these families are quite large. First we thought maybe best to send a few children per family (e.g. 4 children each from 5 families) so that the children can walk to school together and study together. Having thought more I think it is best to send one child per family (1 child each from 20 families). If that one child gets a better job as a result he can help out his family and so more families benefit.

Neil has now rented a place for 6 months so we should get to hear lots about what is going on.

I have just about collected all of the (kind) pledges now and will tell you once I'm forwarded your donations to Neil. Thanks again.

[ecm]

Sounds like things are going to get busy at the school.
It's great that some of the poorer kids will get the chance to benefit too.

[Dadaist]

Thanks all - I have now given Neil your donations!!!

Thanks Matt,
thats fantastic!
I'll put another progress report on the web next week, there should be a lot of good stuff to report......and maybe some photos
Neil

[Dadaist]

A new update from Neil - who has raised £1300 !!!

check it out here :

http://www.chumkriellanguageschool.com/progreport3.html

[foxy]

Neil said

I will get some facts for you on the upcoming priorities of the school for the next few months and exactly where the rest of the money raised will be spent.

...he's done all this and still has change from £1300 ...unbelievable and inspiring indeed. Well done Neil

[Sandra]

Really Brilliant news thanks for sharing it Dadaist

[Dadaist]

Hi All,
things are going well here. still setting up the house I am renting but almost there, got internet and a vehicle sorted out along with some basic furniture.

Today I was an extra in a film which was pretty cool (I was pretending to be a member of a cult along with many other folk.. don't know if I got on screen or not).
This is one of the strange occurences resulting from staying next door to my neighbours geust house/bar. Last week I met a couple of really nice girls there..... when I went to sihanoukville beach for the weekend they were there also.... they got talking to a girl and suggested that she visit kampot (where I am) and stay in the guesthouse, I gave her the number for the guesthouse and she stayed there for 5 days. She always looked a little familiar and now that she's gone I know why.... she was a member of the 80's pop group bananarama! (Jackie)

I've told a few people this before, but apparently in one class at school on Friday they played the Cambodian equivalent of paper, scissors, stone.......... its called Girl, Ghost, Monk! The rules are:

Girls are afraid of Ghosts,
Ghosts are afraid of Monks,
Monks are afraid of girls!

The actions are priceless!

Things are going well with the school, we will probably extend the scholarship program from 20 to 50 free students...Next week I am talking to a charity organisation who may be able to fund this program for future years which would be great

This is a fairly standard Neil story - these things happen to him on a regular basis.

[Dadaist]

another update :

Their is an ex teacher in town for the next few weeks who raises alot of funds each year (30 thousand doillars last year) particularly for the local orphanage, I am told there is a chance that he is looking for other projects and I am hoping to get him to finance the 50 scholarships students after my funds run out at the end of the year. It costs a thousand dollars a year for the scholarship kids so I will need to get lots of documentation prepared in the next week for him about costs etc. and figure out how new funds can be managed when I leave.

Also the owner of the guesthouse I stayed in originally is setting up a volunteering package for the school where foriegners stay in his geusthouse, get a few organised trips included, and help out with the school. He will be covering his costs only and some money will go to the school. This is so good as the shoddy organisation who put me in touch with the school (or really the they put me in touch with geusthouse and their commitment stopped there) has stopped working with the guesthouse and hence the scool. He is keen to get his website fully up and running in the next 2 weeks, and since I know how the school is run and works with volunteers way better than anyone else I want to contribute a lot of information to the website very soon. So busy!

A few of the VSO workers in town drink at the bar/guest house next door occasionaly so I am getting to know some of them a bit. Hopefully I can arrange some support from them as they help a number of schools in the area. I worry that they won't as Mr. thy's school is a private school, I think once they know that the director does'nt even take a salary (apart from for the class he teaches) they will realise that its focus is on good education in the remoter areas as opposed to making money

[ecm]

Thanks for keeping us updated, Dada.


I hope things turn out as Neil hopes in terms of additional sponsorship and support.

I must have missed the last update.

Hi All,
Last week I met a couple of really nice girls there..... when I went to sihanoukville beach for the weekend they were there also.... they got talking to a girl and suggested that she visit kampot (where I am) and stay in the guesthouse, I gave her the number for the guesthouse and she stayed there for 5 days. She always looked a little familiar and now that she's gone I know why.... she was a member of the 80's pop group bananarama! (Jackie)

Ha ha ha ha ha -
I couldn't remember a Jackie in Bananarama though so I googled.
Jackie replaced Siobhan apparently.
Just in case anyone's interested.

[CatzVP]

Thanks for keeping us updated, Dada.


I hope things turn out as Neil hopes in terms of additional sponsorship and support.

I must have missed the last update.

Hi All,
Last week I met a couple of really nice girls there..... when I went to sihanoukville beach for the weekend they were there also.... they got talking to a girl and suggested that she visit kampot (where I am) and stay in the guesthouse, I gave her the number for the guesthouse and she stayed there for 5 days. She always looked a little familiar and now that she's gone I know why.... she was a member of the 80's pop group bananarama! (Jackie)

Jackie replaced Siobhan apparently.

No one could replace Siobhan

[Sandra]

No one could replace Siobhan

ditto

She was my favourite. She went onto form Shakespear's Sister with Marcella Detroit. Always liked her best in Bananarama though.