Center for Children’s Happiness

PHNOM PENH , CAMBODIA 

Ready for School!

Education News 

The Cambodian public school year begins in October, and runs through the end of July. So, it’s back to school time! All the children at CCH I & II and CCH/CDCC are headed into new grades. This is an especially busy time for Sokha’s wife, Dany, and the staff, who spend a great deal of time in September outfitting all the kids with uniforms, and buying school supplies---for well over 100 students! 100+ uniforms, school bags, copy books, pens, pencils, rulers, compasses…you get the idea.  

Recently donated bicycles (CCH now owns 10) are being put to good use by the older children, who bicycle to secondary school. Sokha and some of the older boys at CCH II have learned about bicycle repair, and now are experts at fixing brakes, aligning wheels, changing tires, and all the other skills needed to keep the “fleet” up and running.

Sokha delivers talk about “The Meaning of Education” at opening day ceremonies at a local public school.

Special Events  

CCH Children Lighting Incense Outside a Temple during Prachum Ben  

Inside the Temple, Praying to Ancestors

The Cambodian people celebrate Prachum Ben (The Feast of the Ancestors) for 15 days, this year from September 8 through September 22. During that time, prayers and offerings are made to ancestors. Many children at CCH I & II and CDCC with living relatives traveled to their home villages to spend the holiday there. Children with no such family ties remained at the orphanage, but celebrated Prachum Ben at a local temple.

Youth Leadership  

Older children from CCH I & II performed traditional Cambodian dances at Sar Lar, the nearby elementary school, as part of opening day festivities.  

The Wishing Dance  

The Ken Dance  

Child Health and Welfare  

 How can children be healthy without nourishing food? CCH makes well rounded nourishment of all its children the number one priority. Here is Phanny, the cook at CCH I & II, preparing part of a meal.

By now, a friendship and good working relationship has been established between All Ears Cambodia, run by British audiologist Glyn Vaughan, and CCH. All Ears Cambodia has a clinic in Phnom Penh, and serves diverse populations throughout Cambodia. They will be taking care of all the hearing needs of CCH children.

 Volunteers and Visitors

The big news on the volunteer front is that the students from United World College have been tutoring children at CCH and CDCC for a whole month now. There are six volunteers. All are graduates of United World College, an international preparatory school with several campuses throughout the world. These volunteers will be in Cambodia into next Spring, and then will go on to college. They are making an invaluable contribution to CCH’s efforts to supplement Cambodian public school education, working full days, 5 days a week, focusing on all the children at CCH I & II and CDCC, from beginning to advanced students.  

In addition to the UWC volunteers, several other part time volunteers come by, often several times a week, to help with tutoring in English.

 Cambokids, a local organization dedicted to fostering Cambodian art forms among the new generation of Cambodian youth, has been teaching traditional Cambodian dance to students at CCH/CDCC. In the photo above, CDCC children are seen at their dance lessons. A dance/theatre stage is planned on the site where the children are kneeling, to be funded by iCAN, a British international school in Phnom Penh.

In a less traditional vein, visiting Japanese university students organized a “jug band”

Another common sight at CCH: Well wishers and donors who come to visit. In the photos below, Don Schliesmann of the United States and Martin Hannemann of Germany are seen having a good time at CCH I.

Finances and Administration  

Sokha has undertaken a money making venture at CCH I, with the help of some donors. This is the “piggery.” Currently, the cages can hold 24 pigs. A new cage will hold an additional 10. The goal is to raise 50 pigs a year. If they sell for $100 each, CCH will gross $5,000.

Special Projects

The Business Building at CCH I—Under Construction

This is a period of intense building at CCH. The CCH II facility was recently completed, to house many of the older boys. The “business building” shown above will contain two small enterprises run by CCH graduates or older children, to provide them job experience and a source of income. Health and safety construction measures at CDCC continue steadily. Projects there currently include a new roof for the second story wooden structure, and installation of mosquito netting for all the dormitory rooms. Half of a new sewer connection has been completed as well.

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Contributors to this report:

Content: Mech Sokha

English Editing: Elia Van Tuyl

Photographers: Hout Ravuth, Keo Manin, Chhin Sayorn, Buth Sambath (all young people living at CCH)