Hard at Work This month's issue will be a little different. Usually, we are long on photos and mercifully short on text. Not this time! Everyone has just been too busy to produce a bunch of nice photos (except the one above, which I love). In this photo you see CCH students digging ditches in preparation for building the new Youth House (that is CCH 2 dormitory in the background.) All of the kids in this photo work very very hard in school, and look at this respite from study as fun! Besides, they are participating in building a better life for children coming after them. And notice how many are girls! Independence and Sustainability Lots of things are in the works at CCH, but given the world economy, no one knows how financial support will hold out to make these plans into realities. The daily effort of caring for 150 kids goes on of course, thanks to the CCH staff of about 20. But Director Mech Sokha is also looking down the road, with an eye toward the independence of CCH graduates, and the sustainability of CCH itself. Personal independence: This is an especially demanding goal in Cambodia, which is such a poor country, and doubly so for orphans, who lack any family social safety net. However, CCH children receive a lot of hope from their upbringing at CCH, and a lot of confidence too. Plus, they have choices. CCH has succeeded, thanks to very generous donors, in placing 8 students in International Baccalaureate programs in Cambodia and abroad. In addition, almost 50 more students will be able to receive good quality private education at Pannasastra International School in Phnom Penh. For all these students, options for higher education, both in Cambodia and elsewhere, become realities which could transform their lives. An equally important track to independence lies in vocational training. CCH, through other generous donors, is paving the way for high quality vocational training in Sihanoukville when the time is right (very soon, it would seem). CCH has made contact with Don Bosco, a highly successful and well regarded vocational training organization with programs throughout Asia. In the photo below, some CCH boys, along with their teacher, Prak Sokha (at left), pose in front of some of the impressive shop training equipment at Don Bosco, during a recent trip there. Prak Sokha will oversee the CCH vocational training efforts.
CCH sustainability: CCH currently depends on donations from a wide range of funders internationally. But eventually, CCH itself will have to take on a much bigger role in generating funds. But how? The answer lies in a model which already exists, and has a long track record of success. Think if how private colleges and universities sustain themselves worldwide over time. There are three pillars of support: Alumni, ownership of property, and endowment funds. A fourth source of income is sometimes side enterprises, such as selling logos on clothes or offering "continuing education" programs to the public. But in general, universities survive through alumni support and endowment income. This will very likely be CCH's approach. The children are mainly too young to be alumni yet, but when they are, they will all automatically belong to a CCH support network, and a structure will be set up for these students to give back to the orphanage that has done so much for them. Second, CCH is now aggressively working to buy land, so that all of its facilities will be CCH-owned, and therefore not vulnerable to being pushed out when a landlord decides to sell or raise the rent. Right now, CCH owns CCH 1 and CCH 2, but CDCC is rented, and will eventually be lost, maybe in 5 or 10 years. Because of this, CCH has fund raised to buy land for the new Youth House, and is in the middle of acquiring land for a new CCH 3 facility right next to CCH 2. When we succeed at buying all the land needed for CCH 3, and building the new facility, the second leg of the sustainability stool will be in place. The third leg of the stool is a big one: an endowment. CCH already has a very modest amount of endowment (really just a few thousand dollars), but in coming years, we hope to launch a concerted drive to set up the structures to attract major endowment support. But in the meantime, we are working on CCH 3 and getting the first wave of kids out of adolescence and into young adulthood. Along the way, CCH may be able to find the right formula for some income generating activities itself, but this is a big challenge for an institution whose main mission is being a parent to 150 children! Top priority here remains delivering high quality daily care to CCH orphans. The Future of the CCH Monthly Report What lies ahead for the CCH Monthly Report? In a word: Improvement! I will be in Cambodia in April, so there will be no report next month. But after that, there will hopefully be some changes. Specifically, many CCH youth have now become quite good at photography. In addition, due to higher quality general education, their English is improving by leaps and bounds. This is a recipe for significant participation by CCH students in the preparation of the CCH Monthly Report. Expect some interesting new perspectives and narratives. But don't worry, we will continue to be big on photos and not too long on text. And finally.................. Here is a photo of one little girl at CDCC, whose sponsor paid for a birthday party. CCH does not allow big presents or parties just for selected children, so the whole of CDCC was invited to the party. Can you remember the last time you felt this grateful for something as small as a birthday cake?
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Contributors to this report: Content: Elia Van Tuyl & Mech Sokha English Editing and Layout: Elia Van Tuyl Photos: CCH staff |
