October 26, 2010 at 11:04 pm
By Kristin Tomlinson
We were so thrilled this past week when all the supplies arrived at the new school’s building site. We’ve been waiting for many of these supplies for weeks now, and were finally able to purchase the last of them with help from numerous donations. Through the bricks, cement, tools and wood we received, we have faith that the new school will be built and ready for business within the next couple of weeks.
October 21, 2010 at 7:50 pm
By Kristin Tomlinson
Everyone at SCAO was so anxious and excited to send us pictures of the new school’s location. All of the SCAO’s faculty and volunteers have been busy building and prepping the site for the past couple of months. The visit to the site was extremely special, because it was the first time many of the children were able to see, explore and roam the grounds of where there brand new school is going to be!
October 21, 2010 at 7:30 pm
By Kristin Tomlinson
Everyone at SCAO was so anxious and excited to send us pictures of the new school’s location. All of the SCAO’s faculty and volunteers have been busy building and prepping the site for the past couple of months. The visit to the site was extremely special, because it was the first time many of the children were able to see, explore and roam the grounds of where there brand new school is going to be!
June 1, 2010 at 6:49 pm
SCAO is planning to open a second education center that will offer free English classes in mid 2011. The new center will be located in a beautiful and authentic farming and fishing village just north of Phnom Penh in the Pursat Mountain region only 12 km north of the present SCAO center.
April 15, 2010 at 6:49 pm
What a wonder day of celebration at the SCAO center. We welcomed the Khmer New Year with food, song, friendship and sharing. The children played games, enjoyed the meals prepared by the volunteers, and invited guests and parents joined in the festivities.
As you can see by the posted photos, fun was the order of the day.
For those interested in knowing more about our Cambodian culture, here is a cultural history of our New Year celebration.
What is Cambodian New Year ?
Khmer New Year is the greatest traditional festival and national holiday. Khmer New Year begins on April 13th or 14th, depending on the ancient horoscope, “MohaSangkran”. The majority of the Khmer populations are farmers. Farmers reap and harvest their crops from the rice fields all year long, except during April. In April, there is no rain and it is very hot. Therefore, the farmers rest from working in the rice fields and celebrate the New Year.
The first day of New Year is called “Moha Sangkran,” meaning “welcoming their new angels.” This year is the year of the Rooster (Mon), and Moha Sangkran of the New Year will begin on April 13th. The leader of Angels is named KimiteaTevi. Khmer people clean and decorate their homes and prepare fruits and drinks to welcome their New Angels. They believe that any angel who comes to their homes will stay with them and take care of their family for that whole year.
The second day of New Year is called “Wanabot,” meaning “to offer gifts to the parents, grandparents and elders.” The third day is called “Leung Sakk;” that means “the year starts to be counted up from this day.” The last ceremony is called “Pithi Srang Preah”, when elders, parents or grandparents to apologize for any mistake they have done. Khmer New Year is not just a great traditional festival. It is also a generation passing on traditions.
March 23, 2010 at 10:13 pm
It’s always good when we have something to celebrate and share with our supporters.
The expanded building project has been completed and we now have more room to house, educate and care for the children. This is indeed a great celebration, particularly after the recent floods that forced us to evacuate our facilities. But with the sun and dry weather, SCAO has rebounded thanks to the generosity of our contributors and the hard work of our community.
The Children of SCAO
SCAO linked this inaugural ceremony with a combined celebration and information session, inviting relatives of our children, the poor families in the neighborhood and our cherished volunteers. It was a warm-hearted event in which the SCAO philosophy of the well-being and education of disadvantaged children was a main focus. Additionally, families and parents got to directly experience the purposes and functioning of SCAO, its mission and its vision.
The pictures posted of this event show the energy and excitement on the children’s faces and the pure joy of being part of the SCAO community. All adults — parents, relatives, local community and volunteers — participated in making the inauguration a great success. Sharing food, exchanging stories, and the overall camaraderie and friendship reinforces to our reputation as a caring and loving organization.
The Men and Volunteers of SCAO
SCAO is always looking and finding ways to improve the lives of our children under our care. It is equally important for our contributors to see their donations at work to house, educate, care and help the children become productive members of our community. It is our hope and prayer that our children grow up and give back to other Cambodians in need. Brick by brick, book by book, this is the way we will help rebuild our country and its spirit.
A Big Hug to Our Generous Donors
Because donations directly benefit all the children, we want to thank our recent group of generous donors. A special thanks goes to a group of kind people who randomly found our website. They were so impressed by the work we were doing and the quality of our wonderful site, they made a generous donation. Another donor from Toronto, Canada who has taken us under his wing has just made his second bighearted donation.
The Women of SCAO
Thanks to donations from people like you, we have been able to expand SCAO. For example, we recently started offering sewing classes for disadvantaged children from the community.
March 9, 2010 at 9:20 pm
Seymar and Sey taking a quick afternoon nap on their straw beds.
Mr. Samith, working hard on that second floor for S.C.A.O
Li May working on homework in Cambodia
As you can see, everyone is benefiting tremendously from all the efforts and renovations being done at the orphanage. The kids are happy and so grateful for all the support, love and education they receive from volunteers daily. S.C.A.O. has come a long way in helping provide these children a better life, but there’s still a long road ahead.
We need your help:
SCAO is constantly working hard to improve the lives of the children under our care so they can realize a better life. Your donations a big part of our Center’s success and are not only very welcomed and needed, but much appreciated by the children and the Samith family. Please visit our donations page for more info on how you can help.
February 22, 2010 at 7:59 pm
Mark your calendars: A Rock Night benefit will take place on the 27th of February. Organized by the Jüchen Children’s Aid Society Association in Cambodia.
The concert that will take place at Red Hot in Jüchen, Germany and will feature bands: Sunday Minds, Freeze Dried Rockers and headliner Fandango. “The 3 bands promise a terrific evening” said organizer Jennifer Glindermann. Dancing will be provided by dance mad DJ Fischkopp.
100% of proceeds from ticket sales go to the Children’s Aid Association in Cambodia, which supports Save Children in Cambodia (SCAO). This concert will help raise funds for the expansion of the SCAO center and the addition of a dormitory to accommodate more children Tickets are available at Polo redhot for €13.20 (incl. booking fee).
For our German readers:
Endlich ist es soweit! Am 27. Februar veranstaltet der Jüchener Verein Kinderhilfe in Kambodscha e.V. eine Benefiz-Rocknacht. Im redhot von Polo heizen zwei junge Jüchener Bands und der Mönchengladbacher Headliner dem Publikum mächtig ein. „Ich bin glücklich und stolz, dass sich Sunday Minds und die Freeze Dried Rockers bereit erklärt haben, kostenfei zu spielen. Als dann auch noch Fandango zugesagt haben war der Abend perfekt!“ freut sich Organisatorin Jennifer Glindemann. Alle drei Bands garantieren einen grandios tanzbaren Abend – und DJ Fischkopp wird den tanzwütigen Füßen den Rest geben.
Die Einnahmen aus dem Kartenverkauf gehen zu 100% an den Verein Kinderhilfe in Kambodscha e.V., der ein Kinderhaus in Kambodscha unterstützt. „ Wir sorgen dort für den Lebensunterhalt sowie die medizinische Versorgung von 17 Kindern und kommen für die Kosten der öffentlichen Schule auf. So haben die Kinder die Chance, aus Armut auszubrechen und eine furchtlose und sichere Kindheit zu verbringen. Schritt für Schritt begleitet eins unserer Gründungsmitglieder die Entwicklung der Organisation vor Ort. Damit unsere Spenden wirklich zu 100% ankommen!“ versichert die Vorsitzende des Vereins. Mit dem Erlös soll die Erweiterung des Kinderhauses finanziert werden, da zwei neue Kinder aufgenommen wurden und der Schlafsaal vergrößert werden muss. Karten sind bei Polo im redhot für 13,20€ (inkl. Vorverkaufsgebühr) erhältlich. Neusser Str., Jüchen Einlass 19 Uhr Beinn 20 Uhr
February 18, 2010 at 10:14 pm
There’s a lot of great news coming from SCAO, and we wanted to share a few of the positive and promising updates we’ve received. In addition to building new dormitories and enhancing some of the educational opportunities, SCAO has been busy at work growing their own vegetable garden and helping their new volunteers adapt.
We are proud of our progress since the floods have receded. The children have returned to the Center and we are rebuilding, growing and furthering our children’s welfare and education. Here are just a few exciting current developments at the Center:
We need your help:
SCAO is constantly working hard to improve the lives of the children under our care so they can realize a better life. Your donations a big part of our Center’s success and are not only very welcomed and needed, but much appreciated by the children and the Samith family. Please visit our donations page for more info on how you can help.
February 10, 2010 at 8:04 pm
Fourteen year olds Pon and Jey were given care at the SCAO Center early this year. Pon’s father lost a leg to a land mine accident and is unable to care for his son. Jey is an orphan that has nowhere to live. They both come from the remote area of Preah Vihear where school education and social integration are non existent.
SCAO now takes care of Pon
Jey now has a place to live
Happily, both children were immediately integrated into the SCAO family. Within ten days, SCAO arranged for them to go to public school and attend the English classes at the SCAO Center twice daily.
Today, they are beaming with gratitude and it shows in their smiling eyes. They love their new life in their new caring and safe environment. We hope to add more children as our funding permits.
