Daniela Papi's Blog

Living in a place like Phnom Penh, it is sometimes hard to focus on where the biggest "needs" are, as you see them all around you. You pick an area you work on, like our school with PEPY, and then you try to identify the most responsible way to address the issues. But.... then you walk down the street, see children crying, see the burning dump covered with children working all day in the sun with no access to water, and you get confused. How can you help, who, and what?

Sometimes it is as simple as connecting two needs. Sometimes there are people who have a surplus of something and are looking to get rid of it and those who need it. Such is the case of mislabled food and food banks or used cooking oil and bio-diesel cars. In this case, it is a young man whose dream is to be a doctor, and some successful doctors in New York and Canada looking to make a difference.

Chamroeun is sometimes our translator. He is a bright young guy who was in my friend's free English classes a few years back and then became her Khmer teacher. Chamroeun taught me Khmer when I first arrived here as well, and he has a way about him of just grasping at knowledge and using everything he learns right away, like new words and phrases.

His family survives on duck farming. They sell the eggs for a few cents each, and his whole family with 5 children must be supported on a meager monthly income. Chamroeun's parents recognized his intelligence at a young age and worked hard to send him, and only him, to school. Every family member, aunts, cousins, EVERYONE took out loans this year to send Chamroeun to his first year of medical school. The weight of the world rests on his shoulders as his whole family is waiting for him to become a doctor and pay back their investments in him. He has to get the highest grades to compete for the limited scholarships available.

Through a friend, I was able to tell Ed & Jean-Luc about Chamroeun, and being doctors themselves, they could relate to his endless studying and the pressures of school. They were moved by his story and have now decided to pay his $1000 per year school fees to help him get through school and continue to serve his country.

Thanks to Ed and Jean-Luc for making a huge difference in so many lives by supporting this bright young man. Happy 2007!