Pisey is 25 years-old and comes from Kompong Cham Province. Arriving at Samrong 2007 at 13 years old she was a very popular girl and stayed at the farm for 11 years.
Again, an intelligent girl who studied to become a teacher, taking a Bachelor Degree of English Lecturer at Asia Euro University, she has now become an English teacher at a NGO, helping other children in the countryside. In the future, Pisey would like to become a University lecturer.
Chhor is 23 years-old and comes from from Phnom Penh. Chhor came to Samrong Farm in 2009 and stayed there till 2016, around 7 years.
An intelligent girl, she went to University to study Accountancy and finished her Bachelor Degree of Accounting at the Asia Euro University. Now, she is working in a sales environment at the Cannon´s Camera shop in Phnom Penh. In the future, she would like to have her own business.
Situated at the rear of the office is a small sports area which is used by the children for activities such as volleyball, basketball, and badminton (as well as general games).
This area is in a poor state and the posts and equipment are in disrepair. At present the surface is uneven and the concrete is disintegrating. Badminton can be played in the dining area, on occasions, for the enjoyment of all but naturally this creates some problems.
There have been discussions about digging up the area and re-concreting it, with the addition of new posts and basketball boards. This would provide a safe surface on which to play sports which is essential for the wellbeing and enjoyment of all at Samrong.
A roof covering the area would be the ‘icing on the cake’ so to speak to create an all-weather area. This simple project could be undertaken by helpers and volunteers (under supervision).
One of the projects for the future is to build a separate classroom and library on land closer to the front gates. At present the classroom and library and situated in the middle of the residential block and it can be disruptive.
The change of use form the present classroom and library to bedrooms will allow more space for children, as currently there are 8 children to a room.
This project could be undertaken by the qualified ex-residents and helpers/volunteers, keeping the costs to a minimum. Can you help?
Although these projects may seem to be simple or basic tasks, we have very limited resources to undertake them at Samrong. Naturally the most important and essential products are dealt with first, and we categories the importance and necessity by the impact on the lives and future lives of our children.
Security Gates & Hut
At the entrance to Samrong new metal gates have been installed to protect the premises. Just inside the gate, to the left, a small hut for controlling admission has been built. The work was completed by several ex-Samrong children who have now graduated in various professions, including construction and engineering. In this way the costs are kept down and we only require funding for the materials.
Repainting Entrance (External)
The approach to Samrong had started to look quite rundown over the past few years but, with help, the outside wall has now been renovated and repainted. Some might say that it is money wasted but this is home to many and we all feel that the outside should look welcoming and lively to mirror the ethos of the Samrong Children’s Farm.
Interior Redecoration
Various areas at Samrong have been painted and this is an ongoing process, as the are about 60 children running around at any one time. The dining area has been painted with artwork by the children.
Historically Samrong has been able to collect enough water from rainwater collection and from a well to provide the water needed to grow the crops and look after the staff and children. After a prolonged period of reduced rainfall the well ran dry, and a decision was made to connect the Farm to a paid-for water supply.
Samrong Children’s Farm always works with a very tight budget, and in recent years we have been trying very hard to make up a shortfall in our funding. Investment in infrastructure can be very difficult without plenty of planning.
The situation as it stands is that whilst attempting to plug a budget shortfall we are gradually working to pay off the cost of connecting to the water supply. The Round Table Lodge of Lincolnshire kindly donated £500, and our group of affiliated rugby referees gave £300 from “fines” they had made of their referees at social occasions.
We appreciate that when considering charitable giving it’s not always a person’s intention to offer money into the general pool, so if you wished to put money towards specific projects like this infrastructure project we would be very grateful.
Please get in touch via the contact page if you would like to help this excellent cause.