2018 Volunteer Trip Part 6 - Phnom Penh, Cambodia
The volunteers spent 3 days with our 16 children in Phnom Penh. They shared the same roof, meals, laughs, cries, and everything in between. Nancy, one of the volunteers even taught the girls yoga!
Even though the time spent together was short, the children grew attached to the volunteers very quickly, and many tears were shed when the volunteers left!
Our volunteers cooked some mighty spaghetti bolognese for the girls. They loved it so much, and some even went back for seconds and thirds!
Here we are in Arey Ksarth at our old OBV home 7 years ago! We raised our first 2 children in this home that's now turned into a day school!
Part of the volunteer fee helped us give each of our children $15 USD to buy "Secret Santa" gifts for each other. All of our children come from impoverished villages, where food on their table was an insecurity. The volunteers were happy to give them a small gift, but we wanted to teach them the joy of giving gifts to another person!
The children pooled some of their own money with our volunteers to buy 160 food packages for the homeless in Phnom Penh. Together, we roamed the streets for 4 hours at night to give people who live on the streets a little "new years" gift.
"I did not imagine that the children would be so carefree and happy. They are so well taken care of". - Thuy (volunteer)
"I'm so in love with these girls. Each year, they grow a little taller, act a little wiser, love a little deeper. The care and affection they have for each other would soften any hardened soul! Everything about them melts my heart. I especially love it when they freely laugh or smile, because in that moment I forget about what has brought us together in the first place. They make the most out of what little they have and the tragedy that they have endured and they are my light, my direction and my purpose." - Angela (OBV Canada President)
