Meet two of our borrowers

JWOC's Microfinance Project has helped hundreds of local small business owners increase their earnings and better provide for their families. Below are profiles of two of our current borrowers. If you would like to donate to the Microfinance Project, please follow this link- http://www.journeyswithinourcommunity.org/support/donate/

Mai Channa

Channa is 30 years old and runs a food stall outside the Children’s Hospital in Siem Reap. This is a good location for a stall as the hospital does not provide meals for patients or their families so visitors will buy food for them. She also serves staff that work at the hospital.

Channa applied for a new loan as she found she was running out of food before the end of the day and had to turn potential customers away. With the loan she will buy new equipment for her stall (additional cooking and serving pans) and also more ingredients. As an additional advantage is that with the access to additional funds from the loan she is able to buy in bulk and benefit from the cheaper wholesale prices.

Channa and her husband have three children, aged five, six and eleven. She says she some of the extra income she earns through the changes made with the loan will be put towards her children’s education. Although state schools in Cambodia are free, the costs associated with attending school- books, uniform, transport, equipment- often mean families cannot afford to send all or any of their children. With her additional income Channa will be able to send all of her children to school. The rest of the additional income will be split between paying for some improvements to her small home and setting some aside for emergencies.

Channa says she is pleased JWOC is able to offer loans to small businesses as JWOC’s interest rates are lower than other places and they allow weekly repayments which helps with budgeting. She says thank you to JWOC, which we in turn pass on to our supporters!

Thorng Touch

Touch is 48 years old and runs a second-hand clothes business. She buys second-hand clothes wholesale in the capital, Phnom Penh, and then sells them in two ways. One way is to sell bundles to other clothes sellers; this is easier but makes her less money. The other way is to sell individual items to customers, making a greater profit on each item. She sells in two places, sometimes in the market, other times outside her home in Krous village.

The loan will mean she has been able to buy the second-hand clothes in bigger quantities, meaning she was able to get a better rate and also reduce the number of times she needs to travel to Phnom Penh, reducing her business costs and time away from her family.

Touch and her husband have four children, the youngest being 15 years old. She would like to use the extra income generated to help support one of her older children in attending university. Although cheap compared to Western fees, the cost of university in Cambodia, $500 per year, is prohibitive to most.

Touch says she liked the process of getting a loan from JWOC as they supported her through the application processes, including helping her make a budget plan. Like Channa, she also appreciates the weekly repayments.

She says awkoon ch’ran (thank you very much) to all those that helped her receive the loan!

Watch our new Clean Water video

Our new video explains the background and impact of JWOC's Clean Water Project and how you can help.

JWOC Talk

One evening last week Narla and I headed into the squatters village on his motorbike to meet with a man that sells herbal medicine. I had an editor interested in such things and wanted to check it out before sending a guest out to see it. The squatters village sits behind Journeys Within and JWOC and really started growing when we first moved to Siem Reap seven years ago. Those living in the squatters village all have stories of why they’re there, each one seemingly sadder than the next…a sick husband in hospital and everything sold to pay for his care, only for him to die and leave the family destitute; a youngest brother who can’t farm along with his older brothers because there just isn’t enough land to go around; drugs, alcohol, depression. JWOC has a presence here, many of the squatters are our microfinance project loan recipients and clean water project wells dot the community offering at least clean water in otherwise squalid conditions.

Villagers making good use of their JWOC Clean Water Project Well

As we drove through I was again shocked by the trash, the amount of children and the general chaos that comes from too many people living in too small a space. I can’t imagine a childhood spent here. Narla and I left the village agreeing that for the over 3000 people now living here, life was bleak.
The next day happened to be my first Music and Movement class in the new JWOC library. I have had my kids in music classes since they were little…kinder music, mommy and me music time, nursery music and so on. Each time we were back in the States we enrolled in a different class and I loved to see my little ones clapping to the beat, dancing with scarves or pretending to be a kitty cat. I had always wanted to run a music and dance class at JWOC, but we hadn’t had the space. Now we do!

For the first class we didn’t do sign ups, we decided to run it as a drop in class and we advertised in our other classes. Part of the reason we did not have sign ups was we knew no kid would know what such a class was and might be scared off. Class was on Tuesday, from 3 to 4…I was nervous! At 2:45 there were only a few kids reading in the library, at 2:55 there were a few more, but by 3pm when we started our stretches we had about 20 kids and by the end of class, we had 45! That’s right, 45 kids from the age of 3 to 13, dancing, singing and playing silly games.

Andrea teaching Music and Movement in the new JWOC Library

It was a joyous hour, we played little games for the kids, played freeze tag with everyone and we sang songs and pretended to be different animals. We talked about ballet and even practiced a few sashays. The older kids helped the little ones and the little ones’ excitement infected the cooler older kids, even the teenage boys were up on their tippy toes practicing their ballet.

Students perfecting their curtsy

Throughout the class I recognized kids from the squatters village. Some had ripped clothes, others had filthy clothes, a few of the little ones had no pants, but for one hour none of it mattered, we just played.

It struck me how important this new library was. An escape from a home life that was less than they deserved, a chance to be kids and just have fun, a chance to relax and learn in a safe and clean place with a strong fan and clean floors.

Students enjoying their new library space

After class the kids all thanked me and then many of them went and got books and a teddy bear and found a corner in the library to read in. I am so proud that we have this space for them and that we are giving kids the opportunity to be kids…it makes me so happy I want to dance…which is lucky since the kids all requested hip hop as the theme for next weeks class!!!

Xin Yuan - October 2010: Clean Water Project

As part of our Company’s Corporate Social Responsibility program, our company selected four volunteers to help out in the Clean Water Project with JWOC for 6 Days. I was fortunate to be the team of volunteers to have the opportunity to contribute. I arrived in Cambodia on 19th October 2010 and immediately we made our way to JWOC Headquarters in Siem Reap. I was greeted by Andy and Camilla, the Managing Directors of JWOC. They gave us a briefing on Clean Water Project and touched on the issues faced by the villagers. We were given a schedule for our volunteering roles over the past few days.

The following morning, we were picked up from our guesthouse to help out in the construction of Bio-Sand Filters (BSFs). It was something new for me as I have never tried pouring concrete or doing anything similar. At the end of the day, although my hands were blackened with grease, oil and concrete, my heart was filled with simple contentment.

The next day, we started out early from our guesthouse. Sokhorn, JWOC’s Clean Water Project Manager, picked us up and drove us and 17 boxes of donated items we had brought with us from our guesthouse to JWOC for sorting in order to ensure the items were distributed in a fair, calm and organized way. Andy explained that JWOC’s clean water project relies on fair and equal distribution of all the resources offered. Therefore, JWOC must ensure therefore that all the benefits given through a JWOC project are shared out equally or it would risk jeopardizing the other aspects of the project. I was sincerely touched by Andy’s opinions on this matter and it clearly shows his dedication.

After delivering the items at JWOC, we had our first trip up the Knarong Veas village to assist in the distribution of the BSFs and an educational seminar to teach the villagers how to use it. Along with Monnoreth – a JWOC scholarship student and Clean Water officer - my colleague and I delivered the BSFs to three homes using manual carts. The BSF organisation sent their employees to assist the villagers in installing the BSF. While installing the BSF, I spotted a well next to the house. Sokhorn mentioned that well was shared by many families around and most villagers had to walk several kilometers just to get their water. In addition, during the dry season, the villagers could only get a limited water supply from the well. He pointed out that with our company’s financial support for well construction and BSFs, the villagers will have much greater access to clean water even during the dry season.

On the following day, we went back to the village to help out with well construction. When we arrived, the well was already drilled and the local construction company has already begun the work. I helped out with screwing the bolts to secure the water pump base and to lay the bricks. Although the bricks I have laid were not a pretty sight and the local construction workers had to do remedial works on the bricks, I was satisfied that I was able to contribute. In the afternoon, we left the well construction to the trusty hands of construction professionals and made our way to the Knarong Veas Elementary School to give out vital supplies to the children including their core school textbooks, stationary and other items.

At the Elementary School, we did a Q&A session with the students on topics such as malaria and personal hygiene. We asked the questions in English and Sokhorn translated it into Khmer language for the students. I heard so many enthusiastic *wooooo* whenever we gave out soft-toys to children who answered correctly! We ended the experience at school by giving each student 3 brand new textbooks and either stationary or soft-toys depending on their grade level. The stationary and soft-toys came from donations from our colleagues and another Singaporean lady.

It was a heartwarming experience to see the beaming smiles of these kids.

On the last day of the volunteering trip, we were split in three groups to conduct Hygiene Seminars and distribute the clothing donations to the villagers. Sokhorn tasked me to take photographs during the Seminar and to distribute the hygiene packs and clothing donations. I was grouped with three Scholarship students and another of my colleagues.

Miss Ra Ya delivered a witty and engaging presentation for the villagers. It was heartening to see all the villagers coming to the Hygiene Seminar and for them to participate actively in the answering questions and doing demonstrations. When we handed out the hygiene packs and clothing donations, I was so touched when the villagers thanked us profusely. There were some villagers who immediately put on the clothing and admired each other’s new outfits!

The time I have spent with villagers may have been short but they have warmed up my heart. Their genuine smiles and “Or-Kun” (Thank you in Khmer Language) made my trip completely worth it. The trip realigns my mission and purpose in my life. I will definitely be on more of such trips to serve the community.

Thank you JWOC for giving such a life-changing experience and I hope the best for Andy, Camilla and all staff at JWOC in their mission to improve Cambodian lives.

TravelAid 2010: Debbie

Arriving at JWOC on our first day we really had no idea what to expect. Following Andrew into a modern complex I was incredibly surprised to see how developed JWOC was, despite being a relatively new charity. Essentially none of us were entirely sure what we would be expected to do. Camilla, however calmed our nerves with a clear explanation and my anxiety rippled into waves of excitement.

Of course, the highlight of my first day was meeting my intern. Sokim seemed sweet and polite and, most importantly, eager to start! Games with the JWOC staff helped break the ice since we felt as ridiculous as each other. I think it’s safe to say day one at JWOC left us feeling relieved – we knew amusing children and teaching English for four weeks would be challenging, but judging by the welcome we received we also knew we would enjoy it massively. I grew to appreciate how JWOC was a quietly busy place to be- there was always something to do. The nine of us really had to rack our brains for enough ideas to occupy children everyday and there were times I felt extremely disheartened when they didn’t work but I think that despite the cultural and linguistic barriers, in the end, kids will be kids and they mostly had lots of fun.

Sokim and the others were indispensible in the activity camps- not only for translation but for bringing their talents to the class (especially Kuemhong and his dancing). Developing a bond with the interns has definitely been one of my favourite aspects of our time spent here- through the activity camp and other projects we have grown closer and dare I say, become friends.

And my entry could not possibly be complete without a mention of Phong. The vision of him toddling on the grass with a t-shirt matching our own made us all fall in love with him.

So I guess the last thing I have to mention is a massive thank you to Andrew, Camilla and the rest of the JWOC staff for giving us this amazing opportunity and unforgettable experience.