Please consider a donation to help maintain these children in school. A small monthly recurring donation of $10 or $25 would be a big help and would go a long way towards a future for these children. Although a large donation is always welcome, a small recurring amount is never too small and would be much appreciated.

........................................................
New video clips posted here for current school scenes and the early days of 2004 when we first put these kids in school.

Cambodian School Kids was started by Martin and Sharon Bushue while living in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. They became personally aware of the children in this city and started supporting 20 of them in school as an alternative to the serious exploitation, child trafficking, and poverty they face every day. Access to school is as not a given in Cambodia. If you cannot pay the school fees and associated costs, school attendance is only a dream.


With a place to sleep, regular meals, basic health care, and school fees, these children do well in school and most importantly obtain a sense of dignity. With a basic education they will have a better chance at obtaining meaningful work and helping their families. This effort was originally rewarded with a handwritten note in English from one of these children that read “Thank you for caring about me and my friends”. That child and her friends are still in school after 5 years and doing well.


These kids were living on the streets in 2003, sleeping along the riverside in the rain, and could only dream about attending school. They have now completed a few years of schooling and can actually think about a future. After starting out in the first and second grades at ages 12 and 13, a few have tested up a couple of grades and may soon be graduating from high school. Others gained enough confidence to attend local trade schools. We now have one in seamstress school, one in a mechanics school, and another in beauty school.


Although started as a support network for twenty children, the program will take on additional children as funding permits. The goal is to bring these children up to a high school level of education or shepherd them thru available vocational or job skills training in Cambodia. A young Cambodian woman who recently graduated from the University in Phnom Penh as an accountant manages the expeditures for these children. So we have excellent control and accounting of the funds.

....................................................................................................................................

Current Feature

We just added another girl to the program. Srey Pet, approx. 12 yrs, was looking for a meal for herself and her younger brothers on the streets of Phnom Penh during Thanksgiving this year (2009). She apparently has never attended school. Arrangements are being made to get her shoes, school clothes, and supplies to attend Newton Thilay School with some of the other kids in the program. She will also get a regular meal there. However as much as her mother is happy to see her in school, she needs her to continue begging in the afternoon to feed her family. Srey Pet says she doesn't want to be a beggar anymore so we'll see how it works out.


This photo was taken of Srey Pet in 2004 in Phnom Penh. She was carrying around her younger baby brother at the time.