Return to New Hope

I’m back in Cambodia, almost exactly a year since last time, and back volunteering at New Hope using my marketing experience to help with fundraising for the first couple of weeks and then back into the classroom. 

New Hope has changed so much in 12 months, it’s amazing, and so encouraging.  The biggest change is the new structure to the school, which is much more organised, and the children more disciplined, at least on the surface!  There’s also a brilliant new Health Clinic which treats up to 100 people a day, provides counseling (more necessary than you can imagine), and much-need education on family planning.

Already I’ve done two ‘walking ambulance’ runs to the Clinic with little Srey Much to have her infected ulcerated leg dressed.  They seem to be getting worse, not better which is a worry, despite the impressive dressing. 

Yesterday was a big day and the catalyst I needed to get this new blog going.  I joined a small group consisting of Kerry (Director), Nurses and Outreach staff to visit one of the slum areas not far from New Hope.  The “Outreach Program” identifies and monitors families in need, which turns out to be practically everyone.  The team of volunteers with Khmer translator conducts assessments of each situation and follows up with Health Clinic or private doctor visits, arranges sponsorship of families or individuals, provides funding to set up new businesses, provides basic sustenance (rice), house repairs, basic equipment or even funding and arrangements for funerals, of which there are way too many with all the disease and accidents here.  

We saw some truly heartbreaking sights.  The first was "Blind Granny" who is completely blind and riddled with arthritis.  She lives supine on her mat in a tiny, dilapidated hut.  She's sponsored by New Hope which at least feeds her but her greedy family appear to have returned to the village to "share" her rice.  Her family doesn’t even look after her, and apparently it falls to the man next door to get her out of her hut to take her for 'strolls' in her hand-made wheelchair.  She's had such a miserable life and clearly will die the same.  

The next was “prolapse lady” who's just divine.  Strong, beautiful but in pain because her insides are practically falling out of her body.   (She doesn't hesitate to lift her sarong to share the view with whoever she thinks may be able to help her).  She rides her bike to the markets each day to sell vegetables which must be agonising.  (I complain with the bumpy, pot-hole ridden roads in a cushioned tuk tuk.  Ouch!).  I gave her some money to buy some scales to weigh her vegetables and some other things.  She was beyond grateful which made my heart bleed.  That was the equivalent of one breakfast at Zinc!
  

There was also a skeleton of a woman in a catatonic state, unable to get off her straw mat to look after her three children.  Their care had fallen to another family member or neighbour, not sure which but there were seven children in this filthy house, six below school age.  The poor woman was in a catatonic state - the result of a broken heart.  Her husband had abandoned her for another women but returned each week to rape her.  She looked practically dead though apparently all her blood tests returned 'healthy' results.  The nurse is investigating antidepressants and protein powder for the short term as she can't eat anything solid.  

Finally, to top off the day, I was offered a four year old child – to keep. A woman (whose son Kerry already fosters) was offering up her daughter like she was an item of clothing she no longer wanted.  I was in tears, I couldn’t believe how little value some of these adults place on their children.

 

So, some things change but the basics don’t.  The fundamental needs remain the same;   food and money.  Without New Hope, many of these people would literally starve, remain uneducated and would have no access to medical treatment.  I’m so glad I’m back to be able to help in the smallest of ways.