F4E has now built 146 wells around Cambodia and we continue to do so, whenever we can.. The wells are built in schools and other public areas so that everyone in the community can have access to them. We also try to plant as many trees as we can with each well. F4E believes that it is imperative that we do something about the global water and sanitation crisis which claims the lives of as many children under five to equal that of sixteen jumbo jets crashing every day.
Around the world 2.5 billion people lack access to adequate sanitation with nearly half of that number living without sanitation facilities at all.
Access to clean water helps sustain and mobilise communities. Water provides dignity and improves hygiene. Hygiene education facilitates prevention and reduces the risk of life threatening disease.
Once again the impact of global water deprivation is far reaching. Beginning in childhood and continuing to adulthood those deprived of water are often confined to life cycles of disadvantage and poverty.
F4E believes that we have a responsibility to do something about breaking this cycle if we possibly can and we do.
COTTAGES OF HOPE
For many, these are havens. It offers hope for young and old alike. It is here that children can be fed and play happily with other children. It is a place where underprivileged people can access the services they so desperately need such as food, books, writing equipment, spectacles, vitamin supplements, first-aid, medical and dental assistance and good advice. Here they will find a toilet, a well with clean water, fruit trees, chook pens and caring people who will help them when they are in trouble. All the Cottages of hope are built either in loving memory of a loved one or donated by community groups who also believe in making a difference.
At present, we only have the resources to fund two Cottages of Hope (in Pond and Basket Villages). In June, 2010, we opened our first Cottage of Hope in the Pond Village in memory of the late George Totidis. This village is inaccessible by road and is by far the poorest we have seen. The kids are just adorable. There are 140 kids in this village and since then, we have been able to feed them twice per week, as well as pay a teacher and supply educational supplies. We have also donated, literally, hundreds of chickens and ducks to the village to encourage self-sufficiency.
The poor in Cambodia wear pyjamas because they cannot afford the luxury of several sets of clothing for different occasions. The kids in the Pond Village, and just about everyone else we see, are in rugs so we came up with the idea of having pyjama parties here in Austalia to raise money to buy pyjamas for the kids in Cambodia.
You might wish to also to have a 'pyjama4pyjama' party to raise funds for this cause. All you need do is host an afternoon tea party and ask your friends or work colleagues to bring along some sweet treats and make a small donation and, of course, come dressed in their 'jammies - good fun for a good cause. You really will be amazed to see the HUGE difference your afternoon of fun can make. You really would!
Our second Cottage of Hope is in Kontrok Village (Basket Village), Siem Riep. We built this cottage in late 2010 in memory of Margarita Parrish's late father, Antonio Serrano. The village is just a few minutes from the city centre, but is so poor. It is lacking in just about every resource you can think of. The cottage doubles as a learning centre for the children, because there is no school. It is terribly over crowded and is not fit to cater for 130 children. they endure hot, sweltering conditions and eat off the floor. They virtually have nothing.
Here we have been able to also feed the children twice per week and we are now paying for two teachers. We provide the children with clothing, educational supplies and health packs. At the moment we are looking for a different block of land upon which to relocate the cottage because pigs are roaming freely in this area and causing a health hazard for the children.
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