Riverkids Project

Hitting the road with marketing

2010-01-08T17:33:00.005+08:00

An extremely busy week indeed. We have submitted a few grant proposals and are working on several more. All are expected to be submitted within the next 2 weeks. We identified a value proposition for our brand, conceptualised and mapped out marketing strategies for the year 2010, schematised a new sitemap and completed the first website briefing. Now, we're looking forward to a brand new look!

Sam, the rising football player – By Sam Ann

2010-01-06T15:25:00.003+08:00

19 year old Sam lives in Phsatouch village. Before he joined Riverkids’ football team, he was an Aitchai collector who earns money to support his family and he was involved with gangsters.

In early 2008, Riverkids started a football team by collaborating with HFCA (Happy Football Cambodia Australia). Sam joined the team and soon we saw a drastic change in his behaviour. He withdrew from the previous gang he belonged to, stopped taking drugs and began to show growing interest in football.

By the middle of 2008, he was selected by HFCA to play football in Homeless Football World Cup at Australia. He was one of the 2 Riverkids selected for the team.

Recently, he was selected to be a Football Trainer Assistant to train players every Saturday morning. He will join the Cambodia League on 17 January 2010 and will start drawing a salary of USD2.50 per day.

Sam aspires to be a football trainer and hopes to join the football trainer course conducted by HFCA one day. He is working towards his goal and we are happy to see that he is moving on to become a better person.

Christmas Blessing and Games in Riverkids, Cambodia - by Som Ritthy

2010-01-05T17:56:00.003+08:00

In the midst of our own merry-making with friends and families, these volunteers chose to visit Riverkids, Cambodia to celebrate Christmas with the kids in the slum community.

The kids welcome the volunteers by performing Hip Hop and the volunteers led them to play games and sang Christmas carols. It was a day of fun and joy for the kids even though it is not a tradition for Cambodians to celebrate Christmas. We are glad that the kids have the freedom to celebrate a traditional festival and we thank our volunteers for spending their valuable time with them!

Games and celebration

Financial news and reports for January-June 2009.

2009-12-31T01:40:00.000+08:00

2009 Q1 (Jan, Feb, Mar) preliminary finances

2009 Q2 (Apr, May, Jun) preliminary finances

You can read in more detail about changes to our accountancy system on our website (Moving to Xero.com and more financial news) but the quick update is that we are now migrating over to Xero.com, starting with our records from Jan 1st, 2008.

We’ll also be adding PDFs of our internal financial policies and forms to our website’s financial reports section.

This will mean faster and more detailed financial reports, reduce the time our reports currently take, without compromising on transparency and accuracy.

Thank you for supporting Baby Bellies

2009-12-30T16:04:00.003+08:00

The Baby Bellies Programme is by far one of the most easily positive programmes at Riverkids. We see malnourished babies in the slum, get sponsors, raise funds, get the parents to agree to put their babies in our programme, start feeding the baby and then we see the tremendous progress the babies and toddlers make as they blossom into chubby healthy babies.

Earlier this year, we worked out how many babies would need our help in 2010, and realised we hadn't budgeted enough for the Baby Bellies programme. Nutrition for a malnourished baby or toddler is about $0.50-$1 a day, depending on their age and health.

We asked people to help us expand to covering 12 babies, and we are delighted to say that a donation this week's donation has brought us to 11 babies!

Without the support of generous donors, this would not have been possible. We want to thank Ruth, Molly Jester from Stop Exploitation Now, Colin, Angie, Christine, Toh Chung, Seng Hon, Xiao Xiang, Katherine, Hanim and Nanci.

Thank you so much for your support and for sharing about us with your friends!

One Family at Railway 2 Community – by Sakona and Sophea

2009-12-30T11:20:00.007+08:00

Several months ago, our community nurse and social worker department staff managed to work with the local authorities to help one vulnerable family in Railway 2, one of the slums we are working with.

The background of the family is unfortunate. As they do not have their own house, they have to stay under a neighbour’s house where all waste sits. The wife has just given birth but is now working as a sex worker in order to support the family. The husband who is an alcoholic and drug addict, stays at home, subjecting the wife to further abuse.

Riverkids has decided to support the family by paying the rent for a house and providing them the health care needed by the mother and her baby. For a baby who is unable to feed on the mother’s milk, the provision of proper nutrition and Lactogen milk is the next best alternative we can give under our Baby Bellies Programme.

Although there were signs of improvement in the husband’s attitude and behaviour recently – he helped to look after the baby while his wife was out working – we remain watchful on his progress and continue counselling until domestic violence stops completely.

Vulnerable children in Riverkids center – by Pheakdey

2009-12-30T10:32:00.005+08:00

This is Vanny*, one of the girls currently in Riverkids’ Get Ready Girls Programme.

Vanny has been with us for a year. During the first 6 months, she benefited a lot from the Life Skills lessons that we gave her. We saw her self-confidence and self-esteem accelerated. Previously lost and without hope, she is now able to set goals for her future.

On 28 September 2009, she successfully graduated from the Get Ready Programme and continued her studies through Riverkids’ assistance to primary level at the state school.

“Riverkids supported me in many ways. They supplied my stationery, paid for my school fees, bought me school uniform and provided morning snack before I go to school,” said the young girl with a grateful smile.

“I am very thankful to the generous donors and volunteers in Cambodia and abroad for the support that they have given me. Without your help, I would not be able to go back to school. Thank you for giving me a bright future. “

Another pair of boys, Charlie* and his best friend, Bob* have been with Riverkids’ Weekly Boarder Programme for a year.

We keep the children safe by giving them a safe environment to sleep at night, daily food, clothes, body-cleaning supplies, stationery, school uniform, school bags, school fees and many more.

“We love our Housemother because she cooks delicious meals for us in the day time and looks after us at night. We want to be good people when we grow up!” said the happy kids.

Please help us reach out to more vulnerable children and keep them safe.

*Due to our child protection policy, pseudonyms have been used.

Parents meeting at Blum House - by Sam Ann

2009-12-29T15:52:00.006+08:00

On 23 December 2009, Riverkids held a Parents Meeting with 45 families in Blum. These are parents whose children are enrolled in our grade 1 and 2 programs and our Get Ready Boys in Blum.

We discussed about their children’s studies, healthcare for mothers and their babies and plans for the next semester. The families were encouraged to take interest in their children’s studies and play a more active role in monitoring their progress together with us.

We stressed the importance of Family values to them by encouraging them to watch a particular cartoon video. Mothers are once again reminded on the ‘know-hows’ of child-birth and post-natal care while both parents on good parenting methods.

We were greatly encouraged to receive 3 very important requests from the parents:

- “We request Riverkids’ help to support our children until they reach university.”
- “We hope Riverkids will continue to provide transportation for our children because we live far away from your school house.”
- “We like Riverkids to continue to follow up closely with our childrens’ studies at the state schools and in your school house.”

With these, we know that our hard work had not been in vain – we managed to gain the trust of the community in letting us keep their children safe and bring across the benefits of education.

These are 2 important achievements which also imply that there is more to strive for in improving the lives of the people in the community.

Thanks to the support of our donors and the hard work of all our colleagues. We are looking forward to the new year!

Financial Management Workshop for Parents in the community - by Sinoy

2009-12-27T18:36:00.001+08:00

On 24 December 2009, the Micro-Business Department and the Site Manager conducted the workshop, “How to manage and control cash flow in the family” for the parents in the community.

20 families whose vulnerable children study at Riverkids Center and at the state school through Riverkids’ support attended the workshop.

In this workshop, families were taught how to manage their daily finances more effectively and efficiently. They learnt useful ways to generate income and how they can reduce unnecessary expenses.

As many are unclear about the risks involved in getting a loan, we highlighted that loans are never a “quick fix” to problems but how they could be utilised to generate income that will cause them to become more well-off.

The group discussions went on well and at the end of the session, the participants felt encouraged and motivated to consider running small businesses so that they could give their family a better future.

Experiences from the heart of SMU Volunteers

2009-12-24T14:03:00.002+08:00

Thanks to the precious time and enormous energy the members of Project Kruesa II put in to make this possible for our children at Riverkids. We and the children are truly grateful for your incredible support!

Read more about their experiences in their blog at http://kruesa.wordpress.com/

To be a shelter within the slums

2009-12-23T22:19:00.001+08:00

We work with families in seven slums in Phnom Penh. We work inside or next to the slums because it's no use trying to change people's lives unless you're willing to get right down next to them and know what their daily lives are like, to be a real neighbour.

Last week, some people in one of the slums came to our staff to ask for help for a 13 year old girl.

We are incredibly grateful for her sake that they trusted us enough to ask for help. Many of the families we work with are involved in petty crime to full-blown child trafficking. Especially for the ethnic minorities, they have little trust for 'outsiders'.

Our staff went down to talk gently to the girl and confirm the story reported. So far, at the very least we know she has been repeatedly raped and quite possibly sold for sex by her rapist as well.

With nowhere safe, we took her back to Riverkids for a warm meal, change of clothes and somewhere she didn't have to be afraid that the rapist-predator would find her again.

We took her to a medical clinic for a check-up, and confirmed with counselling that the trauma and possibly a pre-existing condition has created significant mental problems. Slow children and those with mental illnesses are even more vulnerable to predators, something we've seen with other girls at Riverkids.

This week, she tried to escape (we have open gates, so it wasn't logical) by climbing over the walls. We are now working with her family, who have due to their own tragedies, neither the time or ability to care for her, to shelter her until we can find somewhere long-term.

We sought long-term care with her family's permission at another NGO, but it is difficult to find anywhere she can safely be at, due to her mental challenges.We will keep trying until she is truly safe.

For now, we are gently counselling her, looking to see if a case can be made against her attacked, and keeping her involved safely in activities when her family cannot.

There are some other photographs of her which cannot be posted for child safety reasons. In one, she has a shy sweet smile on her young face, but her eyes were lost in terror.

Please keep her and the other traumatised children we work with in your thoughts this holiday season.

Blog Stories from Advocacy Tour Clients

2009-12-23T10:14:00.003+08:00

A group of 3 went on our Advocacy tour and related their experiences in words and photographs on their blog. We would like to thank them for their donation support to our Baby Bellies Programme. Please read their interesting stories at http://dcas71.wordpress.com/2009/12/06/gift-of-sight-mission-day-2/

The Christmas Spirit Fundraising

2009-12-21T18:00:00.004+08:00

Earlier this month, one of our donors, Eugenia participated in Riverkids' "Christmas Spirit". She displayed the lovely fair-trade silk ornaments in her church, St. George Church and managed to raise SGD 550.00 during the event!

Thank you, Eugenia for your support and for sharing our vision. We wish you and your family a blessed Christmas!

Thank you to the volunteers from the University of Medical Science - Som Ritthy

2009-12-21T14:27:00.007+08:00

On Friday, 18 December 2009, a group of 10 students from the University of Medical Science in Cambodia volunteered at Riverkids Foundation. They gave English lessons and taught about hygiene for teeth and mouth to 50 kids in our Get Ready Girls Programme.

Student Volunteers

“We taught and trained 50 kids here on the importance of keeping their teeth and mouth clean”, said Mao Bunhak, one of the dental students. The students also donated some pens and pencils to Riverkids’ children. In addition, they bought snack for the children. Their precious time and charitable donation to Riverkids is greatly appreciated.

Student volunteers and Riverkids children

Teaching Teeth and Mouth Hygiene

Thank you, Northlight School for you contribution! – by Sophon

2009-12-18T13:17:00.006+08:00

On 27 and 28 of November 2009, a group of 25 students and teachers from Northlight School, Singapore volunteered at Riverkids in Cambodia.

We brought them to the communities we serve so that they could understand the difficult circumstances faced by the kids and their families. Then, we explained to them how our education programmes are helping them.

The volunteers’ mission is to give the children an enjoyable childhood. The kids had been divided into 3 groups. The first group did paper puppets, the second group drew pictures and the third group did arts and crafts.

The children were so happy and excited during the activities. They all ran around laughing happily with their friends!

The volunteers also brought 35 of our Get Ready Girls to the zoo which is around 40km away from Phnom Penh. The girls really enjoyed learning about wildlife and they absolutely loved the animals!

The students and teachers of Northlight School donated lots of school supplies such as school bags, colour pencils, water colour sets and story books. They also donated 150kgs of rice, sugar, oil and noodle for Riverkids to prepare food for our weekly boarders and kids who get lunch at Riverkids.

We would like to say, “Thank you very much, Northlight School. Because of your support, vulnerable kids will have a chance to go to school, enjoy their childhood and build up their self-esteem!”

Khmer Pumpkin Cakes for Riverkids Children! - by Pheakdey

2009-12-17T15:01:00.003+08:00

Everyday, Riverkids’ housemothers look after the children. The children look forward to Wednesdays afternoon because snacks such as traditional Khmer cakes (pumpkins cakes) will be served.

These are ordered from the community maker, Miss. Sreya. She bakes the cakes for 138 children! The cake is made from rice mixed with pumpkin and sugar with an important antioxidant, beta-carotene.

Beta-carotene is one of the plant arytenoids converted to vitamin A, which is good for our bodies. It benefits especially the health of children because it is an important substance required for children’s growth.

We received an order to make 600 wedding gifts and we have delivered! - by Sinoy

2009-12-17T14:47:00.003+08:00

The Micro-Business Department of Riverkids received an order from a local customer to make wedding gifts for their wedding party on 17 December 2009.

The order was secured through Ms. Mao Sotheary of Oxfam Quebec with a total amount of 600 wedding gifts!

Our Get Ready Girls and Women in the community have been working very hard for the past one month to produce the products in order to deliver the order on time.

Throughout the entire production, the girls and women were seen cheerfully making the products as they know that the income they earn from this order can give them and their families a better life.

Upon receiving the products, the customers were also very pleased and said that our products are preferred to other sources.

On behalf of Riverkids Foundation and the mothers in the community, I would like to thank the new couple for the order and wish them happiness, prosperity, peace and success in the future.

I would like to leave you with this thought, “Buying something from Riverkids means you help improve the lives of the women, their children and families”.

More photographs of volunteering work by SMU students

2009-12-16T09:53:00.010+08:00

Activity: SMU Students Making Chapteh with Rivekids’s Children

Activity: Dancing at the end of the project

Activity: T-shirt Painting

Activity: Kite-making, Kevin chopping bamboo for kite making

SMU Students Distributed Stationery to The Slum Children In Pshar Touch Community - by Ritthy

2009-12-15T19:14:00.000+08:00

From: Rasmey Kompuchea News
Interpreted by: Som Ritthy

Phnom Penh: A group of students from Singapore Management University (SMU) in Singapore came to distribute stationery such as bags, books, pens, pencils and rubbers to the slum children. The students also taught those children how to make kites, and photo-frames. Moreover, they led the kids to play other entertainment games and sports to make them feel loved at Riverkids Foundation.

Mr. Oliver Chan Yin Bin, the team leader of the SMU students said that 26 of them came to Riverkids Foundation with a humanity mission. They led the kids to make kites, photo-frames and other entertainment items so that the kids will enjoy the warmth that they are showering upon them.

The group also combined their funds to buy some stationery for the kids so that they would go to school like other children. Oliver also said that he came to Riverkids Foundation last year and shared Riverkids’ mission to stop child exploitation and labour abuse to his friends back in Singapore. Then, they decided to come back again with the mission to improve the situation of the vulnerable children, especially to support them in schooling.

Mr. Phy Sophon, Director of Riverkids Foundation was really happy that we can have oversea volunteers from SMU to spend quality time with the kids. At the end of the activities, the confidence of the kids is raised and they feel valued and loved by those around them.

Launch of the national committee to lead the suppression of human trafficking, smuggling, labour and sexual exploitation – by Sophal

2009-12-15T09:30:00.001+08:00

On 9 December 2009, the Executive Director and Administrative Officer of Riverkids Foundation, Cambodia were invited to participate in the launch of the “National Committee to lead the suppression human trafficking, smuggling, labour and sexual exploitation” with the Government Officials and members of Sub-NGO committee at the Ministry of Interior.

There were many Government Officials from different ministries and NGO sub-committees working together against child trafficking, sexual abuse and exploitation in Cambodia.

Everyone was very happy that the USA Ambassador in Cambodia attended this crucial meeting. In the open remark, she said that she was really happy that the government of Cambodia has established a National Committee to work closely with various organizations to support the NGOs to stop child trafficking and sexual abuse in Cambodia. Such issues which are critical in the USA and the world are especially so in Cambodia today.

Meanwhile, H.E. Sar Kheng, Deputy Prime Minister of the Ministry of Interior and Chair of the National Committee said that on behalf of Cambodia’s government and her people, he was very happy that Cambodia’s government and NGOs can work together to draft laws on the suppression of trafficking in person, sexual exploitation on children, women and men and to reinforce national policies against child trafficking in Cambodia.

He strongly urged the ministries and Sub-NGO committees to cooperate and support one another to stop child trafficking, sexual abuse and exploitation activities in Cambodia.

Riverkids Foundation is really happy that the government is encouraging national and International NGOs to work together to draft applicable laws and policies to stop child trafficking and sexual abuse in Cambodia.

This is in line with Riverkids’ Vision and Mission and we will endeavour to play a part in driving our project activities more effectively to serve vulnerable children and families in our community, society, and country.

2009-12-14T12:40:00.007+08:00

We are very happy to have 4 wonderful volunteers, Joel, Yingxi, Jesline and Shuling on the 10 and 11 December 2009. They painted the walls of our Blum library and added a lovely mural. On top of this, they also donated 8 chairs and 1 table to our Blum library. Our library is now brighter and more conducive for reading!

Thank you so much, Project Shine!

Before

After

Advocacy Tour on 5 Dec 2009 – by Soklee

2009-12-12T19:17:00.001+08:00

We used to hear about sex workers, but a lot of us do not really understand what goes on behind the scene, such as the sex trade and the lives of the sex workers. The job as a prostitute is usually discriminated. How many of us have thought about how dangerous this job can be and how sad it is for a woman to hold such a job? One of the main purposes of our Advocacy tour is to give visitors a better understanding of a sex worker’s life.

3 visitors joined our Advocacy Tour on 5 December 2009. They visited the sex workers’ family and were surprised and sad as they hear the sex worker shared her difficulties of the job. The 31 year old mother who is working as a sex-worker at the park sustains life-threatening injuries.

“I started to be involved with this job through my friend,” said the 31 year old sex worker. “I first came to Phnom Penh to work as a factory worker, but after that, my friend introduced me to work at the karaoke. She probably got paid from my boss for bringing me there. A few years later, the boss doesn’t want me anymore because of my age. So, I moved to stay with my boyfriend for around two years in this area. He was a moto-taxi driver. After I became pregnant for 1 to 2 months, he abandoned me. Then, I decided to work with my neighbours at the park. Sometimes, no clients approach me and I will have to borrow the money from the landlord. I have to pay a very high interest in return. When my son turned 2 weeks old, I started to go back to work. Now, my son is already 2.5 months, but I still don’t have enough milk for breast feeding. I also don’t have enough money to buy milk powder for him. So, I feed him with packages of sweet milk. Recently, the police often come to the park to chase us away. As a result, I have no income. My parents still do not know what I do for a living, they thought I am working in the restaurant. I really don’t know how to face them if they were to find out one day.”

It seems to Mr. Colin that it is not surprising to see the number of brothels in Phnom Penh but what makes this trip incomparable is the opportunity to visit the sex worker and their families.

Mr Colin said, “I have seen many place like this before and I used to hear about the prevalence of prostitution. I have been to Cambodia over the last 10 years and I am helping out a lot in charity for this country. However, I have never really been to their houses and listened to their stories. What hit me most is when I witnessed the struggles that a single mother had to go through to support herself and her 2.5 months old baby by becoming a sex worker.”

Lisa, who is one of the advocacy tour’s clients also shared with us that after this trip, she is more appreciative of the type of life she can live back home!

We at Riverkids, would really like to thank Mr Colin and his friends for his support in our Baby Bellies Programme. A malnourished kid has just been added to the programme and is now able to start receiving proper nutrition. We look forward to seeing the kid catch up with the other healthy kids!

Workshop Training Courses at Raffles Hotel by Vital Voices Global Partnership – By Sinoy

2009-12-09T18:22:00.003+08:00

On 4 December 2009, the Micro-Business Department and Sewing teachers of Riverkids Foundation participated in the workshop organized by VITAL VOICES Global Partnership together with Women Artisan and Women‘s Leadership.

Riverkids is honoured to be invited amongst the many organizations whose work relates to women, such as Wathan Shop, Afesip, Lotust Pond, Craft Village and Krovan House CWCC.

The Workshop trains participants on product design, product development and product customization. It touches on topics such as marketing in the local and international markets, product and organizational positioning in order to succeed in the export market and the strategies of doing business. We were also taught about trade principles and procedures, Quality Control and other important export factors.

The subject on product pricing, supply chain costing and staying competitive presented by the Technical Consultant and product design development Manager, Ms. Onie was very useful.

I was happy to be given the opportunity to present Riverkids’ Micro-Business to the class. This program helps and supports vulnerable family in the Riverkids community by enabling them to earn an income to support their family. Without this program, many children will still continue to collect rubbish (aid chai) at Psa kandal and many streets in Phnom Penh.

The participants were very pleased to hear how Riverkids is helping the families who could not afford to send their children to school by getting the children to join our gradeschool and kindergarten.

After the presentation, representatives of some organizations volunteered to help and support Riverkids Micro-Business Units by introducing the handicrafts produced by vulnerable women and our Get Ready Girls to more people so that they can earn more.

The workshop ended at 6.00pm and all participants were encouraged to join the program, Women Voice organized by US Embassy. This program aims to encourage, promote, and support women leadership and entrepreneurship in business and the private sector in Cambodia.

Network Meeting - by Sophea

2009-12-09T12:47:00.001+08:00

The Riverkids Foundation was officially registered as a local Cambodian NGO in 2007 by the Ministry of Interior and has since been working hand-in-hand with the Cambodian authorities and other NGOs to prevent child trafficking in Cambodia.

Riverkids has a clear vision and mission to provide equal opportunities to vulnerable children, allowing them to study at state schools and gain vocational training or specialist skills at recognized Vocation Training Centers.

Riverkids often holds parents meetings to share about family counseling, the importance of hygiene and basic health care and the support we could give to vulnerable families. We encourage and persuade the families to allow their children to study.

To strengthen our position in the area and drive our mission more fervently, Riverkids cooperates with numerous NGO partnerships that are working in the same area. This is so that we can share our practices, exchange ideas and implement our projects more effectively. Our staff are taught new professional skills during the seminars/workshops and have gained more experience in operating more effectively as a charity foundation.

Example on 5 to 6 November 2009, Riverkids Foundation sent 5 key staff members to participant in Chab Dai’s Networking Annual Member Meeting Product Fairs. The purpose of the meeting is to allow local and overseas members to network with one another, exchange new knowledge, professional skills, practices and experiences. We also get to hear testimonies of how projects were implemented successfully to benefit the vulnerable children, families, community, and the society.

At the end of the meeting, the morals of the participants are very high and everyone was extremely motivated to put the new techniques, methodologies and strategies acquired into practice to see more success in their area of work.

A surprising observation at Riverkids’ Computer Class! - by Ritthy

2009-12-08T13:39:00.004+08:00

We are very pleased with the progress of the children attending our English and Computer classes. What the children have to do in the computer class in Riverkids’ Education Department is to practise the use of English with the computer program guided by their teachers.

As the children have to help out with the housework and collect garbage to help their families financially, they are left with less time to study at home. Learning English and revising it with the aid of the computer means they can practice the language over and over again until they are good.

We are very encouraged to learn that even though the programs have started for just 6 months, the children have been seen conversing with their teachers in simple English. They could now switch the computers on and off and use more programs without supervision. Some were even seen typing really fast!

Recently, 2 volunteers from England, Mr. Clause and Mrs. Jayln made a surprising discovery about 2 girls attending our computer class while instructing them. The girls were seen typing very quickly without looking at the keyboard.

“Leng and Kim are the polite and obedient students. They really can do well with computers,” Mr. Clause and Ms. Jayln said, “They have good memories. They can remember all the words and even sentences they learnt in English Class. Now they are typing without watching their fingers on the keyboards.”

The teacher also remarked that both girls have been trying so hard to study and they always listen attentively.

In summary, we would like to say a million thanks to Mr. Jackie Goh who donated 20 computers to Riverkids so that we were able to set up this computer class for the children. We would especially like to thank Sister Dale Edmonds for her effort towards society development and for building up a good generation in the slums in Cambodia.

Due to our child protection policy, pseudonyms have been used but the accounts are real.