Dream Big for Vithu Village: Amanda

All this week, we’re introducing you to some of the children living in remote Vithu Village, a region in western Cambodia which just five years ago was littered with landmines. As the explosive devices have been cleared, an increasing number of impoverished families have moved to the village despite it having no electricity, clean water, or school. Of the almost 100 children who currently live in Vithu Village, most suffer from chronic malnutrition. LWB has set a big goal to start a primary school in the heart of Vithu Village, including a daily hot lunch program, to make sure the children have the opportunity to receive an education and a nutritious meal each day.

Today, we’d like you to meet 11-year-old Amanda.  She and her two siblings have lived in Vithu Village for the last several years after her parents heard that land was being made available for people living in great poverty. They took the opportunity to move to this remote region and were finally able to set up a home of their very own.

Amanda’s mom and dad leave home each morning before sunrise, hoping to pick up work on construction sites. It is a long journey for them on unpaved dirt roads to reach the closest city. On good days, they are able to earn a little bit of money to feed their children, but many times they return home empty-handed.  They often don’t arrive back to the village until late at night, leaving Amanda, her sister, and her brother on their own all day.

When our team asked Amanda how she passes the time, she said that she and the other children in the village simply “hang out.”  During the day, she tries to cook food for her siblings by using small pieces of wood as fuel.

Amanda has continually asked her parents when her life might change. “For years now, we have been stuck in a village that has no school, and I want so much to be able to learn to read and write.”

Each time, her mom could only reply, “It isn’t possible because there is no school in this area and not even a school around that you could walk to.”

It is a sobering statistic that 70% of people living in extreme poverty worldwide are illiterate and have never been to school. Providing children with access to education is a globally recognized solution to providing them a better future.

When Amanda heard the village leader announce that LWB could soon start a school right in Vithu Village, she became so excited. She is hoping to register as a second-grader.

You can be a part of helping children like Amanda finally have a chance to learn to read and write by making a donation in any amount to our Dream Big for Vithu Village campaign. We are just $3,200 away from the amount needed to run a primary school there for an entire year.  By coming together, we can bring something truly remarkable to this remote region of Cambodia that will impact lives — like Amanda’s — for a long time to come.

• Give to Build a School in Vithu Village

 

 

 

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