Hi everyone,
We are thankful for SIT Project Cambodia for their contributions to PKH having spent over 10 days in December at PKH Trang. Here’s what they have to say. Enjoy reading!
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SIT Project Cambodia team comprising 15 students and 1 staff visited PKH Trang, from 20th Dec 2015 – 1st Jan 2016, for our overseas service learning trip. The staff and children at PKH Trang welcomed us warmly and made us feel at home.
We were excited to see the Multi-Purpose Hall (MPH) which we helped to fund through several fund raising initiatives. The prominent red zinc roof instantly caught our attention. The over ambitious idea of building a MPH, which cost approximately SGD20,000, seemed impossible at the start. However, this was made possible with humongous efforts put in by the students with encouragement and support from Singapore Institute of Technology.
During our stay, we were heartened to see how the MPH was well utilised. The children at PKH Trang played, studied, danced and had their meals all under the big red roof. This motivated us to make full use of the 10 days there, a rare opportunity to engage and learn from the staff and children.
We participated actively, teaching and playing with the children. To create a vibrant environment for these children to study, we painted murals on the classroom walls. We also designed “Our Tree” and invited PKH’s staff and children to place their thumbprints as leaves of the tree.
In addition, we assisted with various small construction works and other ad hoc yet meaningful duties. We introduced Singapore dishes, such as mee rebus (Teacher Sokha Bunthoeurn’s favourite!) and laksa, cooked up with local sauces purchased from Singapore. To promote healthy life style, we constructed goal posts, complete with proper netting, for the boys to have a game of football.
On reflection, we faced several obstacles but we were grateful for the skillful and kind staff (Teacher Deborah & Brother Souvuth) at PKH Trang who guided and assisted us throughout our learning journey. We learned valuable lessons at PKH Trang thanks to the staff, growing a deeper awareness of cultural diversity and an appreciation for all that we have.
We had a hard time saying goodbye to the staff and children in PKH, parting with tears of gratitude and friendship. We thought we were giving more than receiving, however at the end, it was the other way round – the experiences we gained were enriching and memorable. This overseas service learning project has broadened our horizons and nurtured our own personal development.
We are thankful for the opportunities given by SIT and PKH, for an extraordinary experience, beyond our classroom.
To be the catalyst for transformation, we have to be able to learn, unlearn and relearn, to empower ourselves as astute thinking thinkers by being grounded in community.
We look forward to visiting, bringing more fun and laughter, to PKH Trang again in 2016.
“To be able to give is a form of joy, to be able to receive is a privilege.” – Wong Kai Xian, Vice-President
“The smiles on their faces were the greatest satisfaction! “ – Suhaila Zainal Shah, Publicity Officer
“In returned they taught us a lot of things, such as gratitude” – Kim Yoon Jung, Finance Officer
“You have two hands. One, is to help yourself, the other, is to help another” – Danial Azri Ismail, President
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Regards, PKHCambodia