Happy New Year from AP - January/February 2011

Dear friends of Aziza’s Place,
The start of a new year gives us time to reflect on the events and changes of the previous twelve months experienced by everyone associated with Aziza’s Place and our efforts to provide a small group of very special children and their families the guidance, assistance and love with which to achieve their modest dreams.
Looking back on 2010, we are proud and delighted to report that Aziza’s Place has made great strides: the resident children have made enormous progress in their physical, emotional and educational development and now conduct themselves with an air of confidence that was previously missing; with a small amount of  financial assistance and plenty of guidance, some of their families have been able to improve their financial and employment prospects; and, the transition to a Khmer-led management team has provided permanent staff members a dose of an increased sense of security while the introduction of various new  programs allow them the opportunity to enhance their skills and pursue areas of interest outside of the center.  Finally, the Aziza’s Place family of friends and supporters continues to grow as evidenced by the constant stream of visitors and steady flow of volunteers many of whom return for visits while others commit to staying longer as staff members.
Much of this progress and success is directly attributable to you….the friends, supporters and family of friends of Aziza’s Place.  For your continuing financial support as well the support of your time, we are eternally grateful.  Thank You from all of us at Aziza’s Place for making 2010 a veritable success!! 

Amjad Ghori
Co-Founder, Aziza’s Place
 

In this Courtyard we reflect on some of our highlights and achievements in 2010 and we introduce a new staff member, Vong Bopha, who joined us in December as Director of Finance and Administration.  We would also like to highlight the generous donation received from the Staff and Charities Committee of Credit Agricole – Corporate and Investment Bank (London Branch) and the first-time visit of the leaders of Mothers Against Poverty (“MAP”), a long-standing and devoted supporter/Partner of Aziza’s Place.
At the start of 2011, we gladly welcomed back former volunteers Lani Warsh and Janice Juszczak, the former coming back to join the Staff as the Coordinator of Programs while the latter visited for a short two-week trip to spend time with the resident children.  We extend a warm welcome to new volunteer Leila Antakly, who will be with us for the next three months, as we a huge Thank You to Hayley Carter who brought great insight and support to all of us during her time at AP as a volunteer.
As the first issue of the Courtyard for 2011, we wish you all the very best for 2011 and look forward to bringing you news of Aziza’s Place throughout the course of the year.

With Much Gratitude,
The AP team

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Thankyou to our supporters who generously gave to Aziza's Place in December 2010 and January:

Kaylie Wallace and her sorority 'Pi Bheta Phi' who organised a fundraiser at the University of Virginia  •  Raquel Martin  •  Karen Alexander  •  Stephanie McMahon  •  Tony Morrow  •  Vicki Jurist  •  Narendra Bhatia  •  Limon Shur  •  Joel Allen  •  Ken Borg  •  Mike Brennan

Credit Agricole Corporate Investment Bank - Christmas fundraising efforts making a difference for Aziza’s Place.

This month we would like to extend our warmest thanks to the staff of Credit Agricole Corporate Investment Bank (CA-CIB) and the Charities Committee who finished off 2010 by generously supporting Aziza’s Place with a fundraising Christmas Fair.  They heard of Aziza’s Place through the passion and dedication of AP’s co-founder Amjad Ghori who also works at CA-CIB in London.   Their fundraising efforts,  selling cakes, biscuits and candies baked by CA-CIB staff, along with toys, gifts and books and a first-time donation by the Charities Committee totalled £3050!.  We are grateful to be included as one the several charities supported by CA-CIB (London Branch).

Aziza's Place welcome's Mom's Against Poverty (MAP) to Cambodia.

The MAP mom's are welcomed into Aziza's Place.

In January we were excited to meet some special visitors who have made a real difference to Aziza’s Place since our founding. Mom’s Against Poverty are a US Non-profit organisation created by a group of mothers who are passionate about improving the lives of children around the world. Their vision is to advance the quality of life for children facing poverty, through education and improved health services. MAP has supported the children and families of Aziza's Place through regular and significant funding grants consistently since our opening in 2007.

A group of seven ladies from MAP were excited to meet the children and staff of Aziza's Place, who in return enjoyed welcoming them during their time here. While spending time with the children, the ladies also generously took the children on a shopping trip to the market to purchase new clothes. All of us at AP send our heartfelt thanks to MAP and are excited that the mom’s have been able to see firsthand the differences they are making in the lives of the AP children and their families.

2010 Highlights as AP steps into the New Year.

AP residents celebrating the end of 2010 with a

Christmas party.

14th February 2011 will mark the fourth Anniversary for Aziza’s Place. In this Courtyard we highlight some of the achievements of AP in 2010 as we approach this four-year milestone.  

• Staff Transition - Management responsibility for Aziza’s Place transitioned to Cambodian staff – Soy Socheat and Vong Bopha working together as Director of Programs and Director of Finance and Administration.

•   New Residents – We welcomed 10-year old Ream and 5-year old Sreynak to Aziza’s Place.

• Academic Achievement - All AP residents easily passed to the next grade in public school. More than half our AP residents are now enrolled in junior high or high school.

•   New Volunteers - 13 volunteers joined the Aziza’s Place family in 2010. Our internship program established early in the year has attracted volunteers for a longer time commitment, with nine of our volunteers in 2010 staying for three months or more.

•   Community Spirit - Family nights, a cornerstone in our efforts to connect with families of AP resident children on a monthly basis saw continued improvement in attendance numbers, including up to 80 attendees one month, all of whom who get to share the learning and growth of their children.

•   Community Involvement – Our Community Outreach program continued to expand as we identified employment opportunities for family members of AP residents and also helped develop small-business opportunities, including acting as an intermediary between families and micro-finance institutions that would consider funding their projects.

•   Work Internships - Our Work Experience Program allowed eight AP residents to get a taste of the “real world” as they interned at several of our Partner organizations such as Boddhi Tree Hotels in Phnom Penh, Eriq Amtalla Salon, Mr. Tim Vann’s film productions, and a local stationery store.

•   Social Development - The eldest AP residents completed a week-long workshop with Karol & Setha “Knowledge And Reflection on Life and Sexuality Through a Holistic Approach”. The workshop was valuable for the AP teenagers in opening up support and encouragement for their healthy decision-making and in establishing positive relationships.

• Curriculum Enhancement – The AP Education program was thoroughly vetted and changes were made creating more structure and consistency to our curriculum, particularly to our English classes. These changes include the purchase of text books and developing a framework for our English curriculum that volunteer English teachers can follow.

•   Creativity Enhancement – Emphasis on traditional Khmer music and dance programs was a continuing feature of our efforts to provide opportunities in the Arts to our residents. In addition, the subject matter in computer classes was elevated by the hiring of a qualified Khmer computer teacher to match the ever-increasing interest and skills of our residents.

•   Child savings plans in place as AP children set up their own savings bank accounts at AMK Bank.

These are just some of the many milestones and highlights of 2010. As each AP resident grows and develops, everyone associated with AP have been forced to keep and continue providing a variety of new opportunities to meet each resident’s hunger for knowledge, experience and learning. A primary focus of our goals for 2011 will be to formulate ideas and convert them into opportunities for our older residents preparing to leave AP in the coming years. Initiatives like our work experience program will become an integral part of for life after Aziza’s Place. We will also continue to focus on expanding our Community Outreach Program by closely tracking the projects and measuring their progress in an effort to fine-tune our approach, resources and, ultimately, success. We are all eagerly looking forward to the exciting things in store for 2011 but also very aware of the challenges we will face achieving our objectives.

STAFF PROFILE: Vong Bopha, Director of Finance and Administration.

Bopha together with her

new friend Sreysros.

In December we welcomed Vong Bopha to the Aziza’s Place team. She has jumped right into her role as Director of Finance and Administration and has already become an important part of our lives at AP. Her love and compassion for the AP children is apparent as she has taken the time to get to know each of our residents and settled in to find her place at AP. Read on to learn more about Bopha as she answers questions about herself and AP:

What are you excited about at AP?
I am delighted to be here with the children at AP, hearing their laughter and seeing their smiles. AP is a place for children to grow and learn. It is a safe, warm house with a colourful courtyard. The children are lovely, friendly and each has their own talents. AP is a place for them to build their knowledge and life skills, to shine and grow. Even though we come from different backgrounds at AP we live together like one family, of which I am so happy to join.

What was your previous experience before coming to AP?
Before working at AP I gained experience in Finance and Administrative roles. While studying Finance at night school, I worked as an Admin and Finance Manager at the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies for 6 years. I also worked as an Accountant at The Bible Society for nearly five years where I had the opportunity to build my skills in administration and finance, human resource policies and establishing procedures and protocol for meeting the need for clients from different backgrounds.


How would you describe yourself? What hobbies do you enjoy?
I am a friendly and easygoing person. I am hard working and patient and I like to help people in need. I like to watch the news and listen to music during my free time. Table tennis and skating are my favorite sports.


What do you do at AP?
As the Director of Finance and Administration I am enjoying my responsibility for the oversight of AP’s financial system. I’m also enjoying working in the AP environment, in the oversight of the children’s living, caring for their health, their growth and learning, and in supporting everyone to live happily and peacefully together.


What do you see in the future for the children of AP?
I believe that the children of AP have bright futures ahead of them as they use their skills and knowledge gained by living at Aziza’s Place. They are positive examples for their families, their communities and for other children in the future. We aim for AP to continue to provide space for children to grow and shine.


What is your favorite memory at AP so far?
I love to see the children work together during family nights. They all make the event possible, from the lovely and cheerful MC’s, Navy and Sokty, to the modern dancers complete with fancy hair and clothing styles. All of the AP residents show much excellence!

Previous volunteer Lani Warsh welcomed back as an AP staff member.

New and old faces arrive to Aziza's Place and enjoy

spending time with the children and staff. New

volunteer Leila, with previous volunteer Lani who

has returned to work at AP in 2011.

This month we eagerly welcomed back Lani Warsh. Lani volunteered at AP from January – May in 2010. She showed much dedication to the children and families of AP with her involvement as an English teacher and working alongside Yi Makara to get our Community Outreach Program up and running. After heading home to Canada in May 2010 Lani decided she couldn’t keep away and so we are excited she has returned to work at AP as a Program Coordinator for one year. 2011 is looking to be a busy year with new projects and initiatives being developed and so we are happy for Lani to bring her hardworking commitment to the AP team. Lani will work alongside Makara in expanding the Community Outreach program. She will also focus on the opportunities for our older students as they look towards what they want to do and where they'd like to go when it comes time to graduate from AP. Welcome back Lani!

Volunteer news: Leila Antakly jumps into Volunteering and Janice Juszczak returns!

In January we also welcomed volunteer Leila Antakly. She has taken on teaching AP English classes for our students and staff. Leila has many wide-ranging skills and is enthusiastic about doing as much as she can at Aziza’s Place. She is excited to pass on her experience in the world of business to our students and in giving her advice and ideas for fundraising for AP. She has also been getting involved in mentoring our film students' in their current film project. The next three months look to be eventful for Leila and all of us at AP as we all work together and learn from eachother.

We are delighted that previous volunteer Janice Juszczak has been able to make another trip to Cambodia for two weeks. Janice previously taught our advanced English and staff English classes. The children were excited to show how much their English had improved since she was here in early 2010. Janice helped the children practise their conversational and reading skills. Thank You Janice for your continued dedication and care for all of us at Aziza's Place.

AP extends a Big Thank You to Volunteer Hayley Carter.



Hayley facepainting with

Navy and Sreysros.



The last three months have flown by for volunteer Hayley Carter and all of us at AP who have been privileged to get to know her. Hayley has been teaching English to our AP residents, while helping to shape our new curriculum for English classes. She has given much insight and support for our staff as she used her knowledge and experience in Human Resources to make suggestions for effectively working together and communicating as a team, particularly during the time of transition of staff.

With her warm and down-to-earth personality Hayley quickly and easily fit into the AP team. During Hayley’s three months at AP she showed incredible dedication to the children and always made time to listen to the AP staff. One highlight of her trip was a horse-riding fieldtrip she coordinated that enabled the AP children to ride horses for the first time – a very unique experience in Cambodia! Hayley will really be missed by us all and we hope she can return sometime soon. Thank You Hayley!

How to Help Aziza's Place - Support • Volunteer • Connect

Are you interested in supporting the children and programs of Aziza's Place? We invite you to become a part of our growing global community by donating, volunteering, or simply connecting us to your network of friends and family.

Click here to make a donation via PayPal. For donations over $400, please click here for wire transfer information. U.S. donors receive a tax credit receipt for your contribution. UK donors may elect the Gift Aid option so the tax-gross up is received by the charity. If you are a perspective volunteer, please take a look at our volunteer needs on idealist.org, or simply contact us.

Thank you for supporting the children and families of Aziza's Place.