News from Aziza's Place: October - November

Dear friends of Aziza's Place,

As the Aziza's Place residents get older, they embrace opportunities to step outside and take on new responsibilities. In this month's Courtyard newsletter the eldest AP residents are proud to share their experiences of their completed summer internships. We all saw these six residents return from their workplaces with a sense of purpose and responsibility, a sense of independence and confidence, as they all took on new roles and learned wide-ranging skills relevant to their unique areas of interest.

Another display of initiative and creativity was demonstrated by five AP residents who took up a request to put together a documentary for a local NGO in Phnom Penh. Earlier this year we connected with Attitude Centre for Education (ACE) who provided valuable leadership training courses for Aziza's Place residents. These residents look up to the ACE staff as positive and encouraging role models and were delighted to utilise their skills in film production as a way of giving something in return for their learning from ACE. Read below for further details about their film project.

Other significant news at Aziza's Place is the arrival of a new resident. Navin (Vin) is eight years old, and younger brother to one of our long-time residents Rotha. Vin has settled in quickly and was excited to join in a fieldtrip to Koh Kong in early November. This was a wonderful welcome to the Aziza’s Place family and an occasion to spend quality time with all the AP residents and staff. This trip was a three day adventure to a province of Cambodia where most of the AP children and staff had never been before. We were delighted that previous volunteer Hayley Carter could join us and for the three weeks she came to visit. We welcome Hayley back and in this newsletter say a big thank you to volunteers Raelan Barbosa and Peter Levitan. As with all our volunteers, they both brought unique insights to Aziza’s Place, providing valuable support for the AP staff and children.

Yours Gratefully,
Aziza's Place

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Meet the AP residents • See photos of AP's latest activities on Facebook

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Thank you for your generosity in October and November:

Matthias Witzel • Rotary Club of Southport Links

HEROtsc • Hayley Carter's Community of family and work colleagues • Mohammad A Ashur

Michelle Dubyk • Fatma Rufai • Tara Haggiag • Marcela Granados 
 

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Aziza’s Place Welcomes New Resident, Navin (Vin)

Vin enjoyed getting to know the other AP

residents and staff during a fieldtrip to

Koh Kong.

We are all excited to welcome 8-year old Von Navin (Vin) to Aziza’s Place. Vin is younger brother to long-time resident Rotha (17years). Rotha quickly took Vin under his wing after his arrival in October, helping him study and adapt to the AP routines and activities. Although he has a quiet personality, Vin has already become good friends with the other boys his age. He has entered public school in Grade 2.

Vin previously lived in an extremely remote rural area of Battambang province with his mum, who raises her family alone after her husband passed away from illness several years ago. Without any land for growing rice or crops it is very difficult to make ends meet. Both Rotha and his mother requested for Vin to come to Aziza’s Place. After visiting and assessing their situation, AP staff agreed that Vin met the criteria to join Aziza’s Place at the beginning of the school year. Previously Vin would walk for more than 1 hour each way to access school at a local pagoda in the province. However the quality of education in rural areas is limited, as apparent with Vin still learning the Khmer alphabet after three years of study. Now Vin goes to public school with the other AP residents, a short 2minute walk away. With the supplementary classes at Aziza’s Place in Khmer, Maths, Computer Studies and English, Vin has already shown he is a bright student and will be able to advance his learning considerably in the next few years. We see Rotha and Vin strengthening their family bond and look forward to seeing Vin grow up alongside his brother at Aziza’s Place.

AP's Eldest Residents Reflect on their Summer Work Internship Experiences

Rotha enjoyed gaining experience in IT

development during his internship at 

NokorIT in Phnom Penh. 

Last month the Internship Program came to a close after many months of hard work and dedication from the students and staff. The internships began August 1st and were completed at the end of September. Many months of planning went into the program, as the students participated in a number of job preparation trainings where they learned a variety of skills necessary before entering the workforce. The six participants did an amazing job sourcing their internships independently in the area of their individual interests.

AP staff conducted a number of monitoring field visits to the students placements to see the work environments first hand and develop a relationship with the students supervisors. The students completed a ‘Midway Report’ halfway through their internships, which encouraged them to reflect on their experiences and create goals for the remainder of their placements. Once the internships were completed, each participant presented photo’s during a final presentation that summarized their experience overall.

Each student had a unique experience as they describe in the following paragraphs:

Chanty : Chanty worked as an Art and English teacher at a local organization, ELIC. He is a talented artist with a passion for encouraging others to express themselves through art. He enthusiastically biked to his internship every day eager to see his students. “I feel so happy to work at ELIC. I enjoy it there. I like all the kids and they like me.”

Theara : Having previously worked in a salon, Theara decided to continue on this path and spend her internship at SreyMom Beauty Salon. She developed a close relationship with her supervisor, and is eager to spend more time at the salon whenever she can. “My favorite part of my internship is learning about manicure and makeup.”

Rotha : Rotha spent his internship at Nokor-IT, a Phnom Penh based international IT company. He has a special interest in web design and applications. He integrated well with his colleagues and received positive feedback from his supervisor. “I felt surprised about people there because they are very friendly people and kind to me.”

Chiev : Architect Design Intelligence (ADI) welcomed Chiev for his internship. Taking a strong interest in architecture, Chiev was happy to learn about building, landscape and interior design, site planning, making model homes and more. “My favorite part of my internship is to make models and drawing plans.”

Sreymach : Sreymach was welcomed into LySrey Vyna Medical Clinic for her internship. With an interest in the medical field, she gained valuable experience by organizing the medicine, learning how to read medicine labels, and improving her communication skills while occasionally acting as the clinic cashier. “They teach me a lot, and really want me to know what it is like being a doctor”

Ven Sophy : Ven spent his internship at Vulnerable Children Assistance Organization (VCAO), an organization in the Phnom Penh dumpsite community of Steung Meanchey, serving underprivileged children. Ven taught a class of 20-25 children basic computer programs. “They (the students) like me and they always say hi to me, they want to learn from me, and the teachers there like me!"

Overall, we are very proud of the internships students and are excited to continue the program next year!

AP Film Students Produce Promotional Film for ACE

Sreymach and Chiev - filming in action. 

As mentioned in previous Courtyard Newsletters the Aziza’s Place Film Program was a groundbreaking program in Cambodia, started in 2009. For the first year of the program five Aziza’s Place residents took part and another two residents completed the program in its second year. These residents have all maintained their enthusiasm for film production. In August this year Chiev, Ny, Theara, Cheng and Sreymach took their learning to the next level by producing a film for the Attitude Centre for Education (ACE) a Khmer-run NGO located in Phnom Penh.

During participation in life-learning courses run by ACE, their staff were impressed by the AP film students' motivation and passion for making films, and their previous film projects. They subsequently asked the residents if they would be willing to create a promotional film for ACE. The five AP residents mentioned above agreed to commit their time to the project during their break from Khmer Public School. They have been delighted to maintain a strong partnership with ACE, whose staff are all encouraging, positive and strong role models for them. ACE staff were impressed by the professionalism, team approach and commitment to the project displayed by the AP residents as they worked together to write a script, film and edit to produce a final product. ACE will use the film to promote and raise funds for the many great projects they run. The AP film students were excited to utilise their skills for the benefit of others while boosting their own sense of confidence and independence by taking on such a valuable project. See the film the AP residents created here.

Aziza’s Place Residents and Staff Enjoy a Trip to Koh Kong:

Everyone enjoyed a refreshing time together during a trip

to Koh Kong.

Thanks to the Generosity of Mr. Matthias Witzel, Rotary Club of Southport Links, HEROtsc and Previous Volunteer Hayley Carter's Community of Family and Work Colleagues

This month the Aziza’s Place residents and staff were all privileged to enjoy a refreshing trip to Koh Kong – a beautiful location on the coast of Cambodia, close to the Cambodia/Thailand border. This was the first time most of the residents and staff had been to this province so it was an adventure for all. The field trip was made possible through the sponsorship of generous donors, including Mr. Matthias Witzel, the Rotary Club of Southport Links, HEROtsc, and previous volunteer Hayley Carter's community of family and work colleagues.

AP children and staff all enjoyed the trip immensely. The itinerary included outings to waterfalls, swimming, relaxing on the beach, exploring mangrove forests, and a visit across the Thai border. The children were eager to capture all these highlights through numerous photographs, some of which can be seen here on facebook. We are so grateful to the generous contributions provided for the trip, which became a fantastic opportunity for the children and staff to spend quality time together, to take time out of the city and to see and learn more about their country.

Volunteers Raelan Barbosa and Peter Levitan Utilise their Expertise to Support Aziza’s Place

Peter enjoys time with Ven at a Special Dinner (left);

Volunteer Rae spent September and October at

Aziza's Place (right).

September and October brought new volunteers to Aziza’s Place, who were each able to provide support through their areas of specialty and expertise.

After learning of Aziza’s Place during her travels, Raelan Barbosa from Canada was drawn to the idea of volunteering for two months and contributing her expertise as a social worker with the AP staff who work daily with the AP residents. Rae’s volunteering at Aziza’s Place opened up an opportunity for the AP staff to evaluate our discipline and rewards strategies together. She offered valuable recommendations and new ideas that encouraged the staff as they work together to maintain a positive environment for the day-to-day life of the Aziza’s Place residents. Rae also provided extra support by working on various administrative tasks, teaching English classes with the AP Housemom’s, and tutoring support for the youngest residents. She quickly fitted into the day-to-day activities of Aziza’s Place and her two months volunteering flew by rapidly. We thank Rae for her valuable input and hope to see her back to visit Aziza’s Place sometime in the near future!

The arrival of Peter Levitan in October was also very timely. Peter’s experience in marketing fitted in well with the water pump project mentioned in our previous newsletter. Peter visited Aziza’s Place for three weeks and worked closely with AP’s English teacher Rob Rushworth to fine-tune strategies for developing the water pump project; to capture its practical application and potential to meet a vital need for many households in rural Cambodia, while keeping the AP residents involved so they learn throughout this process of project development. Peter also used this project as a focus in presenting a workshop of basic marketing concepts to the two advanced AP English classes. Peter’s input provided valuable insight for which we are so appreciative – we look forward to keeping connected!

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.