Christmas at Centre of Peace Orphanage

It has been such a joy to connect with the lovely kids at 'Centre of Peace'. We were extra-blessed to be invited to their Christmas party. Where Christmas parties in Aussie and NZ can kick off from any time in December, in Cambodia it is very normal for Christmas to come late. So, the 30th it was.

'Centre of Peace' kiddies in action

Bophal and her team had done a stunning job in organising a three-hour event that included dance, song, Christmas paegent, more dance, more song ... Children get to invite their school friends along and a good proportion of the neighbourhood turn up so in addition to the 65 children at COP there were perhaps another 100 children, 50 adults plus an assortment of people who have some kind of association with the orphanage.

Friends and neighbours join the party

The Three Wise Men were there ...

At the end of the show there was a bag of pressies for each of the visiting children, together with like a foot-long subway, Cambodian style.

Following the departure of the visiting children, some serious pressies were rolled out for the COP kids. Through a love-gift from NZ, all the children received footwear, clothing, a toy and school stuff.

Christmas pressies for everyone

Bophal handing out pressies by the sack full!

Mum and Dad to 18

This has been our second weekend taking the oversight care at 'Sozo Children's Home'. It is a nice restful place ... a new girl ran away during the week, three boys limped back Saturday afternoon with their motorbike in too many pieces (courtesy of a 15-year-old speedster who managed to do a runner) ... and the two male rabbits are determined to mate. Otherwise, all is calm.

Chicken soup is served - Miss Responsible, Sreyna, dishes up for Chivea and Samang

During the week Big Ben (as in seriously tall) and Helen, from Citiepoint Church in Brisbane keep everything ticking along. The real anchors tho' are Mali (I'll get a picture of him up later) and Sreyna - both raised in this home and now both finished with school. The real mum and dad, Grahame and Sandra, still have a month off.

The amazing, multi-talented Sue - lands a basket in the dark! How sad these digital cameras are - I pressed the shutter as she took the shot and the camera snaps an ecstatic Sue after the ball is in the hoop. Oh for real-time digital photography!

Aussie Aussie Aussie

We are delighted to announce the arrival of our first Aussie friend. Julia Hamilton-Smith arrived here two days after Christmas. She arrived all smiles (that's Julia!) and with luggage that included Christmas mince pies and our favourite, heavy-duty frypan!!

Julia is a school chaplain in Brisbane. That's how we first met - only then she and husband Jason had recently moved to a small farming commumity outside of Toowoomba and Julia had been appointed as a chaplain at Clifton. She's a great girl; loves kids, loves God and loves life.

Julia catching up on her diary - and smiling as always!

Her man is in the army, and has just landed in Iraq for a six-month stint. Sue was actually in Toowoomba City Church the day that Jason was being prayed for before heading out and Sue just 'knew' that they were going to connect that day. Here we are, a few weeks later, and the lady has landed.

Julia will be a key helper at 'Stepping Stones' over the next three weeks, as well as teaching English at the 'Centre of Peace' orphanage ... and anything else that we are able to volunteer her for! Meanwhile, Don and Pat continue to inhabit the second floor, so currently we are 3 Aussies, 2 Kiwis in this place.

Rocky Road

Our street is slowly morphing. At the moment it is impassible, with a good mountain of sand outside our front door. The concrete machine has done one pour down the smelly end of the street (the 'river views' of the black sewer-come-canal are also morphing with concrete slabs being placed over the top) and a large team of road workers continue to lay out the rocky foundation down the other end.

Our local roading crew

In a nation where labour is so cheap, young guys carry baskets of the large stones, tip them onto the dirt and then squat and place them by hand - all the way down the road being prepared for concreting. A half-dozen passes by a roller; then sand and smaller stones are poured on top before concrete is poured. We greatly look forward to the promise of less dust over everything in our house soon!

Christmas

If you were not in the know, you could easily miss it in Cambodia. No hype, no marketing, nearly no sign that it is the season and Jesus really is the reason. Christmas is close to invisible in this nation.

Susie getting the table set. She was a busy sewer earlier too, getting the table cloth and table runner made in preperation.

We had a great day tho'. The morning was spent skyping (as in telephoning through the computer) family. Then, set the table for eight - Aussies Pat and Don (who are still living with us) and Frank from Hagar, and Kiwis Sue Hanna (Hagar) Colleen (Asian Outreach) and her long-time friend Callum (who trains dentists in Cambodia) all joined us for a great Christmas lunch. Incidentally, Callum has an ongoing mentoring relationship with the nice Dr Heng, for whom I opened my mouth wide recently.

Around the table - Sue Hanna, a snippet of Colleen, a head-shot of Frank, Susie, Callum, Don and Pat.

Frank brought the turkey and we got an excellent ham from Dan, a German butcher whose shop is a total entertainment show. Long story, but I never have had so much fun in a butcher shop before. Glorious chaos reigned when we ordered, and somehow the chaos lifted a few levels upon pick-up a week later. The ham tho' is superb!

We have received so many emails to wish us well over this time. For all of you who wrote, who were going to write and who had nice Bonnevie thoughts - thank you and God bless!

Stepping Stones

'Stepping Stones' is the name of the pre-school that is owned by New Life Fellowship Church. They have been searching for 'native Engllish speaking' staff for some months now, and just have not been able to replace great volunteers that have since returned to their homeland. Thus, the decision has been taken to close the school on Jan 1.

Sue and I love this place. It is situated on a grassy, tree-filled 1200 square metre block of land; a little oasis in this city. We also love Phanarath, a Khymer teacher whom we have known since our brief visit here back in September 2006 (before we moved here in June this year). So, we have talked to the church about giving this great place one more shot ... one more month as we seek to find a key pre-school manager to oversee this year. At this point, we still believe that this role needs to be filled by a Kiwi or Aussie! We have just one lead ....

A sand-pit, grass, trees - a lovely oasis in Phnom Penh

What this practically means is that we take responsibility for the school over January. Phanarath will come in as a teacher to fill one of two spots (a couple of girls have taken another job offer). Sue too will be more involved through January. We are to interview another Khmyer girl tomorrow for a teacher help role. Our vision for this place is to see the business side of the paying pre-school established in the mornings and then develop a free pre-school for the poor in the afternoons, perhaps with a clinic attached.

Phanarath with one of the little people

However, this is not what our personal focus is and we are being careful not to be pulled sideways into heading all this. Rather, we are happy to give some time in an effort and earnest prayer that this little oasis may yet be a vibrant Kingdom work.

Sozo Childrens Home

We got to know Grahame and Sandra at New Life, where they and their family take up three rows of seats. Grahame and Sandra run a childrens' home - 19 children at the moment, most of them teenagers. These Brisbane-ites have been at this for five years now, so these kids have been growing through some hugely formative years with this salt-of-the-earth, big-hearted mum and dad.

Susie with Sandra - one awesome mama

Grahame and Sandra are home-ward bound for 6 weeks as of tomorrow. Susie and I have been happily roped into staying at the home over the weekends (Friday to Sunday nights) from this weekend until the end of January. We have been doing a bit of bonding over the last two weeks - and accepted their invitation to Christmas lunch today to get a little more time around at the home. And what a spread it was!

Grahame giving thanks - some of the boys - the girls all in hiding ...

Papa Grahame discipling a new generation - how to be a great dad

Children are the best way to start people

With Donald and Sons here, we have been getting around a number of ministries to street children.

There was a visit to the Joy Club, run every Thursday on the roof of the New Life Fellwship office complex. Up to 200 little ones gather here, in a respite from a life of dragging dirty sacks around the streets in their search for cans, bottles, cardboard and other re-cyclables. The team of workers run an excellent program and give other areas of care such as a clean-water shower (you should see the little ones emerge, scrubbed clean and in new clothing), clothing and another program that connects in with their families.

The roof-top Joy Club in action

We also went to another childrens' outreach on Sunday morning. Started by an Indonesian lady who went to the home of a dying man ... that became a bible study for children ... that has since exploded as hungry street children come to learn about the God who has always loved them ... and now there are plans for a school and a nursery ... This is an amazing nation for those who simply want to trust God and step out.

Anyway, we had a very moving time at their Christmas party, wholly run by the Khmyer children and staff. Marie Ens, a most honourable legend in this nation, had brought her orphanage (run as clusters of families) along and they performed an amazing 'Christmas pagent' in dance and drama. Around 200 children were there - mostly scruffy, dirty ... and most precious.

Donald and a little guy at the Christmas Paegent

Australian Kerry, who introduced us to this street-children outreach, and a little guy who needs a hug. Once a child gets to 7-8 years old, hugs are all finished for a life-time according to a Khymer lady we spoke to.

Road Works

We have plenty of action happening outside our doors at this time. The digger has been through and taken out the top 30cm or so of our road, making access into and out of our garage an exciting cross-country feat. Now, the trucks are back, tipping piles of stone in preparation for the Great Concrete Pour. Yay for this wonderful progress!

Beholding the welcome progress - Susie and Donald Scott at our front door

... and here comes the roading metal ...

Southern Men

Donald Scott, together with his two eldest sons, Jono and David, arrived for a 10-day stay on Wednesday. Donald pastors Northcity Church, in Christchurch, NZ. He and his boys are out here to get a taste of Cambodia and to see what the Lord may direct them into as a church in the future.

Susie unpacking the medical supplies - thank you, Annie!!

They arrived with 12kg of medical supplies - boxes of treasure emerging from their bags. These medicines were donated by Dr Annie from a clinic that their church is involved in. Wonderful!

Visiting Tuo Sleng Genocide Museum

Yesterday we were out and about - visiting the genocide museum, calling in to Centre of Peace orphanage to set up the three days of their English teaching there, then off to New Life to check out the 'Joytime Club', a ministry to the street children arounf the Olympic Market area. Today they spend their morning teaching English. They are well organised and prepared for this. I left them about an hour ago, surrounded by excited, enthusiastic little darlings.

Evergreen Getaway

Sue and I spied out a nearby r+r spot a few weeks back. Last Sunday we did the 7am Sunday morning church service and then took the Spider for a 7km run out into the countryside - to 'Club Evergreen'. It is our 30th wedding anniversary (well, was - when Sue was still back in NZ) so we were glad to take a quick break together.

'Club Evergreen' is pretty flash - lovely swimming pool, good size rooms and showers with ... wait for it ... hot water! We swam, lazed, read lots and totally enjoyed 24 hours away from the concrete and dust! It's not quite Kep, but being just 20 minutes away is a big plus.

The Bridge

Sue and I met with an excellent Worldwide Evangelism Crusade (WEC) guy on Monday. Tim, a French guy with WEC pommie parents who live in France, runs 'The Bridge', a ministry to street kids in Cambodia.

Tim says that there could be up to 15,000 street children in Phnom Penh. Some are homeless; others have family but are too poor to attend school. Many of them spend hours pulling old carts around collecting street rubbish to recycle - cans, cardboard, scrap metal ... anything that will convert into a cent or two.

The Bridge has teams that go out to the markets and connect with the street kids. They befriend the kids, learn their story and their conditions, and offer both a drop-in centre (with tuk-tuk transport to and from) and a program to work with the children and their family.

The Bridge program is excellent. It links a child to a WEC worker, and seeks to move children from a life of scavenging on the streets to a life with a hope and a future. Tim says that children that join the program are 'on' the bridge. To move them 'over' the bridge and onto the 'other side', they systematically work through six areas:

• The child no longer has to work to make a living
• The child is attending school (the program will enter into a signed contract with the parents/caregivers, and sponsor a child on the proviso that the child is in school. This is continually checked up on)
• The child has daily sufficient food (defined as two meals per day)
• Physical and/or emotional needs are being met - someone cares
• The child is living in a safe environment
• They have an opportunity to be regularly in church / Sunday School.

When these areas are established, then the child is moved 'off' the Bridge, allowing another child to come on.

Sue and I were picked up on Monday evening to experience how the outreach works. A Khmer team heads out to various places in the city to connect, share the Lord and see how they can serve. We were to be heading out too - but as tim showed us around the drop-in centre, the team shot thru' So, we got to be a part of those who stayed behind to pray - also a part of every Monday.

Tim is a champion. There is a 22-year-old Aussie champ, Amy, in the team too. She came out with WEC for a one-year tour of duty. Cambodia has captured her heart. This is year two for Amy.