Nokor Tep Women’s Hospital Cambodia

February 2011

Dear friends and partners,

I want to share with you the beginning of our latest outreach. It’s Nokor Tep Women’s Hospital. I know there are many of you who ask, “Now where did this come from?”  I would love to say simply from my own journey with breast cancer but that’s not true – the breast cancer is the catalyst of a turning point of the journey – not the beginning.

Over the years of Tabitha a number of people have approached me about preventive health care. I have a problem with prevention because it often teaches people about their problems but in our work, there is often no cure. When the AIDS epidemic took hold in Cambodia back in 1997, those of us working in the field were told to educate people. But education is not enough – at that time – there was no treatment available – and people discovering that they were in the process of dying, really hurt.

I am happy about teaching the simpler ones like clean water, good nutrition, etc but anything more in-depth has always brought me a shudder for there is really no where to send folks who are suffering. It haunts me.

This past year a number of women have died in our program – women who could have been saved or at least comforted in their own life’s journey.  Sowanta is a woman who lived in Savy Rieng province. She developed breast cancer – by the time the breast was engorged with disease, it was almost too late. Her and her husband sold their land – the land that fed their seven children. She went to Vietnam and had a mastectomy – her lymph nodes were removed and she returned home. As a woman she was expected to carry out her daily tasks – they lived in a thatched hut – they had a few farm animals and within a few weeks, her surgical sites were infected. She had no money to return to Vietnam – she had borrowed and received help from all those she knew – but there was no more. It took her 2 months to die – 2 months of indescribable pain – 2 months to say good-bye.

Every time I go on a site visit, I am confronted with women who are in pain. Last week, I met Sina – a young mother with four children. She had asked me for help a few months ago and I had told her to go to a hospital for the poor in Phnom Penh. She came and waited for three days – that’s all the money she had. Her number never came up. She went to a local doctor – he said she had a severe vaginal and uterine infection – her womb and her uterine track are full of cysts – he removed three of them – told her not to worry – but the oozing is still there and the number of cysts keep growing. Her younger sister works for us at Tabitha – she too, has an infection and cysts – their mother died a few years ago from this same ailment – they look to me for help but there is little I can do – they are so afraid that they too will die – they are too young – only in their 20’s.

Then, I find a breast lump and with hours everything is prepared for my care. People are distraught – why you? My response, why not me – I, too, am just a person. But my question to myself is different, why do I get all the care that I need? Why am I so special? I am no different – different circumstances, yes, but the same as all the women that I meet. The same desires, hopes and fears. I too, want to live.

In my personal faith, my God says “Love your neighbor as yourself.” To do so means that I either love myself less and take no medical care or I love myself the same and provide medical care for the women that I live amongst – for they are my neighbors!

So I dreamed a dream –I want to have a hospital for my neighbors. I shared my vision with Dr. Ing Kantha Phavi – an extra ordinary woman who happens to be the Minister of Women’s Affairs. Her response was immediate and simple. I have always wanted to do this – this is my dream. Phavi’s life has been anything but easy – like so many here she suffered under the Khmer Rouge, became a refugee, ended up in France where she finished her education, became a medical doctor, and practiced for ten years . In the early 90’s she returned to Cambodia, lived in the forest for 4 years fighting her battles for freedom. She became a staff of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and ten years ago became the Minister. She is a woman of extra ordinary integrity and courage – highly respected by all who know her. Phavi has a daughter, Mony who contracted thyroid cancer a few years back – she was treated and Mony is a survivor. Both of us treated by the best in Singapore. Phavi’s husband, Trac Thai Sieng is an extra ordinary man. He loves his wife, his country, the dream – he stands with us as we move forward to accomplish our dream.

 

We have 2 hectares of land in the midst of women who work in factories – women from all over the country – who live meanly – 12 to a small room, work 12 hour days – 6 days a week – women who send what they earn, home to their families. They are so young – their youth is eaten away with the burdens they bear – they are our neighbors. Their mums and sisters live poorly – perhaps we can bring some comfort, some meaning to their lives when they are tired and ill.

Our hospital is called Nokor Tep Women’s Hospital. It is a vision, a dream that includes prevention and education, that includes research into the most common of women’s illnesses here. Our vision is not cheap – it will cost 5.5 million to build and another 5.5 million to outfit because women’s cancer is part of this dream – and the machines required are expensive. It sounds impossible but not if the burden is shared by many. To build we only need 120 people to donate $50,000 each or 240 people to donate $25,000.00. each. To outfit we need to do the same.

For our poorest neighbors – treatment will cost very little – perhaps a dollar – for our neighbors who can afford more – we will charge more. For all women, we will have an open door.

I have shared this vision with a few of you. Your response has helped us to clarify our vision – to dream big dreams – to make sure we do it right. To share my personal journey as we do this process – I have created a blog that contains some of my reflections – it’s jannenokortep.blogspot.com.  A friend is working on a formal web page – I am limited in IT skills.

I thank my God for the privilege of dreaming dreams – of showing me the way forward – I thank my God for each of you who share this journey with us. It is so very good.

 Janne

October Schools Update

Dear Friends,

This past week saw the flooding in Cambodia finally receding and highways open so that I could travel.  A few weeks ago was the beginning of the new school year here in Cambodia. Like all things, education for the children is an education for all of us at Tabitha. When we started building schools in our communities several years ago, we were not aware of how few of our children actually attend school. For primary school children, about 20% attend at least two years of primary school – sometimes three in their lifetime – at secondary level this drops to less than 8%.

For me, it’s an awakening to another reality. I keep thinking what if I couldn’t read – something I take for granted – or I couldn’t do any math other than rudimentary forms – what would it be like if I didn’t know my name in letters – or I could never read what officials put out on in my community – simple directives like upcoming elections. What would life be really like?

Last week we traveled to a new school in Sen Jay that was just opened. The community had invited me to come and talk with them a year ago. The parents talked of how life had changed in their community with savings, wells and houses – and they now wanted a school for their children. I talked of how I expected all school age children to attend – regardless of school uniforms – I talked of how I expected the parents to support the teachers and their children in this process. Solemn promises were made and the process started. A donor was found and the 12 room school was built.

Getting to Sen Jay is always a bit of a travel nightmare – with the recent floods parts of the highway were still under water but we made it through – turning of the path towards the community we were met with mud – lots of it – and the end of the Tabitha vehicle. Last time I came the Tabitha vehicle was also stopped and we had traveled part of the way by caribao and the rest by rotor tiller and wagon. None was visible and I shuddered – walking is not my favorite pastime- walking in mud even less so- walking ten kilometers in heavy mud was not my idea of a good time. We were blessed this time as the commune chief had sent a 4 x 4 and driver and we slid and bounced our way to the school. It was worth every jolt.

Parents and children met us and we made a tour of the school. We had mandated that only 35 children should be allowed per classroom so that learning would be a bit easier. In Cambodia schools are used to the fullest capacity – two sets of students each day – one in the morning and one in the afternoon. I was bit dismayed to see 40 plus students in each room but what am I supposed to say. Last year only 20 kids attended school under one of Tabitha’s houses.  I can read, write, do numbers and ever so much more – who am I to deny another child that opportunity?

     

We opened another school last week – in a village called Leap in Kompong Thom. Children there didn’t even know what a school was. For these children, school is a mystery and the squiggles they see on the blackboard something very alien. But they are excited – they like hearing about new things they have never heard of – simple things like letters and numbers – they are not yet used to holding a pencil or making the pencil do what it should. It’s very humbling to see a sixteen year old struggle to make sense out of it all.

This month – we are very blessed – we had 32,526 children attend school for the first time in their lives. I thank my God that this is so – I thank all of you for making it so. Happy reading to each of you.

Janne

Margarita House Building Trip & Visit to Sue Huxley School August 2010

This year has been a very difficult year for most of our building team, as we lost our beautiful friend, Sue Huxley, to cancer in March of this year and almost immediately after we learned that Janne was diagnosed with breast cancer, another terrible shock to our team….

In honour of Sue we decided we would make our 2010 trip for her friends and family – it was amazing as we had friends come from Canada, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong and America. As most of us have been a part of the Tabitha House build over the past many years we made our “orientation” this year as visit to the “Sue Huxley  Sapor School” which was built in honour of Sue and her dedication to the Tabitha Foundation over the past 10 years.

   

We arrived in Phnom Penh on Wednesday 18^th August and then took 4 mini vans up to the school (four and a half hours drive) early on Thursday 19th.  The drive was worth it as when we arrived we were greeted by the children (who will be attending the school when it’s finished) and their families.  These people had travelled many miles by foot and bicycles so as you could imagine it was a very emotional time for our team.  The families were so over whelming, they were so thankful to us for building the school it was such a special time to be there with these amazing grateful and very humble people.

On the way back to Phnom Penh in the buses there was a long silence for quite some time as we pondered on what we had just experienced.  Oh how happy Sue would have been to see the whole thing we had just witnessed (that’s what I kept thinking to myself).

Friday 20^th and Saturday 21^st August we were all up bright and early to begin our house build, just a short one and a half hours by mini vans.  We built 21 houses on the first day and completed the next 9 houses on the Saturday morning in record time.  Once again for beautiful humbling families who were so very thankful and grateful for their new houses and to be moving from their straw thatched huts to their new Tabitha house on stilts (to be safe from the weather).

     

This year’s build was very special for myself in many ways, seeing the school, building the 30 houses and just being back in Cambodia to see how these people are moving on year after year.  They continue to amaze me with their humble, thankful attitudes.  I feel that I am a very lucky person to be able to experience this year after year with such a great team of gorgeous friends – the “Margaritas”.

Finally I want to mention and thank Janne’s staff at Tabitha – all of these wonderful people are forever committed, supportive and accommodating. I always feel they are a part of our team – go Margaritas!!.

Lisa Newman

August Update from Tabitha Cambodia

Dear friends and partners,

This month marks the end of another program year. It’s been a phenomenal year thanks to each of you.  This year we were privileged to be able to work with 33,466 families with 267,728 dependents in community development as well as 641 families with 5,128 dependents in cottage industry.  Let me share just a few highlights if I may.

This year you helped 28,754 families achieve food security of which, 19,153 families are now able to eat three meals a day.

 

You enabled another 9,387 families to be able purchase basic household goods such as pots and pans, dishes, drinking glasses, tables and chairs.  Another 11,380 families were able to purchase beds, blankets, clothing and mosquito nets.

  

 1,561 wells/ponds/reservoirs were installed which enabled another 3,610 families to have clean potable water and to earn incomes on average of $2000.00 per year – up from $300.00 per year.

  

2,224 families were able to buy bicycles this year, 5 schools were built and the savings program enabled 189,333 of our children to attend school.

  

4,621 families were able to raise pigs, 4049 families were able to raise chickens, 3,533 families raised ducks and fish.

  

1,486 families were able to raise rice year round; another 6,113 families were able to raise vegetables while another 6,676 families were able to buy farm tools and implements such as fertilizers.

We had 2,280 volunteers come from all over the world to build 1,053 houses in all project areas. Phenomenal!

These are just a few of the highlights this program year – so much more happened.

As Tabitha staff, all of us are so very thankful for the privilege of serving so many. I thank my God for each of the staff, for each of you – it is very humbling to be a part of all of this. 

Thank you,

 Janne

Update from Rotary Club of Queenstown, Singapore

As we wrote previously the Rotary Club of Queenstown has selected to support Tabitha for their annual Major Project. The Rotary Club has shared with us a great presentation detailing the many supportes and sponsors of the project. To see the presentation, click here: Rotary Club of Queenstown – Major Project Update

How to donate – Sue Huxley Tabitha Elementary School

We are raising funds for the First Tabitha Elementary School, in Honour of Sue Huxley. If you would like to make a donation:

Through Tabitha Australia:

Please click here: Online Donation . Scroll to : Please apply my donation to specific project – select ‘Sue Huxley- Tabitha School’. Enter the amount you wish to donate along with your details and submit.

Send a cheque to Tabitha Foundation Singapore

Please make out the cheque to “Tabitha Foundation (Singapore)” and post it to: Lisa Newman; The Balmoral; 18 Balmoral Park #02-11; Singapore 259848

Rotary Club of Queenstown – Tabitha Lunch Talk – March 1, 2010

We are excited that Rotary Club of Queenstown has selected to support Tabitha in 2010 for their annual Major Project. To kick off the initiative, Tabitha Volunteer Lisa Newman will give an overview of Tabitha Foundation at next weeks weekly Lunch Meeting at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel Singapore @ 12;40pm.

If you would like to pledge your support, the official pledge form can be downloaded here.

Fun-draising @ Picotin; October 2, 2009

Terry Johnson - The Real TJ

If you are looking for a great night out in a beautiful setting while contributing to a good cause, head to Bistro, Bar & Epicerie Picotin on Turf Club Road for a fun-tastic night of drinks and comedy.

For only SGD 50 per person you will not only get one free drink and one very special raffle ticket, but also experience jokeaholic Terry Johnson, “The Real TJ”, who has been keeping audiences around the world entertained for over 25 years.

The event starts on October 2, 2009 @ 7:30. All proceeds of the event will go directly towards a Tabitha Housebuilding trip on October 15-19

To reserve your ticket, please contact Cari Bowers.

For a taste of Terry’s show, check out his YouTube channel here.

Racing for Tabitha

Bruce & Sharon - Before the race

Bruce Ford, supported by his wife Sharon, has just completed Racing the Planet: Namibia 2009, a seven-day, 250km footrace across the Namib Desert. In the process, Bruce has raised more than AUD 50,000 for Tabitha Australia We will post some pictures as soon as Bruce has recovered. Thank you Bruce and Sharon!