"Grannie Program" of Cambodian Children's Fund

This posting certainly hit a nerve, with a record number of likes and shares. So you can remain part of the process of this couple, we will keep you posted on their progress.

This wonderful couple are already receiving food and a stipend,so they no longer have to worry about finding money and food each day. 

They will be receiving their new World Housing home in November, putting them into a safe new community, with clean, green space to meet their new neighbors, and access to running water, toilets and washrooms.

Before then though, they will visit our factory to see their home under construction.  

And before the ribbon-cutting on their new home, they will meet the CCF Junior Leaders who will be responsible for their care, delivering rice, stipend, medicines, checking on their health and other needs. In return, we want this couple to impart their knowledge and experience of the old days, so our junior leaders can keep Khmer culture, social structure and values alive for their generation. 

Now all of this may sound extensive and expensive but with our World Housing association, with our enthusiastic Junior Leaders, with the help of the community, the total cost for moving them into their new home will be about $100, including new furnishings. 

For those who generously offered to help this couple, they are now in good hands. Where you can provide help is with the elderly who are outside of our reach. No matter which province or district you live, there is probably an elderly couple without the resources, family or care. Take them under your wing, even if that means simply visiting, making trips to the market for them and simply listening. 

By doing so, you are creating a much-needed resource, and a critical component of community rebuilding: empathy. 

Welcome our soon-to-be members of our "Grannie Program". Within a few weeks, after Hoin and his Community team have worked their magic, this elderly couple will be in the home, social-standing and dignity they so richly deserve. The Grannie Program provides a stipend, rice, free health care and transport to/from our weekly monk blessings. And our Junior Leaders ensure they are all well-cared for and everything runs smoothly.

But the giving is not all one way.

With the emerging generation caught between parents who lost traditional parenting skills in the Khmer Rouge years and the pressures of the emerging materialism, who is guiding the way? 

So what price do you put on the Khmer way? 

These forgotten old people are the last vestiges of "how things used to be": the community caring for one another; the family structure led by the wisdom of the grandparents and the values of parents; the days when school was compulsory, Khmer culture was a priority and tradition held it all together. 

We have one chance to tap into the experience, insights and memories of these aging members of Khmer society. 

My fear is that when they are gone, a valuable and irreplaceable piece of Khmer culture will disappear with them. 

My advice? Pause a moment before shelling out $700 for the latest I-Gadget and consider 

1) what half of that money could do for this couple (and the thousands like them) if you chose a cheaper phone (if your friends think less of you, trust me, you need new friends) and 

2) what these elderly can offer you. 

I'm not saying to ditch the smart phones, just consider a balance between the over-priced, latest-but-soon-to-be-outdated techno gadgets and preserving Khmer culture.

- Scott Neeson