Happy New Year to you

Leng, Sry On, all the children under the ODA Umbrellas & the
Village Teachers wish you a Very Merry Festive Season
They all wish for you that 2014 will bring you Good Health,
Happiness & Good Luck for your Whole Life.


ThisyearsChristmascardwaspaintedbyTraiVetwhohasbeenatODAsince2004heisnowtheoldest
ODAfamilymember.Heworkswithmanyoftheyoungerchildrenencouragingthem&teachingthem
paintingtechniques.Alongwith his brotherTrai Van, &Chea, theyare nowagreatsupport to Leng in
runningODA.Greattoseethemwantingtolead,encourage&makethingshappenhere!
TraiVethascompletedhis1
st
yearofCivilEngineeringatUniversity&isintotheheavymathsthatallthat
entails, but he works very hard & is managing well. His brother Trai Van is in his 2
nd
year of IT also at
University.Hehastakenoverthetaskofenteringthenamesfromthevisitorsbookintothenewsletter
database&oftenbattleswithwesternwriting&spellingofnamesthatarecompletelyforeigntohimetc
butnowknowsmostoftheinternetemailprovidersallovertheworldplusthespellingofmanynames
(despitethechallengesofhandwriting&squiggles!!)allgreatskillsforhimtobringtoemploymentin
thefuture.TolaisLengscousin&teachescomputersoutat2ofthevillageschools&atODAsobetween
TraiVan&him,theyhaveallthechildrenatODAsomuchmorecomputerliteratenow.Sowonderfulto
be pushed aside by a 10yr old to get the TV,computer &speakers working harmoniously together, far
fasterthatwecandoit.Theyabsorbitsoeasily!!
SUZIE WONG COMES TO ODA!!!
NancyKwanthewonderfulEurasionfilmstarwithTheWorldof
Suzie Wong, & Flower drum Song & other well known movies to
hernamemadecontacttoODAtoaskifshecouldvisit&could
wecometoherhoteltotalkwiththem.Shewasheadingupatour
offriends,family&fanstovisitfilmlocationsfromhercareer.She
hadbeenparticularlytakenwithCambodianchildrenwhilefilming
at Angkor Wat so decided to bring support to the ODA children!
AMAWaterwaystouringhadverykindlyputusforwardtoher.
Leng met with her & her dynamic fund raiser Sylvia & other key
people
who
askedforalistofneeds&wishes.Leng&I
conferredquicklytomakealistofmany&
variedthingsforODA&theVillageEnglish
schools for them to choose from. We
deliveredthelist&preparedfortheirvisit
toODA.
They all fell in love with the kids & were
very taken with their dancing & how well
caredfor&happytheyallweresothey

Nancywiththechildren&ODAartworkstobeauctionedinvitedtheODAdancerstoNancysAuction
CocktailPartyfundraiserattheSofiteltoperformmoreoftheirCulturalDancesforNancysguests.
Youcanimaginethekidsexcitementatvisitinga5starhotel&thebeautifulgardensparticularlythe
beautiful Lotus Flower Lake. Like the veterans they are there were no nerves they performed
wonderfully&weregivenahugeovation!
ThentheAuctionofMemorabiliastarted&suddenly
NANCYHADRAISEDENOUGHTOBUYEVERYSINGLETHINGONOURLIST!!
Solar panels & all the equipment that accompanies those power additions, Computers, student text
books for ODA & Village students, Uniform packages for the Uniform Project, bags of rice & Protein
foods,&otherhouseholditems.Justanamazingamountofmoney&goods!
Lengwastotallyblownawayhehadhopedforjustsomeoftheseitems.Andtheloveliestthingofall
was that Nancy quietly struck up genuine friendships with the kids. She has a very lovely, kind,
welcomingnature!
NancysfavouriteFilmDirectorBrianwasherAuctioneermaybehehasanewcareerinfrontofhim!!!
NancyyouwantedtogivesomesupporttodisadvantagedCambodianchildrenwellyouexceeded
your wildest dreams! The children at ODA & Village Schools will have lasting benefits from your
wonderfulvisit&someexcitingpics&memoriesaswell.TomTomAkuntoyou&yourlovelyguests
fromalltheneedykidsassociatedwithODA!

NEWADDITIONSTOTHEODAFAMILY.
Early this year a Commune & Village chief came to
begLengtotake3veryyoungkids2,4&6yrsoldwho
hadbeenabandoned.Motherhashad7husbands&
11children&she&theolderkidshadtakenoffits
unusual to see little kids left alone in Cambodia
older siblings usually take on the responsibility for
younger kids when tragedy strikes. Anyway they
were living on the edge of a forest on the side of a
smallroad&eatingdirt&leavestosurvive.Lenghad
togothelastdistancebymotoastheroadwasjusta
foresttrack&itwasalsoinlandmineterritorysothe
VillageChieftookhimintogetthekidsonhismoto.
LengimmediatelytookthemtothehospitaltogetthemcheckedoutforAIDS&generalhealthasishis
usualpractice.Theyhospitalizedthe2yroldboy,SokLek,foramonth&toldLengifhehadntgotmedical
helphewouldhavediedinaweekorso!NoideawhatwaswrongifLengtriestoaskhegetstoldyou
havenomedicaltrainingyoucantunderstand!

The4yroldgirlhadtakenontheroleofmotherinstinctisamazingisntit?Shestillisseenhelping
theminaverylittlemotherway.PoorlittleSokLek(the2yrold)hadafall&brokehislegafewmonths
later&whenhecamebackfromhospitalshewentquicklytohim&laidherhandinhisarmasiftosay
Imhereforyou!Sobeautiful&touching!!Theyaregreatkidsbrightshiningeyes&happysmiles&
pickingeverythingupsoquickly.Theyhave2bigbowlsoffoodatlunchtime&IsaidtoLengoneday
thismustbeparadiseforthemtohavesomuchlovelyfoodhechuckled&saidStillSokLekeatdirt
now&then!
BhubwhohasbeenatODAsincehewas2hadbrokenhislegsomeyearsagosohemusthavedecided
heknewwhatitwaslikesowasonhandtohelpSokLekgetaround&dothings.Itssowonderfultosee
themallfeelingforeachother&helpingthemadjust!
AnothernewarrivalisYeangan8yroldboywhoseparentsdiedofAIDSbutluckilyheisquiteclear.He
alsohasahuge,sunnysmilethatlightsupODA&islearningEnglishlikeaveteran.Somanykidsarebright
&learnsoquickly!
Wealsohave2sisters8&10yrswhojoinedusaround4monthsagolovelygirls.Acoupleofweeksof
shyness&suddenlyitsasiftheyveallbeenthereforeverallplayinghappilytogether.Quiteamazing
howquicklytheyadapt&adopteachother.
OntheothersideofthecoinLenghassomanyteenagersnowsomeoftheboysat15arelookinglike
youngmennow&thegirlsaregrowingintoveryattractiveyoungadultsamazingwhatadifferencea
yearmakesintheteenageyears.SomanyatSecondaryschoolnow&theyareawayfromODAalotmore
withextendedclassessoitsachangingmixingpotherenow.
VOLUNTEERS&EDUCATION
Building
So many wonderful returnee volunteers
bringing great skills & education to the
children Reudi from Switzerland has
worked with the boys to build the most
amazing wardrobes it looks like a high
qualityshopfitout!Theyare2storey&a
newwindowwascutintofloodtheroom
with light & the boys now know how to
buildsomuchmore&atahighqualityas
well wonderful for them to learn these
skillsfortheirfuture. Aplaceforeverythingsoorganized&tidy!
Art Linda from USA conducted fun art workshops early in the year with the kids experiencing many
differentstylesofpainting.PopArt&modernalongwiththetraditionalstyles.Severalotherartistsor
artenthusiastshaveaddedtotheirskillsLeng&thechildrenlovetoseedifferentstyles&worktheirway
throughthem.
Manyothernew&returningvolunteershaveexpandedthekidsarthorizons.

EducationLenghasnowemployedaveryexperiencedlocalEnglishteacherwhotakesclasseseachnight
for2hours.Thisisverybeneficialforthechildrennottobechangingteacherseverymonthorso&they
are really flying now. So many good teachers have worked with the children over the years but with
differentideas,styles&accentsandusuallyonlyforamonthatatimeetcetcitisnteasyforthemso
nowtheyarereallyforgingahead.
ItsalsoallowedthevolunteerstotakeaslightlylessstrictEnglishlessonformat&weverunthruearly
scienceactivitiesexploringtheirsurroundings&analyzingwhatwasfoundmeasuring&comparing&
exploringImaginationwithfascinatingfeedbackfromthechildren.Theyhavesuchenquiringmindsso
theirquestions&creativityaddedsomuchmoretotheformat.

VeryhardworkworkinginASTRONAUTgloves&
tethered,topreventfloatingawayintospace!
WatchingAstronautsingingSpaceOddity

WealsostudiedThePlanetEarth&The
Solar System & thanks to a great
Australianfamilywhovisitedoneofour
volunteers & spent their time helping
search the internet & invent Space
Gameswe now have many space
videos&haveenjoyeddiscoveringhow
the men landed on the moon Robot
CuriosityonMars&howtheastronauts
live & float around the International
SpaceStation.

ThanksforallthecoolSpacegames&videos
WebuiltourownODASolarSystem(seethespaceodditypicabove)&theSecondarystudentsarealso
studying Earth & the Solar System at government school so the ODA students are able to contribute
muchtotheirschooldiscussionsafteralltheyhaveviewed!Quitetheexpertsnow!TheyplaytheTom
HadfieldSpaceOddityvideoalmostdailyitsagreatfavourite&ifyouhaventseenitgoolgleAstronaut
TomHadfield&SpaceOddityitsfilmedinthespacestation&greattoseeallheexperiences&sees
bothinside&outfromtheInternationalSpaceStationfantastic!
ITSTHELITTLETHINGSTHATTOUCHYOU!Kidssittinginthedeskswatchingthevideoeducational
songs&therewasPaov(pronouncedPow!)now11yearsoldhehas
alwaysbeenahandfulnotinabadwaybuthisnameisveryapthis
energyislimitless&acheekyfungrinalmostlikeaPOWhittingyou!!
There they all were, intent on the video program, but he was absently
doing up the buttons on the 2yr olds shirt. Such simple, but caring
gestures they all extend to ea other daily. Such lovely kids!!! Such a
tributetoLeng&SryOnscaringsurrogateparenting.

TraditionallyinCambodiachildrenallwashtheirownclothes
nomatterhowyoungthebigkidshelpthelittleonesuntil
they have the skills to do it properly themselves. I caught
sight of Sry On (Lengs wife) starting to teach the new little
oneshowtogoabouttheirwashingtheotherdayIjusthad
to take a pic! such a lovely traditional mother thing to be
doing.Shehasalsotaughtalltheolderkidstocooksowhen
they leave ODA eventually they will be able to fend for
themselves. Shes a beautiful gentle mother to them all
sitting amongst them talking quietly then bursting out
laughingwiththematoneoftheirpranksorjokes.

Wonderful big leggo type blocks for kindy donated from a

Aussiefamiliestroveoftreasuredtoyshaveprovidedthekids
with endless fun all ages try to build them up to reach the
SpaceStationIthink&suddenlytheyallcomecrashingdown
tosqueals&uproariousgiggles!Theypullupchairssotheycan
build them higher that themselves all adding to the
constructionbalancingontheirtippytoes.

SONOWTOVILLAGESCHOOLNEWS
SCHOOLASSESSMENTSODAconductsschoolassessmentseayearvisitingalltheODAkindys&English
classessittingatthebackjustobserving&makingournotestoourassessmentpointsformsthats
gettingaratherdifficulttasknowassomeoftheclasseshavegrownto5055studentsallsquashedinto
21desks!!!LikeallgoodCambodianstheyjustsquashedupalittlemore&fittedthe3ofusin!!
Theimprovements&innovativeteachingmethodsintroducedinthelast12monthsisamazing.These
teachers arestudents from ages 17 to 20. Either at Secondary school or now 4 of them at university
thankstowonderfuldonorassistance.Lastyearonly2teachersspokeagooddealofEnglishintheclass
time,apartfromthenewvocabularyortextbeingstudied.Weissuedthemachallengetocatchupto
these2teachersWELL!!!!wewerequiteknockedoutbythechanges!9095%ofalltheclasseswere
conducted in English & their student talk time was 7080% they all had differing break out activities
where thestudentsacted out the lessons & expanded it with their individual input all inEnglish. At 1
schooltheteacherhadonestudentreadingsentencebysentencefromthecurriculumbookinEnglish
andanotherhadtotranslateitimmediatelyintoKhmer!WOW!!Thesekidswonthavetroublegetting
jobsinfuturetheywillbeatthefrontoftheline!
There has been a directive from theeducationauthority forgovernment schools to teachEnglishfrom
grade4now&LenghashadfeedbackthatthegovtteachersarefrightenedtohavetheODAstudentsin
theirclassesbecausetheypronouncebetter&knowmorethattheydo!Lengwasquitechuffedtohear
that!
Many of the ODA longer term students are
nowwinningjobsduetotheirEnglishskillsso
the schools are delivering what Leng always
intended! He was very heartened to have a
smallgroupvisithimrecentlytotellhimthey
had won jobs due to their English skills he
was so pleased to think they would take the
timetocome&tellhim&thankhim!

Sophan&someoftheODAVillageEnglishSchoolTeachers
COMPUTERLESSONSThankstoAMAWaterways,
ComputerclasseswerestartedattheirODA/AMAschool
andnowanotherschoolhasalsobeenaddedtothemix
theclassesare10:302:30dailythe2schoolsareclose
togethersostudentscanattendwhicheverschoolfits
theirfreeperiodtimesatschool.Theyarein&outwhich
meanswedontneedsomanycomputersforthemallto
haveaccess.TheteacherTola,hasdevelopedanexcellentcurriculumbooksotheycanallworkattheir
own pace & understanding. Leng is so grateful for the donated
computersthatallowtheseyoungsterstostudysuchacriticalskill
forourworldtheywouldneverhavethechancelivingsofarout
oftownastheydo!ODAisveryluckytohavesuchgreatpartners
sotheycanrollouttheseclassestolocalvillagestudentswhojust
soakupeverythingthattheycanaccess!
AMATourpassengersvisittheirschoolsothestudentstherehave
theopportunitytopracticesimpleconversationswiththemwhich
greatlyincreasestheirconfidence&skills.
APT Australia & Atherton Tablelands Rotary Club fund another of
thevillageschools&theirschool&kindyteacherarealsofundedtoUniversitythrutheirkinddonations
CongratulationstotheirEnglishteacherwhotoppedhisuniversityinhisfirstyearofBachelorofEnglish.
Thankgoodnesshehadtheopportunitytoattend!Theseyoungpeoplehavesomuchtogiveitslife
changingforthemtohavetheseopportunities.
FLEDGELINGLIBRARIES:
SuchagreatinitiativefromtheyoungStudentmembersofTheNational
Honour Society from Hilltop School USA who took on the task of
collectingseveralbatchesofsecondhandsuitablesimpleEnglishbooks
tostartofflibrariesforthestudentsatourvillageschools.TheirHilltop
Communitymembersthenassistedwithfundingoneoftheshelvesofbooksthemailingcoststoget
themtoCambodiaforus.Sowonderfultoseethekidscomingin&takingbookstosit&readiftheycan
managethat,orjustbeginenjoyinglookingatthem&stimulatingtheirexperiences.Wethenhadanother
very kind couple from USA who sent us another wonderful load. Books & blocks & other 2
nd
hand
educativematerials&toysaresovaluabletothesekidstheyhaveneverseenthembeforeitsavisual
feastforthem.
UNIFORMPROJECT

ThankstosomanyofyouwhosupportedourUniformProjectthisiscriticalforpoorvillagechildren
NouniformNoschool!Difficulttounderstandinsuchapoorcountrybutthatsitsothisyearmanyof
youhelped320kidstoattendschoolforanotheryear!!!Weareverygratefulforsmallamountsthey
alladdup,Unfortunatelywewere2monthslateforthenewschoolyearbeforewereachedourtarget
so Leng decided we should try to collect all year so we can distribute them the 1
st
week in October to
coincidewiththestartoftheschoolyear.TheDistrictGovernorattended&gaveastirringspeechabout
howthewholeworldischangingbutparticularlyCambodia&withoutaneducation,inthefuturetheir
childrenwillbeunabletogainemployment..Educatedhimselfbymonksduetopovertyheurgedthe
parentsnottotaketheirchildrenfromschooltoworkforshorttermgaintellingthemRememberonce
you spend your money its gone but knowledge is always there for you throughout your life! He
askedLengtobesuretothankalltheverykindpeoplewhohaveassistedODAtokeepthesekidsatschool
foranotheryear.
WethankyousomuchforassistingwithourUniformProject.
KINDYUNIFORMS:

Kids arrive to kjndy in such tattered dirt

ingrainedclothingthatwedecidedtoinvestin
TshirtsforthemwechosePurpleashopefullythehighironcontentinthegroundwaterwontshowup
quitesobadly inthatcolour! Onlytime will tellifits worthrepeatingannuallybutthey certainly look
amazingrightnow!!Someoftheirlittlebrothers&sistersfrontedupwantingtogetthemaswellso
cute,itwashardtoignorethem!!!
FORMALSUPERVISEDEXAMSFOR175ODAENGLISHSTUDENTS:
Anothersmallbutveryimportantstep
for ODA was the first formal exams.
Exam papers were developed &
submitted to the District Education
Authority for approval. They sent 2
representatives to oversee the
proceedings&firsttheywenttoeach
ofthe5classroomswith5envelopes
showingthemallthesealedpapers
they then had some students in ea
classroom sign that they were
unopened. then opened them &
distributed them to the students.
They then moved around the
classroomswhichweresupervisedbyourteachersensuringtherewasnocheatingoccurring!
Theno2classatODAalsoparticipated&oneoftheolderODAboyswhodoesntattendformalEnglish
classes,sattheexamsayinghesitseveryexamhecomesacrossevenifhehastopaya$1feetodo
so!Simpleprooftheythirstforknowledgeisntit?
TheDistrictEducationAuthorityembarrassedLengbyheapingpraiseontohimforwhatheisachieving
forthesevillagechildrensayingwiththeASEANAlliancein2015,CambodiaiswellbehindVietnam&
Thailand&itspeoplelikeLengwhowillhelpmakeadifference.Lengremindedhimthatitsreallykind
overseaspeoplewhohelptosupporthisworkthataremakingthedifference!

ODAwouldnotbeunableachieveanyoftheseprojectswithoutthekindpeoplewhoholdArtShowsin
their country, visitors who purchase paintings, & the very kind donations that we receive. Just a few
shortyearsagoLengwasstrugglingtofeedthechildren&sendthemtoschooldaytoday.Hisplanning
&fundingmodelonlyworksbecauseofyourverykindsupportinalltheseareas&heisverygratefulto
youall.
Leng,SryOn&allthechildrenundertheODAUmbrellaswanttothankyoufortheinterest&supportthat
youallsokindlyshow.Theyareallrevelingintheopportunitiesthatarecomingtheirway,whetherthey
areatODAitselforattheODAVillageEnglishSchools.
BestwishesforaveryMerryChristmas&HappyNewYearfromeveryoneundertheODAUmbrellas.