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 Aims of Sunshine House:
Orphaned Cambodian children are a vulnerable population in Cambodian society. Young boys and girls often end up living on the streets and can easily fall victim to child prostitution and paedophilia. The extent of orphaning in Cambodia has been summarized as: 7.8% of children below 15 years old have lost one or both parents, approximately 350 000 children. More than half of these are aged between 10 and 14 years. 0.8% of all children under 15, some 34 000, have lost both parents. Among children below 2 years, 2.5% have one or both parents dead - approximately 14 000. (Ref: National Institute for Public Health and Research 1998) . These statistics only relate to children found living in households. It is likely that there are a considerable number of unaccounted for orphaned children that are living on the streets of Cambodia. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1998) has further identified that the situation of orphans in Cambodia will get significantly worse in the coming two decades, as a result of the spread of HIV in the country. The National Centre for HIV/AIDS, Ministry of Health (1998) projects that by the year 2003, 10,000 orphans will have been created by the disease, and by the year 2010 there will be a further 10,000 orphaned children. The need for Sunshine House was identified as a priority in Awareness Cambodia's Strategic Plan. It provides a safe and normalized environment for the nurturing and empowerment of orphaned Cambodian children. We provide opportunities for our children to develop intellectually, physically, spiritually, socially and culturally. Wherever possible we aim to maintain our children's cultural identity and to foster community and social responsibility so they reintegrate as solid citizens of Cambodia. Awareness Cambodia funds the attendance of the children at local village schools and encourages their involvement in Cambodian cultural activities and learning. English language tuition is also available to children and adults from villages in the vicinity of Sunshine House. This includes both school room and conversational English. Sunshine House employs local Cambodian builders and construction workers. The orphanage is consistent with local design and constructed using locally available materials. How to get involved
Kompong Speu Province; 8 kilometres from Kompong Speu Town, approx 50 kilometres from Phnom Penh (Cambodia capital). Target group The target group for the Sunshine House Project is Cambodian children who have been primarily orphaned as a result of the AIDS epidemic. Background - Sunshine House Story year 2000 construction begins In 2000 Awareness Cambodia established its first project, Sunshine House, in a village approximately 1 hours drive from Phnom Penh. The mountainous countryside was carefully chosen for its fresh air and open spaces. The first buildings were erected to make a home for children orphaned due to the ravages of AIDS. The sad fact is that defenseless children's voices cannot always be heard. Awareness Cambodia recognizes this truth and is working through projects such as Sunshine House to change this by "rebuilding the children of Cambodia". Our commitment is to provide our children with the necessary resources they need to give them hope for a brighter future. Awareness Cambodia has progressively built a small village at our original site housing Khmer staff, children and a full time volunteer nurse and her family. Sunshine House is now fully functional and can provide residential accommodation for up to 80 orphaned children. There is a fully integrated Eco-Farm operating, with daily hands-on participation from all children who are able. That participation ranges from feeding the animals right through to computerized animal management. We know this is all part of equipping our children to stand up and make their contribution to Cambodia's future. All of us are encouraged as we see the progress the children are making. It's a labour of love watching these young lives mature into young adults who are going to be the difference Cambodia so desperately needs. "One hundred years from now, it will not matter what my bank account was, how big my house was,
or what kind of car I drove, but the world may be a little better,
because I was important in the life of a child."
FOREST WITCRAFT
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