	Tabitha Foundation Canada
	Updates from Cambodia 1999 Home » News & Events » Current News » News Archive February 1999 We are now in our fifth year. The government of Cambodia is once again a functioning body with the installation of a coalition. Our hopes and desires are that this latest attempt will be lasting and forward looking. We have been researching, in order to decide where to open our third program. Prey Veng is considered one of the poorest provinces in Cambodia. We officially opened our work there in January. It is a blessing to be able to do so. We have begun the third phase of our development work, which is the movement of loanees into straight savings program. People will be given loans and saving for seven cycles or one and a half years and then encouraged to move into a straight savings program. We are hoping that 100 families will graduate to savings only in this program year. Janne Ritskes March 1999 A phrase has been running through my mind these past few months:"Whatever you do unto the least of these, you do unto me." It is a phrase that has caused me pain and made changes in my life and in our lives with Tabitha. We have become very aware over the past year of the pain and sorrow inflicted on people by the disease called AIDS. In our work at Tabitha, approximately 20% of our families are affected. Our joy is that through our work, these families have been able to cope with the devastation of this disease by enabling the people suffering from it, to do their own business or to produce products. They have been able to contribute to their own families with lives of dignity and respect; in turn their families have been able to surround them with care and with love. But there is a group of people for whom a family is not a viable option. These are the orphans of AIDS parents. The children are tested positive for the HIV virus. They are positive because at birth the HIV antibodies of the mother were passed to the children. For three out of four of these children, the future is bright. Within 18 months the mothers antibodies will wear out and the children will be normal, healthy people. For the remaining ones, their own bodies will begin to develop antibodies and, in time they will develop AIDS. For them their life span is an uncertainty. I had the good fortune to be involved with one such child. Miriam Rose was born November 1.- her mother died shortly after giving birth. Her father died several months earlier. Miriam Rose tests positive for HIV. I was asked to find a home for her. It was the beginning of the holiday season and despite our effort, "there was no room at the inn" - the orphanages were full. At the same time, I was celebrating the birth of another child so long ago, one for whom there was no room at the inn. His life span would be short and marked with uncertainty. And in these reflections came the face af this little girl and the phrase began "What you do for the least of these you do unto me." It was a time of prayer and soul searching; the answer came quickly: a larger apartment at a cheaper price, enough money saved to pay for her food and care. Miriam Rose is now my daughter - she has taught me much these past two months. she has taught me about lactose intolerance; sleep broken nights; endless diapers and a tummy that is never full. She has taught me about fear for another; she has taught me the miracles of life; discovering something new each day; that sunrise is a perfect time for a chat and laughter; that bedtime ritual can be the most precious moments of the day. She has taught me that "the least of these" is a gift beyond measure. Miriam Rose has taught us how to believe in miracles - how to believe in life itself. It is her arrival that has changed us. She has taught all of us at Tabitha that we must reach out to all the least of these in Cambodia. Through Tabitha, we reach families who not only suffer from poverty and AIDS, but from other ills such as being handicapped or widowed or broken hearted by the pain of life. And we know that we help ease those pains. We help by giving no interest loans so that these people can begin a small business; if they are unable to do a business we give them long term employment in the making of cottage industry products. Everyone must save and everyone must write and tell us those things that make them poor. Every ten weeks, each family finishes their loans and all receive their savings with which they take another step out of poverty. It begins with simple things like a towel. or a second set of clothes and moves to bigger dreams of children in school, paying medical bills, buying a bicycle for transportation and ends in the dream of owning a small piece of land and a small but sturdy home. Those are the material aspects for "the least of these" but the psychological impact is much greater - for you see - they begin to understand that they are not the least at all - but people worthy of dignity and respect. CHANTHOU'S STORY Chanthou, with four children and her husband, is the name of a woman who has struggled against poverty all her life. Chanthou's birthplace is in Kampuchea Krom, an area of Cambodia which was annexed by Vietnam after World War II. She and her husband made a living working as labourers on farms. There her family's condition was so bad that they were suffering from famine, they did not eat every day, their children did not go to school and they had no permanent home. In 1993 her family decided to cross the border to live in Cambodia. When they arrived in Cambodia they lived for one year with her brother in the slums of Beoung Trabek. At that time they lived on her husband's sketchy income of 5000 riels per day when he could find work as a hired carpenter. In 1994 her brother sold his house and they moved to Kilometer 6. Here they rented a bed under the roof of a house where they paid 20,000 riels per month. They lived from hand to mouth. often there was not enough food to eat and sometimes they had to borrow money to pay the rent. They went into debt. One day, in the middle of June 1995, was the day that brought hope to her family. She met Nari (community development manager of Tabitha-Cambodia). Nary asked her to work with Tabitha by doing a survey of her situation. Nari asked her what skills she has. With hopeful answer, she said "my daughter and I know nothing but sewing.". With their sewing skills they have worked for the Tabitha Craft Cooperative from then on. They joined in the life cycles or dreaming cycles. Chanthou and her daughter both earn 30,000 riel a week. Her life is richer and more stable now. She was able to buy land and build her own home. Her children are finally able to go to school. She can buy school stationery for her children. " Not only my living condition has improved, but I also have some money for everything my children need," she said. " Now my two daughters have earrings to wear, my children have money to spend at school like their friends. I am very happy and full of hopes, because only in less than one year's work with Tabitha, my family lives in their own home and lead a life with happiness and prosperity. April 19.1999 Dear friends, Happy Khmer New Year - we are just back from a much needed and well deserved week off. - of course the price is 54 e-mails to answer, but the reward far outweighs the cost - Miriam and I had a gift of three days at a 5 star hotel here and we had a great time. She is a beautiful little girl. Janne June 1.1999 Dear Friends, I wanted to share the good news with you. Last week Miriam went in for definitive tests to see if she would develop AID's - the first result is in and she is negative for AID's - it looks like my little girl has a full life ahead of her. I am still getting used to the idea - the deep fear is gone, replaced by a wonderment and Praise for our God. It is good to be in his presence. Janne July 21.1999 Dear friends, A quick update: Chanthon ( not the same lady as in Dispatches May 1999) - her husband is as miserable as ever - after the materials arrived he beat her physically - she is heartbroken - we all talked and decided it was better to wait until he was more stable. So instead Sokkun got her house. She and her husband have been waiting for 2 years - to see their joy was very touching - they kept bringing fruit and water - they helped build and kept bringing more food and water. It was almost to much for the team to be a part of such gratitude. So 3 houses done and 2 more to go. Plus an offer for 2 more teams for next summer. I said one team is enough - we are handling as much as we can. Janne July 1999 Dear friends, It is so busy this week, but all with good things. We just finished a retail order for Australia and this morning we are picking up our volunteer team from Britain - 14 people to build 4 houses. The team is building houses for people who have had no permanent home for the past 20 years. Chanthon is one of those. She has worked with us for 4 years and during that time saved enough money to finally buy land 6 months ago. She also saved $200 for materials for her home. The team is bringing $700 for the rest of the materials and will provide the labor to build. Chanton is very excited by the possibility of having a home, but she is also burdened by her past. She is afraid to hope, because if she hopes for something so big as a home - the gods might get angry and punish her. For her the few days left before her house is built is a time of tensions- tension between excitement and tension of losing that hope. It is so very difficult. Dear friends, I will let you know in a few days how it all went and how Chanthon feels then. As for Miriam she said Mama several times and seems to know who "Mama" is when she says it. How such a little thing can mean so much! Janne. August 18.1999 Dear friends, Another crazy busy week but all for the good. We finished our sixth house this summer and that is enough. Miriam had her first tooth- crawling like she thinks it's a new discovery - gets absolutely filthy dirty - chased a leaf all over the porch - thought she was big stuff. Thanks for all your help and support.. Janne Ritskes August 1999 This month we have made plans for adding a third category to Tabitha's outreach. We have started to develop a consulting/training component which will hopefully make Tabitha financially sustainable throughout the year. This program will be tested for one year as to its viability. We hired 2 more staff for Prey Veng for a total of 3 and 1 new staff for Phnom Penh to replace Heng who has moved into training. We are very thankful that all new staff come from the poorest families and we believe that they will add immeasurably to our work. September 1999 KHOUEN: "BEFORE WHEN I WALKED DOWN THE ROAD THE DOGS WOULD NOT FOLLOW ME, BUT NOW THEY DO." Khouen is aged 42 and she is widowed with two children 12 and 13. She first joined Tabitha as a sewer. She also sells charcoal and rice. She earns 120,000-150,000 riels per month from Tabitha Cottage Industry work. Khouen spends 2 days per week on Tabitha work and 3 days a week on her other businesses. She is involved in the Dream Cycle and has used a loan with her Dream Cycle to build a house. Before joining Tabitha Khouen had no house. She and her 2 children lived on a mat on a wooden bed inside a compound. She could only use this bed at night because the owner of the compound used the bed during the day to entertain guests. Now Khouen has her own small house, food, clothes and she is able to send her older child to school. . She hopes to send her younger child next year as well. Khouen feels better about herself because of her job at Tabitha. Now she no longer worries as much about food and clothes. She hopes to build a bigger and better house made from bricks not wood. Before Tabitha she thought she would always remain poor and never have material things. Now she sees herself as a lucky woman. With her own salary she can buy things for herself and her children. She feels much stronger and self-confident. She jokes that maybe she will be very rich in the future. She says: "Before when I walked down the road the dogs would not follow me, but now they do." She is not alone anymore because she has many friends at Tabitha. In the past she used to cry, but not now. October 1999 This week we met as a staff to discuss our work for the last year and to talk of our dreams for the coming year, beginning in October. It was so very good to be together: to take the time to speak of what we have done well; to speak of what we had failed to do; to speak of hopes and dreams and to speak of fears and failures. We shared of our own personal growth, growth not just as individuals, but as families and as an organization. We encouraged and comforted each other; we were grateful for each others efforts and for our personal support of each other. We spoke of our God who remains ever faithful and gracious in His love for us. It was very good. We spoke of what we had done this year - it was so very much - and we talked about how to share even a little of this with you. And so we made a list for you - you who stand with us in this work 1.) 1827 families affecting 14,616 people have been helped trough cottage industry and small business loans . 2.) Before we started to work with these families, their income was no higher than $15.00 per month - now their incomes are between $100.00 and $150.00 3.) Cottage Industry Sales are the best yet - we have sold $192,356.00 US dollars worth - our highest sales ever. 4.) Small business loans - in the last twelve months we have given out 4808 loans - unbelievable. 5.) All the families involved in our programs must save money that they use to improve their living conditions - so far they they have saved a total of $66,797.57 to make 4137 improvements in their lives - things such as pots and pans, improvedor new housing, electricity and toilets; children in school and paying for the safe delivery of a new child. 6.) Volunteers from Singapore and Britain have helped 12 families to have new homes by raising money and coming to build houses. 7.) We expanded to our third province Prey Veng. 150 families have already taken their first steps towards a happier life. We spoke of our dreams for this coming year - how we would like to reach out to 2000 families, affecting 16,000 people. We spoke of sales of Cottage Industry products being increased to $216,000.00 We spoke of opening our fourth province - another step towards our dream of standing with all the people of this country of 18 provinces. We spoke of how you will stand with us in this dream. It has been a wondrous year. My daughter Miriam Rose, will soon celebrate her first birthday - it is a celebration of life for it appears that she will be free from AIDS. it will be a celebration of a second homecoming for I have been given the gift of Cambodian Citizenship by this government. My home country of Canada allows dual citizenship - a rare and wonderful testimony to freedom of being a world citizen. It is not easy to find the right words to say thank you to each of you - I know I see the visible thank yous in the changes of the lives of the people we reach together. I am so very grateful and stand in awe before my God who enables me to live such a life of privilege - to be with and affected by so many of His people - not just the people here, but also you who stand with us. It is very good! Janne Ritskes November 1999 A good life is freedom. The staff meetings were going well- we were talking about the changes in our personal lives- the changes in the lives of the peoples we worked with. Vonn shared about her vision of working in a new community where "dreams and hopes" were the basis of the work - "I want to do development with the poorest, but I want them to believe they can do - before I thought - maybe they can do - maybe they cannot do - just in case I must give them a loan, otherwise they will be unable to do. But I have learned that it is not so much the loan that helps them so much - it is giving the people the power to decide their own "dreams" which changes things. I want to tell you about Rom Touch: Rom Touch is a woman in her late thirties - she has three children, almost grown - one daughter is married and lives with her. Rom Touch got married right after the Pol Pot years, because she was afraid to be alone. Her husband was not such a good man - he liked other women - he couldn't hold a job - and eventually he just got up and left. Rom Touch has heard he is living with another woman. She was left to raise her three children by herself - she had a small piece of land given to her by the government for settlement. Life was very difficult - often they went to bed hungry and many years the children could not go to school because she had no money for school fees, Her house was a simple one of thatch and mud floors - not much protection from the sun and rain. I met Rom Touch 2 years ago when we started our new community in Choupouk Eyke. She was a very sad person - she earned an income by cutting grass for cows to eat. Sometimes she could find grass - many times she could not. I asked her about her "dreams" - all she wanted was a good house. I told her how she could one day have her house if she saved her money. She listened and she started to believe. I gave her a loan for small business - and she started her daughter in selling vegetables.. She saved her money and the first thing she bought was pots and pans. That first step was enough to start the neighbors teasing her - laughing at her for even thinking she could have a better life. Her son-in-law joined in the derision.. How much that hurt. But she was determined - her second loan started her growing and selling flowers, her third loan to start a small grocery store on the outside of her shack - with her savings she paid off her debts; she bought a bed and mosquito nets - her income was much higher. So I stopped her from getting any more loans. Rom Touch said - I still want my house - help me. I did - I put her into the savings program - Every week she saved between 5,000 and 10,000 riels (one riel = can.$.00009 which would be between ca.$4.50 and $9.00) - the taunting of the neighbors got worse - we told you so - you cannot have a house - in the next year she saved enough to buy cement foundation posts; wood for the floor and tin for the roof. She never complained - she never got tired - but she was sad to hear her neighbors and her son-in-law tease her so. She was so lonely. Last July we had the volunteers from Britain come to build houses for people who had worked so hard for their dreams. The team brought enough money to buy the wood for the last wall and they did the building, so she didn't have to pay for labour. Her house is beautiful - her dream has come true. But you know, Janne, she could have told her neighbors - see, you were wrong. But she didn't. She is helping them now to "dream" - to save their money - to believe in themselves. She is still saving her money - she has another dream- her dream is one day to have tables and chairs - one day to have a bed of her own. No one laughs at her any more." Janne December 1999 HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIRIAM ROSE Janne Ritskes adopted daughter Miriam Rose was one year old on November 1.1999 The time around her birthday was full of anxiety as it was discovered that she had a serious infection of TB in her lungs and lymph glands. Friends everywhere voiced their concern and gave support in prayers. On Nov.19th, Janne wrote: . Thank you for your prayers - they are felt and mean a great deal. Miriam is responding to the medicine- her lumps in her lymph nodes have begun to shrink - her appetite has returned and she is gaining back lost weight - what's the most fun is watching her catch up on the few weeks she lost, trying to learn to walk and talk- both are now her primary focus - I am learning to walk with a bent over position - she thinks Mom is a walking machine - cupboards are no longer safe havens for our goodies- electrical outlets are meant for small fingers - in short the last few days are full of exploration and learning. I am so thankful for that. It is not easy to be a mom and my hat goes off to all moms. Thank everyone for me - it means a lot, Janne *More reports from the staff meeting:* All the staff were anxious to share - there were so many stories to tell. Dara spoke of how his life had changed with Tabitha. "Before Tabitha - my life was sad - I had no freedom - I could not get a job, I could not earn money - I always had to ask my father for money, if I wanted to buy anything or try anything. I was so ashamed of myself - I thought I was no good. Then I started to work with Tabitha - I started to save and I could choose to do what I wanted. Now I am giving that freedom to others. It is liberty that we give, liberty to choose how we want to live. Kum Chuy is one of the first people I worked with in June of 1997. She is in her mid twenties, married with two small children. She and her husband were very poor and could not afford to live away from her family. So ten of them lived in a small house thatch and mud. She was very discouraged and sad. I said to her: "start your own business and save to build your own house." I gave her her first loan and she started a small business selling meat. Over the next two years Kum Chuy built her business to a large size - she was able to buy her own stall in the market. She saved to buy a motorbike - now her husband can go and buy live pigs which they butcher and sell. She bought cheap land. It was cheap because it was always flooded. She bought landfill and then she saved money for materials for her new house. She built the house last October - it has cement foundation posts - wooden floors and walls and a tin roof. Then she saved her money to dig a well for water; she just finished her new toilet. She has pots and pans and they bought a battery and a second hand TV. The children are in school. I stopped her loans a year and a half ago, because her income from her business was so good. She is still saving with us - she has more dreams. Before she was afraid of life - she was very depressed and very worried about her life and that of her family. She had no hopes, just fear. Now she is free, Janne, free to choose how she will live. She and her husband work hard together. They don't just work for themselves, they help seven other families now also to be free. You see Tabitha gave me the freedom to choose how I want to live and I am so lucky that my job involves helping so many other families having the freedom to choose how they will live. Maybe one day all the people in Cambodia will be free - do you think that one day we could help everyone?" The staff meetings are over - our fifth year has ended - our sixth year is beginning. We are thankful for the liberty and freedom to reach out; we are in awe of the strength of giving freedom to others; such a wondrous gift; we are free to bask in God's grace for giving us this life. Thank you for giving us the gift of freedom. Janne Ritskes BACK TO TOP Home » News & Events » Current News » News Archive

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Updates from Cambodia 1999

Home » News & Events » Current News » News Archive

February 1999

We are now in our fifth year. The government of Cambodia is once again a functioning body with the installation of a coalition. Our hopes and desires are that this latest attempt will be lasting and forward looking.

We have been researching, in order to decide where to open our third program. Prey Veng is considered one of the poorest provinces in Cambodia. We officially opened our work there in January. It is a blessing to be able to do so.

We have begun the third phase of our development work, which is the movement of loanees into straight savings program. People will be given loans and saving for seven cycles or one and a half years and then encouraged to move into a straight savings program. We are hoping that 100 families will graduate to savings only in this program year.

Janne Ritskes

March 1999

A phrase has been running through my mind these past few months:"Whatever you do unto the least of these, you do unto me." It is a phrase that has caused me pain and made changes in my life and in our lives with Tabitha. We have become very aware over the past year of the pain and sorrow inflicted on people by the disease called AIDS. In our work at Tabitha, approximately 20% of our families are affected. Our joy is that through our work, these families have been able to cope with the devastation of this disease by enabling the people suffering from it, to do their own business or to produce products. They have been able to contribute to their own families with lives of dignity and respect; in turn their families have been able to surround them with care and with love.

But there is a group of people for whom a family is not a viable option. These are the orphans of AIDS parents. The children are tested positive for the HIV virus. They are positive because at birth the HIV antibodies of the mother were passed to the children. For three out of four of these children, the future is bright. Within 18 months the mothers antibodies will wear out and the children will be normal, healthy people. For the remaining ones, their own bodies will begin to develop antibodies and, in time they will develop AIDS. For them their life span is an uncertainty.

I had the good fortune to be involved with one such child. Miriam Rose was born November 1.- her mother died shortly after giving birth. Her father died several months earlier. Miriam Rose tests positive for HIV. I was asked to find a home for her. It was the beginning of the holiday season and despite our effort, "there was no room at the inn" - the orphanages were full. At the same time, I was celebrating the birth of another child so long ago, one for whom there was no room at the inn. His life span would be short and marked with uncertainty. And in these reflections came the face af this little girl and the phrase began "What you do for the least of these you do unto me." It was a time of prayer and soul searching; the answer came quickly: a larger apartment at a cheaper price, enough money saved to pay for her food and care.

Miriam Rose is now my daughter - she has taught me much these past two months. she has taught me about lactose intolerance; sleep broken nights; endless diapers and a tummy that is never full. She has taught me about fear for another; she has taught me the miracles of life; discovering something new each day; that sunrise is a perfect time for a chat and laughter; that bedtime ritual can be the most precious moments of the day. She has taught me that "the least of these" is a gift beyond measure.

Miriam Rose has taught us how to believe in miracles - how to believe in life itself. It is her arrival that has changed us. She has taught all of us at Tabitha that we must reach out to all the least of these in Cambodia. Through Tabitha, we reach families who not only suffer from poverty and AIDS, but from other ills such as being handicapped or widowed or broken hearted by the pain of life. And we know that we help ease those pains.

We help by giving no interest loans so that these people can begin a small business; if they are unable to do a business we give them long term employment in the making of cottage industry products. Everyone must save and everyone must write and tell us those things that make them poor. Every ten weeks, each family finishes their loans and all receive their savings with which they take another step out of poverty. It begins with simple things like a towel. or a second set of clothes and moves to bigger dreams of children in school, paying medical bills, buying a bicycle for transportation and ends in the dream of owning a small piece of land and a small but sturdy home. Those are the material aspects for "the least of these" but the psychological impact is much greater - for you see - they begin to understand that they are not the least at all - but people worthy of dignity and respect.

CHANTHOU'S STORY

Chanthou, with four children and her husband, is the name of a woman who has struggled against poverty all her life. Chanthou's birthplace is in Kampuchea Krom, an area of Cambodia which was annexed by Vietnam after World War II. She and her husband made a living working as labourers on farms. There her family's condition was so bad that they were suffering from famine, they did not eat every day, their children did not go to school and they had no permanent home.

In 1993 her family decided to cross the border to live in Cambodia. When they arrived in Cambodia they lived for one year with her brother in the slums of Beoung Trabek. At that time they lived on her husband's sketchy income of 5000 riels per day when he could find work as a hired carpenter. In 1994 her brother sold his house and they moved to Kilometer 6. Here they rented a bed under the roof of a house where they paid 20,000 riels per month. They lived from hand to mouth. often there was not enough food to eat and sometimes they had to borrow money to pay the rent. They went into debt.

One day, in the middle of June 1995, was the day that brought hope to her family. She met Nari (community development manager of Tabitha-Cambodia). Nary asked her to work with Tabitha by doing a survey of her situation. Nari asked her what skills she has. With hopeful answer, she said "my daughter and I know nothing but sewing.".

With their sewing skills they have worked for the Tabitha Craft Cooperative from then on. They joined in the life cycles or dreaming cycles. Chanthou and her daughter both earn 30,000 riel a week. Her life is richer and more stable now. She was able to buy land and build her own home. Her children are finally able to go to school. She can buy school stationery for her children.

" Not only my living condition has improved, but I also have some money for everything my children need," she said. " Now my two daughters have earrings to wear, my children have money to spend at school like their friends. I am very happy and full of hopes, because only in less than one year's work with Tabitha, my family lives in their own home and lead a life with happiness and prosperity.

April 19.1999

Dear friends,

Happy Khmer New Year - we are just back from a much needed and well deserved week off. -
of course the price is 54 e-mails to answer, but the reward far outweighs the cost - Miriam and I had a gift of three days at a 5 star hotel here and we had a great time. She is a beautiful little girl.

Janne

June 1.1999

Dear Friends,

I wanted to share the good news with you.
Last week Miriam went in for definitive tests to see if she would develop AID's - the first result is in and she is negative for AID's - it looks like my little girl has a full life ahead of her.
I am still getting used to the idea - the deep fear is gone, replaced by a wonderment and Praise for our God. It is good to be in his presence.

Janne

July 21.1999

Dear friends,

A quick update: Chanthon ( not the same lady as in Dispatches May 1999) - her husband is as miserable as ever - after the materials arrived he beat her physically - she is heartbroken - we all talked and decided it was better to wait until he was more stable.

So instead Sokkun got her house. She and her husband have been waiting for 2 years - to see their joy was very touching - they kept bringing fruit and water - they helped build and kept bringing more food and water. It was almost to much for the team to be a part of such gratitude. So 3 houses done and 2 more to go. Plus an offer for 2 more teams for next summer. I said one team is enough - we are handling as much as we can.

Janne

July 1999

Dear friends,

It is so busy this week, but all with good things. We just finished a retail order for Australia and this morning we are picking up our volunteer team from Britain - 14 people to build 4 houses.

The team is building houses for people who have had no permanent home for the past 20 years.
Chanthon is one of those. She has worked with us for 4 years and during that time saved enough money to finally buy land 6 months ago. She also saved $200 for materials for her home. The team is bringing $700 for the rest of the materials and will provide the labor to build. Chanton is very excited by the possibility of having a home, but she is also burdened by her past. She is afraid to hope, because if she hopes for something so big as a home - the gods might get angry
and punish her. For her the few days left before her house is built is a time of tensions- tension between excitement and tension of losing that hope. It is so very difficult.

Dear friends, I will let you know in a few days how it all went and how Chanthon feels then. As for Miriam she said Mama several times and seems to know who "Mama" is when she says it. How such a little thing can mean so much!

Janne.

August 18.1999

Dear friends,

Another crazy busy week but all for the good. We finished our sixth house this summer and that is enough.
Miriam had her first tooth- crawling like she thinks it's a new discovery - gets absolutely filthy dirty - chased a leaf all over the porch - thought she was big stuff.
Thanks for all your help and support..

Janne Ritskes

August 1999

This month we have made plans for adding a third category to Tabitha's outreach. We have started to develop a consulting/training component which will hopefully make Tabitha financially sustainable throughout the year. This program will be tested for one year as to its viability.

We hired 2 more staff for Prey Veng for a total of 3 and 1 new staff for Phnom Penh to replace Heng who has moved into training. We are very thankful that all new staff come from the poorest families and we believe that they will add immeasurably to our work.

September 1999

KHOUEN: "BEFORE WHEN I WALKED DOWN THE ROAD THE DOGS WOULD NOT FOLLOW ME, BUT NOW THEY DO."

Khouen is aged 42 and she is widowed with two children 12 and 13. She first joined Tabitha as a sewer. She also sells charcoal and rice. She earns 120,000-150,000 riels per month from Tabitha Cottage Industry work. Khouen spends 2 days per week on Tabitha work and 3 days a week on her other businesses. She is involved in the Dream Cycle and has used a loan with her Dream Cycle to build a house.

Before joining Tabitha Khouen had no house. She and her 2 children lived on a mat on a wooden bed inside a compound. She could only use this bed at night because the owner of the compound used the bed during the day to entertain guests. Now Khouen has her own small house, food, clothes and she is able to send her older child to school. . She hopes to send her younger child next year as well.

Khouen feels better about herself because of her job at Tabitha. Now she no longer worries as much about food and clothes. She hopes to build a bigger and better house made from bricks not wood. Before Tabitha she thought she would always remain poor and never have material things. Now she sees herself as a lucky woman. With her own salary she can buy things for herself and her children. She feels much stronger and self-confident. She jokes that maybe she will be very rich in the future. She says: "Before when I walked down the road the dogs would not follow me, but now they do." She is not alone anymore because she has many friends at Tabitha. In the past she used to cry, but not now.

October 1999

This week we met as a staff to discuss our work for the last year and to talk of our dreams for the coming year, beginning in October. It was so very good to be together: to take the time to speak of what we have done well; to speak of what we had failed to do; to speak of hopes and dreams and to speak of fears and failures. We shared of our own personal growth, growth not just as individuals, but as families and as an organization. We encouraged and comforted each other; we were grateful for each others efforts and for our personal support of each other. We spoke of our God who remains ever faithful and gracious in His love for us. It was very good.

We spoke of what we had done this year - it was so very much - and we talked about how to share even a little of this with you. And so we made a list for you - you who stand with us in this work

1.) 1827 families affecting 14,616 people have been helped trough cottage industry and small business loans .
2.) Before we started to work with these families, their income was no higher than $15.00 per month - now their incomes are between $100.00 and $150.00
3.) Cottage Industry Sales are the best yet - we have sold $192,356.00 US dollars worth - our highest sales ever.
4.) Small business loans - in the last twelve months we have given out 4808 loans - unbelievable.
5.) All the families involved in our programs must save money that they use to improve their living conditions - so far they they have saved a total of $66,797.57 to make 4137 improvements in their lives - things such as pots and pans, improvedor new housing, electricity and toilets; children in school and paying for the safe delivery of a new child.
6.) Volunteers from Singapore and Britain have helped 12 families to have new homes by raising money and coming to build houses.
7.) We expanded to our third province Prey Veng. 150 families have already taken their first steps towards a happier life.

We spoke of our dreams for this coming year - how we would like to reach out to 2000 families, affecting 16,000 people. We spoke of sales of Cottage Industry products being increased to $216,000.00 We spoke of opening our fourth province - another step towards our dream of standing with all the people of this country of 18 provinces.

We spoke of how you will stand with us in this dream.
It has been a wondrous year. My daughter Miriam Rose, will soon celebrate her first birthday - it is a celebration of life for it appears that she will be free from AIDS. it will be a celebration of a second homecoming for I have been given the gift of Cambodian Citizenship by this government. My home country of Canada allows dual citizenship - a rare and wonderful testimony to freedom of being a world citizen.

It is not easy to find the right words to say thank you to each of you - I know I see the visible thank yous in the changes of the lives of the people we reach together. I am so very grateful and stand in awe before my God who enables me to live such a life of privilege - to be with and affected by so many of His people - not just the people here, but also you who stand with us.

It is very good!

Janne Ritskes

November 1999

A good life is freedom.

The staff meetings were going well- we were talking about the changes in our personal lives- the changes in the lives of the peoples we worked with. Vonn shared about her vision of working in a new community where "dreams and hopes" were the basis of the work - "I want to do development with the poorest, but I want them to believe they can do - before I thought - maybe they can do - maybe they cannot do - just in case I must give them a loan, otherwise they will be unable to do. But I have learned that it is not so much the loan that helps them so much - it is giving the people the power to decide their own "dreams" which changes things. I want to tell you about Rom Touch:

Rom Touch is a woman in her late thirties - she has three children, almost grown - one daughter is married and lives with her. Rom Touch got married right after the Pol Pot years, because she was afraid to be alone. Her husband was not such a good man - he liked other women - he couldn't hold a job - and eventually he just got up and left. Rom Touch has heard he is living with another woman. She was left to raise her three children by herself - she had a small piece of land given to her by the government for settlement. Life was very difficult - often they went to bed hungry and many years the children could not go to school because she had no money for school fees, Her house was a simple one of thatch and mud floors - not much protection from the sun and rain.

I met Rom Touch 2 years ago when we started our new community in Choupouk Eyke. She was a very sad person - she earned an income by cutting grass for cows to eat. Sometimes she could find grass - many times she could not. I asked her about her "dreams" - all she wanted was a good house. I told her how she could one day have her house if she saved her money. She listened and she started to believe. I gave her a loan for small business - and she started her daughter in selling vegetables.. She saved her money and the first thing she bought was pots and pans.

That first step was enough to start the neighbors teasing her - laughing at her for even thinking she could have a better life. Her son-in-law joined in the derision.. How much that hurt. But she was determined - her second loan started her growing and selling flowers, her third loan to start a small grocery store on the outside of her shack - with her savings she paid off her debts; she bought a bed and mosquito nets - her income was much higher. So I stopped her from getting any more loans.

Rom Touch said - I still want my house - help me. I did - I put her into the savings program - Every week she saved between 5,000 and 10,000 riels (one riel = can.$.00009 which would be between ca.$4.50 and $9.00) - the taunting of the neighbors got worse - we told you so - you cannot have a house - in the next year she saved enough to buy cement foundation posts; wood for the floor and tin for the roof. She never complained - she never got tired - but she was sad to hear her neighbors and her son-in-law tease her so. She was so lonely.

Last July we had the volunteers from Britain come to build houses for people who had worked so hard for their dreams. The team brought enough money to buy the wood for the last wall and they did the building, so she didn't have to pay for labour. Her house is beautiful - her dream has come true. But you know, Janne, she could have told her neighbors - see, you were wrong. But she didn't. She is helping them now to "dream" - to save their money - to believe in themselves. She is still saving her money - she has another dream- her dream is one day to have tables and chairs - one day to have a bed of her own. No one laughs at her any more."

Janne

December 1999


HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIRIAM ROSE
Janne Ritskes adopted daughter Miriam Rose was one year old on November 1.1999   The time around her birthday was full of anxiety as it was discovered that she had a serious infection of TB in her lungs and lymph glands. Friends everywhere voiced their concern and gave support in prayers.

On Nov.19th, Janne wrote:
.
Thank you for your prayers - they are felt and mean a great deal. Miriam is responding to the medicine- her lumps in her lymph nodes have begun to shrink - her appetite has returned and she is gaining back lost weight - what's the most fun is watching her catch up on the few weeks she lost, trying to learn to walk and talk- both are now her primary focus - I am learning to walk with a bent over position - she thinks Mom is a walking machine - cupboards are no longer safe havens for our goodies- electrical outlets are meant for small fingers - in short the last few days are full of exploration and learning. I am so thankful for that. It is not easy to be a mom and my hat goes off to all moms.

Thank everyone for me - it means a lot,
Janne

More reports from the staff meeting:

All the staff were anxious to share - there were so many stories to tell. Dara spoke of how his life had changed with Tabitha. "Before Tabitha - my life was sad - I had no freedom - I could not get a job, I could not earn money - I always had to ask my father for money, if I wanted to buy anything or try anything. I was so ashamed of myself - I thought I was no good. Then I started to work with Tabitha - I started to save and I could choose to do what I wanted. Now I am giving that freedom to others. It is liberty that we give, liberty to choose how we want to live.

Kum Chuy is one of the first people I worked with in June of 1997. She is in her mid twenties, married with two small children. She and her husband were very poor and could not afford to live away from her family. So ten of them lived in a small house thatch and mud. She was very discouraged and sad. I said to her: "start your own business and save to build your own house." I gave her her first loan and she started a small business selling meat. Over the next two years Kum Chuy built her business to a large size - she was able to buy her own stall in the market. She saved to buy a motorbike - now her husband can go and buy live pigs which they butcher and sell.

She bought cheap land. It was cheap because it was always flooded. She bought landfill and then she saved money for materials for her new house. She built the house last October - it has cement foundation posts - wooden floors and walls and a tin roof. Then she saved her money to dig a well for water; she just finished her new toilet. She has pots and pans and they bought a battery and a second hand TV. The children are in school. I stopped her loans a year and a half ago, because her income from her business was so good. She is still saving with us - she has more dreams.

Before she was afraid of life - she was very depressed and very worried about her life and that of her family. She had no hopes, just fear. Now she is free, Janne, free to choose how she will live. She and her husband work hard together. They don't just work for themselves, they help seven other families now also to be free. You see Tabitha gave me the freedom to choose how I want to live and I am so lucky that my job involves helping so many other families having the freedom to choose how they will live. Maybe one day all the people in Cambodia will be free - do you think that one day we could help everyone?"

The staff meetings are over - our fifth year has ended - our sixth year is beginning.
We are thankful for the liberty and freedom to reach out; we are in awe of the strength of giving freedom to others; such a wondrous gift; we are free to bask in God's grace for giving us this life.

Thank you for giving us the gift of freedom.

Janne Ritskes

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