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Phnom Penh has grown so much in the past couple of years that I now get lost in a city that I once could walk around with confidence, easily identifying my location by looking for one of only a few five-story structures that made up its skyline. Today, however, the buildings below sit on a…
On Monday we were on the road again, crossing the Mekong River at Neak Loeung for the second time in just a few days. I wasn’t sure the girls would remember me after four years… but they did, and we were pleased with the progress they are making. One of the nice things about visiting…
I haven’t gotten out of the house much lately because of the extreme heat, but was given the opportunity to attend a meeting with Social Services and two of the Wat Opot Children who were being placed in another children’s center, because they were not doing well with the previous placement. It was also my…
Years ago, when I first arrived in Cambodia, I would ride a ferry across the mighty Mekong River, to Vietnamese fishing villages on the other side. There were no tall buildings at the time in Phnom Penh, yet the differences between the two sides were drastic. The fishing villages had no electricity, or running water,…
Nightly visits at my flat are becoming more frequent as the kids in Phnom Penh learn that I have returned. Today Mr. Dara and I started the follow-up home visits with the children who have been returned to their families. We spent the whole day on the road but the results were encouraging. Everyone we…
This was the final group picture of the children living at Wat Opot. A few days later Mr. Dara and the reintegration team would begin taking children back to their homeland to live with their families or relatives. For some, the change will be good, for they will have the opportunity to use, what they…
It was inevitable I suppose… nothing lasts forever and at some point, there has to be an ending. That is what is happening right now at the Wat Opot Community. Mr. Dara and representatives of the Social Services of Cambodia have begun the process of home evaluations so that the children can be reintegrated with…
Fear not the darkness…កុំខ្លាចភាពងងឹតfor it is only in the darkest of times ព្រោះវាស្ថិតនៅក្នុងគ្រាដ៏ងងឹតបំផុតthat we find ourselves standing at the Threshold ដែលយើងឃើញខ្លួនយើងឈរនៅកន្លែងមួយof an Awakening to Truth ការភ្ញាក់ដឹងខ្លួនចំពោះការពិតand the Transformation of ignorance និងការផ្លាស់ប្តូរភាពល្ងង់ខ្លៅinto Wisdom and Compassion.នៅក្នុងប្រាជ្ញានិងការអាណិតអាសូរ។ Although this website is meant to have a positive effect on our lives, it would not be fair to. exclude the…
This was not how I had planned it when we started out some years ago. Wat Opot was to be a permanent home for its residents, and me. Things don’t always go as planned, however. and although I am disappointed in losing Wat Opot as our home, I am also very grateful for the many…
2001 to 2024 It is with great sadness that I inform you of the changes at the Wat Opot Children’s Community (WOCC). Due to illness and advanced age, I have had to return to the States and can not be certain that I will be able to return to Cambodia for full-time work. For that…