1) We help open doors to easy, creative and cost effective education. Not just remedial education; learning that uses technology and English language skills to open new windows to the world.
2) We collaborate with community leaders and organizations to help create safe environments for kids and build bridges of sustainable support by:
- increasing capacity of individuals, families and communities – including “dignity” items such as wells and toilets
- illuminating common ground on which to meet, and facilitating these meetings with trust, respect and joy
3) We foster self-empowerment and individual expression so that each person uniquely contributes to their own well-being as well as that of others’.
4) We operate through on-the-ground partnerships that are more economical, more respectful, and much easier on resource-poor partners.
During the Khmer Rouge regime, education, religion, economic stability and individual expression were severely damaged.
- 20% of the entire population was killed
- 90% of all teachers were killed
- 90% of all schools and religious structures were destroyed
Education has been extremely slow to recover, and today:
- 60% of teachers have only secondary education
- only 32% of children progress to secondary education
- 50% of young girls are laborers instead of students
- 83% of state education funds go to salaries and operations
Economy and infrastructure have been extremely slow to recover as well:
- 1 in 5 children ages 5 to 9 are conscripted into child labor out of family need
- 40% have no access to safe water, even fewer have access to toilets
- schools, temples, private homes and businesses are still being slowly rebuilt but with poor quality materials and skills
What WOW does in Cambodia:
- supports English language schools in three villages in Siem Reap Province
- assists an entire village in developing their sustainability plans and activities
- networks with other charities, governmental organizations, funders, local businesses and individuals to create solid webs of sustainable support
Resources we coordinate:
- new schools that can withstand monsoon conditions
- materials for school interiors – desks, whiteboards, maps, educational posters, etc.
- class books, workbooks and school supplies for kids
- bicycles for children to get to school
- salaries and training for teachers
- learning gardens
- solar energy production
- internet for web-based learning
- creative modeling that reduces demands on teachers and need for supplies
Why go abroad when people are in need right here in America?
Americans are rich in many things, charity and generosity of spirit chief among them. People in need in the US can turn to family, neighbors, places of worship, government services and the street corner kindness of strangers.
Other countries are not so fortunate. Cambodia in particular is still severely crippled in its recovery from a devastating genocide, and the compassion and generosity of others goes a long, long way in making a very real difference for these hardworking people, ensuring a future that is much brighter than the darkness of their past. Wide Open Wings ensures that Americans’ assistance is not a handout but a strong and sure hand up.