Little Boy Virak and the Winnipeg schools that helped him.

Hello,

I want to tell you about a special little boy named Virak. I first heard about Virak from his sister Naran at CCH. She wrote me an e-mail about her little brother. This little boy was not able to attend school and stayed in a small shack at the edge of the garbage dump, where most of the garbage pickers live. Naran was very worried about that her brother would not have the chance to get out of this situation.

In Winnipeg, two local schools have taken interest in my journey to Cambodia and decided to hold fundraising activities. The teachers and students of Ecole St. Avila School and the Princess Margaret School in Winnipeg raised enough money together to sponsor this child. I talked to father Sokha and we made arrangements to bring the little boy to CCH from the dump.

I had the opportunity to be at CCH when the little boy arrived there on a motorbike. Virak came to CCH with nothing but the clothes on his back. At first, he looked scared and cried the whole time. Immediately, the children of CCH surrounded him and hugged him over and over again. The little kids took him and tried to play with him. Virak was scared. Nothing worked with him, until finally we read him a book. He loved this little book about dressing up for Halloween. He didn’t even understand what “Halloween” was, but liked the pictures of the many costumes. I read the book to him many times.

Over the day, the kids continued to play with him and hug him. Gradually, he started to smile. Then, her started to play. Then, he started to run around like a little kid with the rest of them. Over the next few days, I saw Virak full of smiles. One day, Virak was taken to the doctor to get many vaccinations. He was also given an HIV test, which is a standard procedures for new children at CCH. I saw a staff person get him some clothes. Virak had new shorts and new shirts to wear. He was a delight.

Virak doesn’t realize what just happened to him. At the moment he arrived on the motorbike, his life changed forever. There was little hope for him living at the dump. This all changed in an instant. He will have food, clothes, health care, good family and receive an education.

…… All of this, because two small classes at a school in Winnipeg, Manitoba decided to make CCH a special place for him too. Thank you to the teachers and the classes of Ecole St. Avila School and the Princess Margaret School. I saw first hand, what we can all do together.

Love Gerry.