An Overview

Canodia, working with the Center for Children’s Happiness orphanage in Phnom Penh, will establish a facility for the youth of CCH that are between the ages of 18 and 24 years old (considered 17 to 23 in North America). This new home will free up rooms at CCH and allow them to bring more children out of the dump.

These CCH youth will be provided mentorship and career counseling to help them develop independent living skills and sources of income. These youth need the same direction and support as youth that come from normal family environments.

The Youth House will provide CCH youth an opportunity to safely integrate into Cambodian society. They will pay a low rental fee that will gradually increase with their age. This fee will be used to sustain the operations of the house. Youth will be responsible for their cooking and cleaning. There will be an adult to supervise.

These youth will be able to continue their education and/or enroll in vocational programs, while they start to earn a part time source of income. We will help them obtain job experience and work placement. Some of these youth may decide to work for CCH.

In essence, we will help them to grow into independent and responsible young adults that contribute to Cambodian society and then help people in need.

The Problem

The average age of children at CCH is growing each year. There are many children that will reach the age of 17 years old in the next five years. CCH is currently operating at full capacity and cannot help any more children out of the dump. There are still hundreds of children at the dump that need help. Children and youth in Cambodia are at-risk and vulnerable. Youth need direction and support. Dump children need a place to stay and grow strong.

Our Current Fundraising Goals

In December, we helped CCH purchase the land needed for the new Youth House. We now have the land and need to build a home.

$15,000 to $30,000 in 2008 – This will allow us to start building the facility. Once constructed, we can immediately open spaces at CCH and bring children out of the dump.

$20,000 in 2009 – This will allow us to complete the final level and have enough spaces for the children turning 17 in this year.

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