Tabitha newsletters
December 8, 2004
Dear friends and partners, Its not often that you folks would get 2 newsletters in a row but I felt that this one was too good not too share. The Canadian International School in Singapore is having a fund raiser to raise money for houses and Tabitha programs. The teachers challenged the students to raise $800 for a house - if the students did so, one of the teachers would shave their heads. How did the students do?
December 7, 2004
Dear friends and partners, We've had an unusual number of events the past few weeks - I thought I'd just share one of the most poignant ones that I experienced. Several weeks ago, I traveled with the staff to meet 2 groups of families in one of our new districts - Kirivon. Now Kirivon is one of those places that I do not rush to visit as the roads are a bit bone jarring to say the least. The request had been presented in August - it took me 3 months to find the time to come. Srei, Tharry, Phon, Cheiring and Pow were all delighted - actually Cheiring and Pow were a bit nervous - they are relatively new staff and I have a reputation of asking the hard questions.
November, 2004
Dear friends and partners, It has been a very busy few weeks. October was our tenth anniversary month and so we celebrated. Of course, we didn't do it the normal way by having a big party - instead we decided to build as many houses as we could for as many families as we could. The result was 9 volunteer teams came with 183 people and they built 62 houses. This averages to 2 houses per day - what a month! The teams brought their own brand of excitement and of grace which was infectious and so we were all excited and were surrounded with grace. What a way to celebrate!
September 2004
Dear friends and partners, It has been a very hectic month since I last wrote to you. We found a new building - its in a better location - as a friend of mine said - "its fun to go through the store - every room is another room of treasures" - a fine compliment and explains our joy and thanksgiving. The actual act of moving was not so much joy - we were horrified at how much stuff we have accumulated so it became an opportunity to clean house. Our old landlord was horrified that we would leave - our new landlord was delighted - he agreed to do all the repairs and additions that we wanted. We had customers before the displays were ready - a steady flow each day - so different from our old location. And all of this was accomplished in three short but very long weeks.
August 2004
Dear friends and partners, It seems like so long since I have talked with all of you. Partly, it is a result of being in Canada for the month of July. Miriam and I left on the first of July and returned at the end of the month. We traveled to see family and to meet up with 12 of our adopted children and their families. What a privilege it was to see these young people again - to be allowed to enjoy their personalities and their strengthening friendships. It is so very good.
June 2, 2004
Dear friends and partners, One of the best parts of my job is the privilege of visiting the project sites. These visits are about having time to talk one on one with all the development staff and seeing what they have done. Nari often accompanies me on these visits so that we are both up to date on what is happening. On our first site visit we went with Srei, Tharry, Pon and Heng to our new project in Kampot province. There was lots of time to talk with each of them and time to talk with all of us and even some time to meditate for the roads to Kampot vary in degrees of horribleness - on a scale of 1-10 - with 10 being the best - we started on a 6 and rapidly decreased to a 2 - I am a seasoned traveler - but this time, even I was beginning to fade with the bouncing and jouncing and the terrible snail's pace we kept up for hours at a time.
April, 2004
Dear friends and partners, Happy Khmer New Years to each and every one of you. Its been an extra-ordinary month but it seems that each new month, each new day is extra-ordinary. This month we closed all our shops and all our work down in order to celebrate the holiday - it is the first time that we have been able to do so since we opened Tabitha in 1994. It was a gift given to us by all of you - our support base is becoming strong enough to bear the closure for a few days - giving all of us a much needed break.
March 24, 2004
Dear friends and partners, It has been an unusually busy time since I last wrote to all of you. Let me begin by saying that the hot season has arrived earlier than usual. This brings its own unique set of problems. It is in this time that so many of our staff and workers become ill. Last Friday, we were rejoicing over opening our first real shop in Siem Reap - as we were talking, Ani, our manager, received a phone call. One of our long time workers in cottage industry had passed away suddenly. Meng Sarouen was only thirty, she had come that morning to our devotions, she seemed to be fine, smiling and chatting with all of us. As is the norm on Fridays, she received her pay, picked up her work for this week and went home. When she arrived, she sat down on her mat and passed away. Meng had suffered from tuberculosis for many years - the hot season exacerbates the illness. She died without complaint - her 3 year old adopted daughter was taken home by her neighbors - orphaned yet again.
February 18, 2004
Dear friends and partners, Starting in new provinces always involves a lot of work - staff spend days traveling through out the province - meeting with the local chiefs and talking with the people. Discussions are held with me and other staff - more questions - more traveling - more answers until we think we should begin.
January, 2004
Dear friends and partners, It is the beginning of a new year and like all new beginnings - there is an air of anticipation and excitement for what the future will bring. For me personally, the year 2003 ended in sadness and celebration. My mother passed away in mid-December - she lived to a good age - her life was one of faith and anticipation and excitement - she saw much and did even more. My daughter, Miriam and I traveled home to Canada to grieve with our family and to celebrate my mother's life and the life she had given to all of us. It was a time of excitement as Miriam discovered snow and all its joys; she discovered what cold is and all its trauma; she learned about grief and that it is okay to be sad; she learned that family is a source of renewal and hope.
