CHEAV | Cambodia
I’m No Longer Forsaken
Cheav, 68, is the father of ten children, six of whom still live at home. Since his wife is in prison, he is must act as both their father and mother.
They live in a poor, rural village an hour outside Phnom Pehn, Cambodia. Their home is made of thatch and leaves, which protects them very little from the wind and rain.
Cheav works as a day laborer, and makes about $1.20 a day. His body is weak, and it is increasingly difficult to manage the jobs that come his way. After his wife was sent to prison, his children stopped going to school, because he could not afford their uniforms, and they had no way to get there safely. Cheav was losing hope.
A local church partner from the Prison Fellowship International’s child sponsorship program learned of Cheav and his family’s situation, and visited them. After a few months, the four youngest, Seak Lan, Seak Long, Srey Toch and Srey Thom were enrolled and the whole family experiences benefits. Their unstable home now has new, sturdy walls, and a roof. Food packages supplement what Cheav’s meager daily wage cannot provide, ensuring the youngest children receive the nutritious food they need to grow strong and stay healthy. They also receive regular health checks, are back in school, and their new bicycles allow them to travel to and from classes safely. Cheav dreams his children will become teachers or metal workers—that they will have better lives.
Cheav is now better able to provide for his family, because the program provided him with five hens, and taught him how to clean, care for, and raise them to eat and to sell locally. Since learning this new skill, he has produced 30 chickens.
In the last year, Cheav developed relationships with the local church pastor and social worker, and through them, became a Christian. While Cheav continues to struggle to meet all of his family’s needs, he is prayerful, and grateful for the change in his family’s life.
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