As you may already know, PBS sponsors five young Cambodian girls through the Bestow Sisterhood and the Cambodia Charitable Trust (CCT), helping them stay in school and protecting them against the very real dangers of human trafficking and sex slavery.
In a country with no welfare system and no community groups offering any form of support, this kind of direct sponsorship is often the only support available to a young girl and her family. Besides helping her to attend school, sponsorship also enables her family to use the money for food, additional school lessons, medical costs or to help their other children.
Education breaks the poverty cycle and gives children choices and here at PBS we’re so glad to be able to give five young girls the opportunity to realise their potential and strive for a better life for themselves.
In February, CCT visited one of our “Little Sisters” Dalen, at her school and we wanted to share a bit about her and the real, tangible difference that sponsorship can make to an entire family.
11 years old and in grade six at school, Dalen is a curious, bright and well-behaved student with a very sweet smile. Her and her 8-year-old brother live with their great grandmother who is 78 years old and who also raised Dalen’s father. In rural Cambodia it’s not uncommon for children to live with grandparents or great grandparents, as parents often have to live and work in cities in order to earn even the most basic wage.
Both Dalen’s parents live in Phnom Penh; her father works in a print shop and her mother works in a garment factory. Every two weeks they make the three-hour trip home by motorbike or shared van to see Dalen and her brother and share what little money they earn with the family. Their wages are minimal and their working conditions poor, but it’s better than having no work at all.
Dalen’s grandfather (her father’s father) lives nearby and takes Dalen and her brother to and from school each day to ensure they get there safely. Dalen’s family home has a toilet and electricity for lights, and they also have a small rice field that harvests enough rice to feed the family for most of the year.
Dalen has dreams for the future and wants to be a doctor or work in a company when she grows up. For now, she enjoys skipping and playing traditional Khmer games with her younger brother and likes making art.
CCT tells us that the sponsorship money received each month is such a help to Dalen’s grandmother as it ensures the family has enough food to eat and covers basic school requirements. We’re so glad to be able to provide assistance to Dalen’s hardworking family and ease their financial burdens by any measure!
Want to get involved?
Why not make 2019 the year that you and your salon get involved and start giving back? The impact of these charitable contributions is immediate and profound and the following options are a wonderful way to incorporate philanthropy into your business model.
Sponsor a girl
For just $40 per month you can sponsor a young Cambodian girl – providing her with a school uniform, essential school stationery, access to health programs and a monthly contribution to her family’s living costs, helping to lift them out of poverty.
Stock Bestow’s Generositea
Salons can also become part of the Bestow Sisterhood by stocking and selling Generositea – the official Bestow Sisterhood tea. This beautiful rose-coloured tea is an organic blend of lemongrass, peppermint, hibiscus, cinnamon and cardamom and 100% of profits from its sales go to support the work of the Cambodia Charitable Trust.
Launched in New Zealand in April 2017, the Bestow Sisterhood is a partnership between Bestow Beauty founder, Janine Tait and her sister, Denise Arnold, who founded the Cambodia Charitable Trust in 2008.
The Cambodia Charitable Trust currently supports 12 primary schools, four secondary schools and two teachers’ training colleges in the Takeo and Kampot Provinces of Cambodia.
