In the summer of 2009, shortly after I graduated from Loyola Marymount University, one of my best friends participated in an Alternative Break trip. (AB trips as we called them were in their most basic form cultural immersion and/or community service trips to, but not limited to, developing nations.) He went to Cambodia and was buzzing with stories upon his arrival to Los Angeles. Within a few weeks, I remember sitting with my friend, Edward Roohan, in his home in Westchester and him telling me about an incredibly driven former monk he met in Cambodia, named Pren Sok. He and Pren Sok were going to start a small English school and they were going to do it with a monthly operational cost of $500.
Edward explained to me, Cambodia is up and coming in the tourist world and only becoming more popular. If the children of Cambodia were given the opportunity to learn English they could improve their quality of life substantially in the field of tourism (tour guides, hotel industry, restaurants, etc.).
One year later, along with the donations of some generous family and friends of Edward, the school has weekly classes and two different levels of English are taught.
The school was given a grant to start a chicken farm ($1000): to harvest eggs for sale at local markets and the eventual sale of the chickens themselves.
The quality of the drinking water is far from potable in the villages surrounding the school. Thus, fresh water wells ($300) have been created with money donated to the school in the hope that anyone in the near surrounding area can access and use these water sources.
A sewing program was setup for six female entrepreneurs with the hopes that learning how to sew will bring better incomes and the creation of local jobs. For more information on that, see: http://www.bridgeoflifeschool.org/Bridge_of_Life_School/Sewing_Program.html
Last but not least the, to improve students health and attentiveness the school offers bread and milk before classes! (Although, this is not a daily program, you can help make it one! Click on the donation link at the top)
Thanks for reading and if you would like to read more about the school, visit their website at: www.bridgeoflifeschool.org/
$5- buys two pairs of sandals or a backpack
$10- buys a school uniform so a student can attend government school
$20- pays tuition for one year at the government school
$30- supports the nutrition program for one month
$50- buys a used bike for a student with no means to get to school
$100- pays a teacher's salary for one month at our school
$300- pays for the construction of a clean-water well for a family
$500- pays to run our entire program for nearly 1 month
$1000- pays for a chicken farm and 100 chicks to earn money for the school
$5000- pays for an adjacent program so we can continue to expand programs
***Taken from The Bridge of Life School page, "How to help": http://www.bridgeoflifeschool.org/Bridge_of_Life_School/How_To_Help.html
