“There are many individuals that I would like to thank for helping me pursue my dream of opening a school in my village. When I was a small boy, my mother told me that if I did not want to be a farmer, I needed to go to school. My father also encouraged my sister and me to get an education so that we would have many choices and opportunities. He believed in our abilities and supported our passion for learning. I am grateful to both of my parents for their love and encouragement during our formative years.

Next, I would like to acknowledge my teacher, Ms. Kalayan, who recognized my love of learning and understood my potential. She realized that farming was not my calling and that I was a strong and determined student. She acknowledged that my family had financial limitations and asked me to invest in my learning by doing several extra chores before and after school instead of paying for tuition.

My cousin also supported my dream. When I was in my teens, I left my village to live with him. This allowed me to plan my future without the burden of worrying about food, clothing, and shelter. He taught me the importance of focusing on my education.

I would also like to thank the Protestant church. The missionaries offered education, Christian learning, room and board, and the opportunity to learn English for one year. Although I was not convinced to convert to Protestantism due to my solid Buddhist upbringing, I am grateful to the church community for their contribution to my education.

In 2007, as a result of the encouragement and support from the people mentioned above, I visualized opening a school within ten years. This meant continuing my education, finding work that paid well, and soliciting additional support. Fortunately, due to my ability to speak English, I found work in the tourism industry. I shared my dream with a fellow traveller named Janine, who was committed to assisting me. She set up a GoFundMe page that raised funds for the establishment of my school. I will be grateful to her forever.

Finally, in 2017, my dream became reality. l set up a school in a community building to teach English to the boys and girls in my village. The village leaders kindly provided this space, and I am grateful for their support and encouragement. In addition, many friends have offered financial, emotional, and overall support for this endeavour.

2018 and 2019

Since then, I have received support from many different people. I thank Ms. Lilli from Colombia, who volunteered with us for six months. Thank you so much for living in our community and teaching in the school. We appreciate the time that you gave to this project.

I would also like to thank Will from England and Tini from Austria, whom I met when they were travelling in Southeast Asia. They gave up time from their backpacking holiday to come to Siem Reap to teach English in the school. They were also a huge help in establishing the website, which has been crucial to our work. Their passion and the time they gave the project were invaluable; thank you. I am also so grateful to Tini for her help in fundraising for the school.

Thanks to Angie, Pam and Sue. I first met them while they were on holiday in 2018, and they came back to Cambodia in 2019 to visit the village and teach the children in our school. Angie’s three rules for pronunciation (Pronouncing the ends of words, intonation, and emphasis) continue to be used in our classrooms! Their passion for the community and desire to help the children living in poverty was wonderful to see. Thank you for your continuing support.

My thanks go to Tom from England. He came to Cambodia on holiday and was made aware of the school by a close friend of mine. When he visited the village, one student in particular drew his attention: a gentleman over 60 years old and learning English with the children. Tom kindly provided school supplies and teaching materials. He also raised money for the school budget for 2019. Without his support, keeping the school running this year would not have been possible. His support is truly invaluable to us, and because of it, the school will continue to grow and thrive in the future.

Thanks to my sister, Sarith, During COVID-19, I could not afford, and this school dream was forced to shut down for many months, so our students could not come to learn. I lost my job as a tour guide and even my family. We got divorced, and we decided to live far from each other. I decided to leave my school behind, and then I went to find a new job in the city of Phnom Penh. I did so many things to earn a living and to support my sons, who live with their mother in Chiang Mai, Thailand. I remember in hard times that, I worked so hard from early morning till late night as a delivery man with my old motorbike in Phnom Penh. Ms. Sarith came to help with the kids in the village at the weekend, and she helped the kids reopen the classes so they could continue learning English lessons and computer lessons in their free time.

Sarith tried to raise money and asked some of her friends to help with this project till I came back to help after the tourists visited Cambodia. Then, I became a tour guide again.

Thank you so much, my dear friend, Will from England. He returned after COVID-19 to visit our school project, and then I asked him to help set up our website again. This is www.roots-cambodia.org. He paid for the domain and created the content for us, and we appreciate his support; he never forgets us. Thank you so much

I would like to thank Eunoia e.V., an NGO based in Munich. Especially Ms Natascha, Hannah, and their teams, who came to visit us in 2017 and have supported us till now. We appreciate your love.

Our dream became true when I started to work as a tour guide, and my clients helped us with some funding by the way of tips that were used to start the school project.

I am very grateful that I was introduced by a friend to Lindsay from ROAM Humanitarian. She has continued to be an inspiration and supporter of the Roots Organization.
Lindsay has supported us in many ways. She has donated funds and assisted in the erection of the outdoor undercover reading and activities area for the students. Lindsay has also donated funds for the playground equipment, plus donated funds for purchasing of bricks, cement, sand and labour for the school garden area she also funded the Women’s Hygiene Project.

We are very thankful to Lindsay for her continuing support.

In 2025, Sarou, a founder of the Roots Organization, arranged a fundraising effort with Mr. Bruce and Sue, a couple from Australia to purchase construction materials such as sand, steel, cement and rocks.
Our villagers then contributed their time and energy to work together to build the dam, which would support farming and provide access for their transportation methods, including oxcarts, trailers, cows, and buffaloes, to the other side of the area.
A wonderful friendship has been created.

IVANHOE GRAMMAR SCHOOL in 2024 

A long time ago, I met my friend Sam, the founder of SAM INSPIRE and the Angkor Kids Centre, at a coffee shop. I asked him for help at the beginning of my journey with Roots Organization regarding the school project aimed at helping rural children learn more in their villages.

In 2024, Sam asked me about my school projects to see how he could assist. I sent him our current needs, and he introduced us to a group of students and their teachers. They helped build fences for the school using bamboo and old motorcycle tyres which they painted and decorated. They also organized games, taught some English lessons to our students, and played volleyball. We prepared a beautiful lunch that my mother and sister cooked, and they mentioned how delicious the food was. 

Although they only helped for a few hours, their assistance was incredibly important to our school center. I recall the great feedback we received from their students and teachers about the impact of our school and the lunch we provided for them. We were so happy  that they came to help us and were actively involved in building a real school for us in 2025.

After the school group left, a few weeks later, Sam informed me that David, a member of the team from Ivanhoe Grammar School in Australia, would come with him to meet me at the school and check out a few traditional houses. I showed them around, and David expressed his willingness to bring students to stay and provide further support for our school in 2025.

Since then, I have kept in touch with David and Sam updating them on our school project and our desire to establish a proper school for children to facilitate better learning.

I would like to thank Sam, Jacqui, and David for their support, as well as the students and teachers of Ivanhoe Grammar School. They have truly helped us with their generosity and fundraising efforts to build a school for our community.

Now, in 2025, our children can learn more effectively, including English lessons and computer skills. This school center significantly impacts not just our children but also our community as a whole, helping to improve it for the future.

We look forward to our continued friendship with our supporters.

Thank you to IVANHOE GRAMMAR SCHOOL for your support in 2024 & 2025 and we look forward to your support in the future.

“_ Sarou Hong