Open Arms Cambodia

Hi

Hi folks,

It’s nearly Khmer New Year here in Cambodia the streets of Phnom Penh are getting quieter by the day and by Saturday it will be almost like a ghost town as people flock to the beaches and to their homeland to celebrate the biggest event of the year. Open Arms will close the centre for one whole week and while we won’t be going away we will have lots of swimming days and sleep INS we are all so looking forward to it.

The side walk café is rocketing on the girls never stop giggling they are busy every day and thoroughly enjoying it and their food is excellent. New York Cheesecake and Grilled Vegetable Panini are the biggest sellers and honestly I could just sit and watch these girls all day I can’t remember ever being that excited about any job that I had.

The final plans were made this week for us networking with World Vision, Open Arms will be facilitating beauty training within World Vision centre, two trainers will travel four days a week to train as some girls that can’t just yet come to our centre. Our only problem was that we need more staff and all the graduates are working some problem hahaha.

We have hired a lass who hasn’t finished training but has potential, two of the staff have babies so they weren’t able to work Saturdays as their day care centre only opens five days, Open arms is hiring a child care lady to the look after the babies here on Saturdays and as this is Sreynait dream for her future she is very excited so let’s just see what happens.

The children’s ministry has started in the red light district; the art these kids are pumping out is amazing Fiona is having a ball. Jenna and Sreynait will be working over there with Fiona two nights a week they went last week and it was like duck to water, it was lovely to watch as I was remembering when they were little and the older Khmer girls used to teach them now they are teaching the kids it’s beautiful.

It has been a very busy challenging time for us as a family you have to laugh at yourself , I had a new worry WILL THE KIDS FORGET GOD AND ONLY THINK OF THE BUSINESS- WHAT IF WE GET SO BUSY THEY CANT HANDLE IT, so silly I should have known better we have had more time  in our devotions that ever and are all learning how to give more and more grace to each other and how we get caught in our little deceits and of course they manage the business and thrive in it .

Blessings folks I have just finished reading Redeeming Grace by Francine Rivers if you haven’t read it can I suggest that you do, it’s the most beautiful book based on the book of Hosea and tells so wonderfully about God unconditional love for us and how He never ever gives up on us, and that’s for me.

Can us thank you all so much for your love and support for us and thank you for trusting us.

Grahame, Sandra and the Open arms team.

Hi folks,

Easter weekend and I hope you all have a wonderful time I must admit I get a little homesick on these big holidays anyway enough about me. Open Arms week came and went in a flash.

Training continued with the new group being very enthusiastic and loving their new environment, we have decided if possible to keep the numbers down this year to twenty students we are trying some new strategies to help the girls with their commitment and think that twenty is a more easily handled number.

I am having a meeting today with a Khmer  lady who they say is the best Khmer cook in Cambodia I don’t really know how they could come to that , she has had a cooking show on television and apparently cooked for all the rich man in Cambodia anyway that’s the background. She is looking to set up a Khmer cooking school in conjunction with an NGO as she wants to help the girls so we just wait and see what happens it sounds good to me and Open Arms is always opened for anyway to improve the training.

A successful meeting was held with an Australian English teacher who will start teaching the Salon students hairdressing  English he will also teach customer English ( don’t know what to call it) it will be a wonderful addition to the course.

Chivas hand is on the mend, the stitches are out and he has slight movement in his fingers which is a good sigh,we have arranged a western physio to help him. To be self-motivated motivated to resume the world of work and study will be the next stage of his journey. Lita has just finished the first of her final grade twelve exams and you parents who have young people in grade twelve will know the mood swings oh well it’s a part of pop and my journey with her grrr.

The side walk café is going well the girls are so excited as they sold a whole New  York Cheesecake in three days and are sending out Panini’s that are a credit to them, but it’s never without a drama our brand new display fridge has cracked glass after two days and NOBODY did it. But ahah I saw them break the new table for the Tea Room the breakages here are unbelievable we are going to starting charges the guys or not.

Well folks it’s a crazy wonderful time over here we go from holding broken hearted young people in our arms to going off about broken glass to teaching how to make cake or unblock a drain or make a stand with five burly police man who want money, Chiva came into his own last week when he thought they were going to hurt pop he jumped in and took over, much pride in this fine young man.

Well folks I hope you are enjoying the weekly prattle I am enjoying writing to you so much. Be blessed by the Fathers love for you personally or as we say here one one.

Grahame, Sandra and Open Arms team.

Hi Folks it’s about 1000 degrees here and so dusty its Sunday morning and Pop and I are home alone a very unique experience for us. Sreymom who is one of Open arms team is getting married today the wedding will take place about three hours’ drive from Phnom Penh. As we are still doing renovations someone had to stay here and no hands went up but really it suited us just fine all that driving in this heat is a little too much for us young people. I was sitting watching the girls and boys fussing with their hair and makeup (not the boys) and thinking how they had grown in all areas of their lives they are very strong young people that’s nice hey.

This last week was spent with me training the Tea Room girls in the last of the menu and pop finishing off the construction work. The furniture has been brought, plants potted, fridges stocked (we were blessed last week with the money to buy a commercial fridge) everything her is so inexpensive you couldn’t look at it in Australia.

Tomorrow we will have a major clean up in the Tea Room and set up the café ready for the .opening on Tuesday please pray for God’s blessing on this project the guys have worked so hard and the profits of this new project will help to train more young people, mind you they have enjoyed sampling the new recipes they say they have all put on weight I can’t see it they are all a size six mmmm.

In about two weeks Pop and I will be home for a quick visit we have some business to attend to sounds fancy hey but really I am just getting my pension I don’t nearly feel that age anyway before we go we will get the walls knocked down and new one put up (I like that) in the SonshineSalon we want to get it ready for Fiona to come in and start with the children she will use the shops while we are in Australia. The children just wander the near empty shopping centre while mum is working so Fiona is going to start an art drop in shop she wants to bring out their creativity and really give them a safe place to go. Then when we come back to Phnom Penh Open Arms will be funding a shop for her and also the resources she will need.

Well folks that’s about it I have had to do this twice as the first one I touched something and lost the lot, I hope you all have great week.

Grahame, Sandra and the Open Arms Team

Our week

Open Arms week started out with the graduation as you already know it went off very well, we have hired one of the students she  will start work in the salon on Monday .

Tuesday had all of us cleaning up after then party we were all scrubbed and packed by eleven then off to our corners for some much needed quiet time.

Wednesday all hands were back on the deck (the businesses were closed) to get the painting done for the new project. We have found that if we include the guys in a part of it they take ownership and it helps make them feel secure with the transition. We were all painting away and the guys looked really tired so we told them to stop for a while we just started chatting and I said to them if I had $1000 I would take you all to the beach for a two day retreat of course they all agreed so I said well lets pray and ask God all agreed again and prayed believing the word that says YOU HAVE NOT BECAUSE YOU ASK NOT.

Thursday we have back to back meeting from 8.30am and I wasn’t looking forward to I really I just wanted to sleep anyway the first meeting came and went well, at the end of it the organisation involved said we have $1000 for you to do something for your staff well of course I nearly jumped off my seat amazing grace how sweet the sound, Can you imagine the guys when we told them and how much it has lifted their faith. Just beautiful no wonder we love Him.

Friday came and it all happened Chiva was carrying some glass for pop and slipped on his thongs(why in the world was he wearing thongs while carrying glass) and cut his wrist pop said that he had never seen so much blood he had cut all of his tendons and had surgery late Friday night poor little guy he’s in a lot of pain but still eating so we figure he will recover well, gotta  laugh he was nearly fainting in the tuk tuk but managed to lift his hand to make sure his hair was ok he is seventeen.

The hospitals here are just awful to say the least we are trying to get him home asap we have a great woman here who will help us look after him. Folks those of you who love to pray please pray for the medical system here people pay $5 a night to lay in the hallways the some of the injuries and terrible and they are given a panadol for the pain it comes with the five dollars Mon says you hear them crying all night from the pain awful just awful.

Well guys that’s our week and we wouldn’t have missed a second if it last night we said to the kids let’s get out of here and we all had pizza and a drive in the cool.

Love to you all thank you for your love prayers and encouraging emails we couldn’t do it without you all.

Grahame Sandra and the Open arms team. xxxxx

Graduation 2013

Well another graduation celebration over and 28 girls have graduated they are the first group to receive Government accreditation., it was a great night with the usual calamities that we have come to expect like two huge rats they kept wanting to join the party I am just so grateful that none of the guests were interrupted hahaha

I don’t know how to thank the Open Arms team they go beyond the measure every time and really they never complain (I do I was a real grump by the end of the night oh well a work in progress) they were still cleaning up at 11.30 and laughing and chatting and now the real clean up begins WE LOVE YOU GUYS AND THANK YOU AGAIN.

They tell us the food was good and the students did themselves proud with their dancing and hair parade, some of the outfits were a bit of a shock but again a work in progress. For the first time Open Arms had a student queen the little one we chose has showed such character in the last year and had to overcome many difficulties but she never gave up.

Thank you so much to everybody that came and helped and  made the night such a success.

Well it’s onward for Open Arms yesterday we cleaned and had a rest in the afternoon today its painting getting ready for the Side Walk café , spirits are high with lots of giggling and tooooo much talking.

Blessings Folks