On a humid afternoon in November of 2011, 40 humanitarians from the United States, England and Canada gathered with a group of nearly a thousand Cambodian dignitaries, families, students, elders and local residents under the shade of a large tent or a few trees in the providence of Battambang. All came to celebrate the same dream come true: the unveiling of Golden Leaf Education Foundation’s first school, The Âng School.
Once a dilapidated building ready to collapse at the next inevitable flood, The Ang School is now a fully renovated five classroom building that serves 425 elementary-aged children. The children also received new uniforms, desks, bikes and school supplies courtesy of GLEF, our partners Cambodian-American Community of Oregon and Joy for Tomorrow, and our gracious donors.
The project was completed in a year, but required a lot of hard work and collaboration between GLEF volunteers and Cambodian residents. GLEF worked with general contractor Yan Yat to build the school and worked closely with the school’s principal to ensure needs were met. During construction, GLEF Project Manager for the Ang School, Battambang Rotary President, Saroeun Nouv, reported to GLEF Building Committee Chair, Mony Mao and to the GLEF Executive Board with photos and written updates. The entire project was also supported by Battambang locals. Now, GLEF is ready to start building more schools. The third annual auction gala, “A Magical Night in Cambodia”, will be held Saturday, August 4 at the Scottish Rite Center in SW Portland. Proceeds will go toward the next project.
GLEF would like to thank all those who donated their time and money to fulfill our mission to empower humanity by enhancing educational opportunities internationally in memory of genocide victims and in honor of survivors—golden leaves. If you are interested in aiding in the education of children in need, check out our support page.
