What is Vision Cambodia?
Vision Cambodia's sole focus is improving the quality of life for rural Cambodians. Volunteers from around the world donate their time, money, and talents to support the meaningful and effective humanitarian projects. Sustainable projects with lasting impact drive change and improve lives.
All projects are executed at the local level, with locals supporting and sustaining each other through the projects and initiatives. ALL DONATIONS ARE USED IN CAMBODIA and all supporters in the developed world are unpaid volunteers.
What Vision Cambodia Does
Your donations change lives. Your support helps in the following areas:
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Providing clean water wells to rural/poor communities
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Constructing and maintaining free schools
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Micro business development and mentoring
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Baby birth fund
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Student sponsorships
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Expanding humanitarian projects
How Vision Cambodia Was Started
In 2016 Rob Brunt (one of the American founders) and his wife traveled to Cambodia. They hired a local guide, and by fate or sheer luck they got to spend the next week with Chantha. After learning about his story (see below) and seeing what he was trying to accomplish, they got behind his efforts and established the US based non-profit with the help of Troy Peterson.
Since 2016, many volunteers, sponsors, and donors have supported Vision Cambodia’s efforts to alleviate suffering and improve the lives of rural Cambodians. As the support for Vision Cambodia grows, Chantha’s team continues to expand humanitarian efforts that truly make a difference. Our hearts have been touched beyond description, and we hope to include you in our efforts to change the world, one person at a time.
How Vision Cambodia Was Started
Chantha's Story
Chantha grew up in an impoverished Cambodian village and under very difficult circumstances. As a young child his father disappeared during the civil war and his mother had no way of caring for him, so he was sent to live with extended family in another village. He was not a welcome addition, and he became the child slave of the family where he was severely treated and put to hard labor from the ages of four to thirteen.
One day, while caring for the family cows, one slipped away and walked back home without him. As a punishment, he was viciously beaten with a bamboo pole and then tied to a mango tree for two days, where red ants began to eat him alive. He begged God to let him die, but that was not where Chantha’s story was to end.
His entire childhood Chantha struggled to get a basic education, against the wishes of the family. At thirteen years old, he desperately wanted to attend secondary school, but his legal guardians denied his request because they did not want to lose their slave labor. This only strengthened his resolve, and one night he walked out of the village with $0.10 in his pocket, no friends or relatives, and no specific destination. He just walked in the direction of the nearest town, and arrived at daybreak. He made his way to a Buddhist monastery where he was taken in by Monks, and provided with a safe and stable environment to learn and grow. During the following six years he excelled in his studies and eventually became the English language instructor at the monastery. A university degree and a career as an English speaking tour guide were to follow, but he never forgot his childhood, or the many rural children in similar circumstances.
Chantha’s upbringing instilled a fundamental sense of empathy and charity. As the founder of Vision Cambodia he has worked with rural villages to provide clean water, education, and supplies to thousands. His efforts represent the kind of grass roots progress that lead to positive change and real hope in rural communities.