From humble beginnings, Geraldine has been able to secure enough funding over the years to operate two orphanages in Cambodia and now with the support of the Computershare Change a Life initiative, she is setting up a third.

Sihanoukville Childrens Village

The Change a Life initiative has pledged A$500,000 to Geraldine and the Australia Cambodia Foundation to construct a new Sunrise Children’s Village on five hectares of land in Sihanoukville, a port city in south west Cambodia. The land is situated about 20 kilometres out of town on the fringe of the Ream National Park and close to the recently re-opened Sihanoukville Airport.

The village will comprise twelve family houses for ten to fourteen children each, grouped around a village green. There will be a communal kitchen/dining room and classrooms for English, sewing and computer studies. A dance school and theatre, medical clinic, staff offices and accommodation will also be constructed. A soccer pitch and playground are also planned.

At Sunrise, the focus is on offering a full and complete life for each child, not just providing food and shelter. One example of achieving this is by including a ‘parents’ room in each family house, which will be occupied by a Cambodian House Mother who will be employed to live in the house to create a true sense of family for each child.

The Future

This is an extremely exciting partnership between Computershare and the Australia Cambodia Foundation, a partnership which will enable more children to be granted the certainty of a secure future, away from the hardship of poverty.