They Say She Will Live

       Today, I sat and held hands with a woman who looked like she was dying.  Apparently she was on the way to better health and staff thought that she may live.  She has AIDS.  Because of the sex trafficking and massive prostitution in Cambodia many are dying of AIDS.  Husbands visit brothels and then return home to their wives.  Husbands die, leaving the wife to raise the children alone.  Shortly thereafter the mother becomes ill leaving no one to look after the children.  This makes the children prime targets for sex traffickers.

The women below is 22.  Her mother, father and Uncle are all dead.  She is alone. Thanks to the CDC she is recieving medication and care.

         We have been looking at many of the things that Hope for the Nations in Partnership with CHO, Cambodian Hope Organization, and other agencies are doing for the people of Cambodia.  One of the things that they have built here is the CDC (center for disease control).  Without this place the women above probably would  have died.  We met many others.  All the patients here either have aids or tuberculosis.  Hospitals here are not like at home (excluding ones like this funded by outside agencies).  Chomna, the head of CHO, told us how he once went to the hospital carrying his very sick mother.  When he arrived they asked him how much money he had.  When he said he had none, they sent him and his mother away.  All the stories here are the same.  But it is not without hope. The centers we are seeing here are amazing and the cooperation between some of the organizations is awe inspiring.  I can not wait to tell you more about them.

        We also visited two micro-enterprises.  One enterprise, a bike mechanic shop, was started 5 years ago and since then has trained 200 boys and started 50 new businesses.  The other one that we saw was a new sewing school.  This one has just been started.  After one year of training the girls will be given micro loans for a sewing machine and fabric so that they can start their own businesses.