Phally is a 14 year old girl from Siem Reap, Cambodia, who I was lucky enough to meet on my recent travels. She told me that one day she wants to be a doctor to help the children in her village who are always sick. University isn't free in Cambodia, and her family could never afford to send her. Her father Ponlouk is a tuk tuk driver and although he doesn't have much, he is an extremely humble and generous man. He grew up in one of the poorest villages in Siem Reap, which is riddled with malnutrition, HIV and poor education. He took me there and showed me how he and so many others like him lived. Ponlouk has run into some luck over the years and managed to leave his village. He now lives in his wife’s village approximately 5 kilometers away. Ponlouk told me that it is tradition in Cambodia for the man to move to his wife’s village after marriage. He owns a piece of land and a house built on stilts, and lives there with his wife Pon and his four children (Phally being oldest). Ponlouk sends his three oldest children to Khmer school which is free in Cambodia, and in high season can afford to send them to a local English school. Srey Kouy his youngest daughter is not yet old enough for school. Four months of the year Ponlouk is unable to send his children to English School as it is hard to find work as a tuk tuk driver in the low season. Over the high season Ponlouk and his family stock up on their supplies of rice, which feed them over the low. He told me that in the low season he will go fishing in the lake to supplement for food, or for selling to provide a little extra for his family. He has set up a little stall out the front of his home for his wife, so she can sell goods as extra income. Even though Ponlouk has no education, he understands the importance of it. When I asked him whether he had any hopes of his children going to university, he told me that even if he did, he would never be able to send them. He told me that becoming a tour guide would be a more attainable job for his children so he does everything he can to teach them English. I went to visit Ponlouk’s son Rathana’s English class one afternoon. Ponlouk told me that even though his children study at the English school, their English doesn’t seem to improve because the school teaches very basic English. Ponlouk told me how he wished he could send his children to an international English school, because he is worried that without great English, they will have limited opportunities. On my visit to the children’s school I spoke with the teacher, she was lovely but her English was indeed basic. When I went back to Ponlouk’s home I asked Phally what she wanted to do when she finished school. This is when she told me she wanted to be a doctor. I was so overwhelmed when I heard her say these words because unlike us, children like Phally dreams rarely become reality. Ponlouk’s children will never be able to go to university whether they willed it or not, and that realization broke my heart. In Western society we throw around choice and privilege so freely, we have options. We don’t have to be a tour guide if we want to be a doctor. But Ponlouk told me not to worry when he saw me upset, “a tour guide is a good job for my daughter.” In that moment I decided I must do something, I am able and willing and that is all that is needed to lend a hand. So here I start my campaign to get Ponlouk’s children to a better English school (starting with Phally), and then University. This ‘mycause’campaign runs for one month and any generous donation received will firstly go toward paying for Phally’s English school, and then into a saving fund for Phally’s future. Last week I set up a meeting with the Ponlork family and ACE International School in Siem Reap so Phally could undergo examination to see her eligibility. She has been accepted into the school and graded at YLP level 2, first term starts in January. In this campaign I will try my best to keep everyone updated with Phally’s school results and progress. So, all that is left now is for me to raise the funds to help get Phally to English school then University. I will attach email correspondence confirming Phally’s examination results, and the pay structure of her course so everyone knows what is involved. This is only the beginning of my campaign and I hope to have many more in the future including photography exhibitions/ fundraisers/charity dinners and more with the hope of one day getting all four of the Ponlork children to university. We can change many lives by starting with one. Let us make a difference, starting with today. Thank you, Cassandra Feltrin