Thank you DD for forwarding Ms. Phymean Noun story to us. Ms. Phymean is a
real good srey khmer to model. She is to be praised and voted. I am so very
proud that she was selected by CNN to be on one of top 10 Heroes of the year.
Please help vote for Phymean Noun.
--- On Thu, 10/9/08, Dy Danica <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
From: Dy Danica <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Vote for Phymean Noun, one of the Top 10 CNN Heroes of the Year
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: Thursday, October 9, 2008, 7:28 PM
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (CNN) -- Walking down a street in Cambodia's capital city,
Phymean Noun finished her lunch and tossed her chicken bones into the trash.
Seconds later, she watched in horror as several children fought to reclaim her
discarded food.
Phymean Noun is helping give Cambodian children a chance at a better life.
1 of 2
Noun stopped to talk with them. After hearing their stories of hardship, she
knew she couldn't ignore their plight.
"I must do something to help these children get an education," she recalls
thinking. "Even though they don't have money and live on the sidewalk, they
deserve to go to school." Vote for Phymean, one of the Top 10 CNN Heroes of the
Year
Six years after that incident, Noun is helping many of Phnom Penh's poorest
children do just that.
Within weeks, she quit her job and started an organization to give
underprivileged children an education. Noun spent $30,000 of her own money to
get her first school off the ground.
In 2004, her organization -- the People Improvement Organization (PIO) --
opened a school at Phnom Penh's largest municipal trash dump, where children
are a large source of labor.
Today, Noun provides 240 kids from the trash dump a free education, food,
health services and an opportunity to be a child in a safe environment. Watch
Noun and some of the children who attend her school »
It is no easy task. Hundreds of them risk their lives every day working to
support themselves and their families.
"I have seen a lot of kids killed by the garbage trucks," she recalls. Children
as young as 7 scavenge hours at a time for recyclable materials. They make
cents a day selling cans, metals and plastic bags.
Noun recruits the children at the dump to attend her organization because, she
says, "I don't want them to continue picking trash and living in the dump. I
want them to have an opportunity to learn." Watch Noun describe what life is
like for children at the trash dump »
Don't Miss
Vote for the CNN Hero of the Year
Get Involved: People Improvement Organization
In Depth: CNN Heroes
Growing up during the Pol Pot regime, Noun faced unimaginable challenges.
"There were no schools during Pol Pot's regime," she recalls. "Everyone had to
work in the fields. My mother was very smart. She told them that she didn't
have an education. That was how she survived. If they knew she was educated,
they would have killed her."
Noun's mother died of cancer when Phymean was 15. Phymean's sister fled to a
refugee camp, leaving her young daughter in Phymean's care.
"When my mom passed away, my life was horrible, " says Noun. "It was very sad
because there was only my niece who was 3 years old at that time." Yet Noun was
determined to finish high school. Watch Noun describe the hardships of life
during the Pol Pot regime »
That dedication paid off, and after graduating she spent the next decade
working with various aid organizations.
"I tell the children my story and about the importance of education," she said.
"I'm their role model."
Some of the children who attend her school continue to work in the dump to
support themselves and their families. Without an education, she said, these
children would be vulnerable to traffickers or continue to be caught in the
cycle of poverty.
"We are trying to provide them skills that they can use in the future," Noun
said. "Even though we are poor and struggling and don't have money, we can go
to school. I tell them not to give up hope."
Noun has even bigger plans for them. "These children are our next generation
and our country depends on them. They are our future leaders."
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