When you meet Sonn today you will be captivated by a smile, gentle and strong. You might even think to yourself that you are in the presence of a Cambodian Mother Theresa! Many who have known the life of this generous and beautiful woman can see that God loves to give big dreams to the poor to reveal His heart of love .

Sonn was born in 1968, just before the tumultuous years of Khmer Rouge that ravished the Cambodian people and left the nation in economic and emotional disarray. Sonn’s family was very poor; often they could not even find rice to eat. The children were too poor to go to school. Sonn was the eldest and would shyly walk along the road selling morning glory flowers in order to buy just a little food for her siblings and parents. Some people in her village made fun of her situation and treated her with contempt. The next season of her life was to bring more brokenness, more poverty and pain. At the age of 12 the Khmer Rouge forced her family to separate. In search of shelter and safety she went to Phnom Penh, to live with her aunt. There she was forced to be a slave with little prospect for anything more than servanthood and long hours of grueling work. Describing her situation, Sonn says, “I was very upset and sad, and there was nothing good in my life.”

One day Sonn found herself in a church. There she learned that God was good, and kind. He did not look at her as “poor” but valued her immensely. He did not treat her the way the others in the village, or even her own aunt, had treated her. So in 1994 she gave her life to God and decided to follow Him.

Due to her new faith in Jesus, Sonn was thrown out of her aunts house. She was homeless, but she never doubted that the God who loved her would provide for her. A Christian NGO hired her as a cleaner/ nanny. Her new employers gave her a Bible and encouraged her to learn to read. They treated her with loving dignity, giving her a salary and days off each week. She was free to attend Church and in the next months Sonn learned how to read alongside the children in the classes she attended.

After her father passed away, Sonn had a growing desire to do more for her family than just send money. She longed to return to them in the village and share with them her Christian Faith and the valuable knowledge she had learnt.
Sonn’s village is located in Kampong Speu, about 1 ½ hours southwest of Phnom Penh. The majority of the community are illiterate with little access to education. They are subsistence farmers and fishermen who struggle against natural hazards to survive on the land and water. Insects destroy their harvests, floods sweep away their bamboo huts, droughts plight the harvest, poisonous snakes prowl about and diseases threaten weak and strong alike. Landmines, corrupt officials and loan sharks are a daily problem.

Despite the poverty it is a beautiful community where many families show sincere concern for their children’s development. They are warm, friendly Khmer families but life has been hard and hope is almost lost. They have never experienced any other opportunity than the poverty cycle they are locked into.

Because Sonn had suffered so much as a child she wanted to prevent the children in Kampong Speu from the same dreadful neglect and poverty of her past. She was horrified to discover that each year children drown during the rainy season while others walk around lonely, unprotected as parents work daily in the rice paddy field.

She began PRAYING, asking God to provide a way for her to return and set up a learning centre to gather the children and women together so she could begin teaching them how to read, educating them on hygiene, first aid, life skills and crafts. She bought a piece of land but did not have the money for a building.

Someone once said Dreams come in big sizes so we can grow into them. But does that apply also to the poor ?

Mercy Teams got to HEAR OF HER HEARTS DESIRE and are building a two storey kindergarten in Kampong Speu. It will be a learning centre for the community. A light in the darkness.

MTI will equip it with educational toys, sporting equipment, stationery, furniture and creative crafts. It is our intention to provide staff to help Sonn, giving her a helping hand and training her. We will also run programmes for the community inviting visiting teams to provide expertise in areas of need.

Sonn will live in the kindergarten with her mother, and her plan is to invite the preschool children to come to the learning centre for education and games daily. Fees will not be charged but contributions of rice, chickens and crops will be accepted instead. She also wants to have a place where the women can sew and embroider clothing, which can then be sold in the markets in Phnom Penh providing income to precious families.

Sonn said with courageous spirit ‘WHAT I RECEIVED FROM THE LORD I WANT TO SHARE’ It is pay back time!
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Please contact Mercy Teams if you wish to be part of this dream come true.

We are seeking partners that will provide toys, training, prayers and donations to this worthwhile project.

Mr David Greenfield said it is the first time MTI has begun a project ahead of the promised funding!

We invite you to participate with us.

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