Many may remember our wonderful Yay Sarin, now passed away, and her
grace and resilience that helped start our Granny Program. Much has
changed since this post but the spirit here remains:
Please
meet my granny ("Yay" in Khmer). She's new to the garbage dump
communities and approached me one night at CCF's Community Centre. She
explained that she had no remaining children to support her, partly due
to the Pol Pot days, and was without resources or income She is very
poor and so gracious - and she wasn't there to ask for money. She heard from the local kids that I provide them with their photos.
She asked if could I please take her photo and enlarge it, so she would
have a fitting image of herself for her funeral. She came back the
following night suitably dressed and we got a great image. The framed
photo is now at her home, sitting in the corner, waiting for the day.
She comes to the community centre each night, takes my hands and tells
me about her day. I now give her $5 and 5 kg of rice a week, plus help
with rent. When she was forced to move rooms, our amazing CCF kids
painted her new place from top to bottom. She has too much pride to ask
for anything and I need to keep my ears open to know if she is having
problems.
During a walkabout yesterday she chased me down and
have me these silk flowers. She proudly explained that while the flowers
were cheap, the base was hand-made in Siem Reap. It's very rare that I
get teary and I was so moved that she would do this.
The $5 and 5
kg a week has evolved into the "Granny Program" for other oldies without
the means or support structure. There are now 16 grannies in the
program. The youngest is 68 years old. The oldest 104 years!
And yes, the program is open to elderly men too.
PS a few days after presenting my granny with her framed photo, a group
of 3-4 dressed-up older women arrived at the Community Centre for their
funeral photos!
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