Interested in Bridge Lessons? Contact Patti Lee for more information.
Our Cambodia projects are under the umbrella of our Not-For-Profit organization called the Southeast Asia Support Organization (SEAS). SEAS is a legal entity of the Canadian Landmine Foundation.
Our Chan Teap school includes a well and toilets. It was completed in October 2015.
It was built with the proceeds from the sale of the Banyan Tree Organization building in Phnom Penh 
(in December 2011, Patti Lee, Barbara Seagram and their Bridge Group from Toronto, Ontario raised enough funds to rebuild a new, larger two-storey school).
In March 2015, this school was built as a result of a generous donation from HTS Engineering in Toronto, Canada.
Moving forward, it has now become one of the Banyan Tree Organization schools supported by the fundraising efforts of Patti Lee and Barbara Seagram and the generosity of their bridge club members!
Construction is complete and the teachers received the first enrollment of 158 eager students on 22 January, 2018.
Monks alo were in attendance to bless the school.
(View larger pictures on FACEBOOK)
Our Taprom school has a cistern is for water to wash their hands, something all the students are learning about! They do not drink the water from the cistern. Families drink rain water which is "pure".
Prior to this school being built, students studied in an "outdoor" classroom, which will still be used to cater for various classes.
The Homestay School is located in Preytheat village, Leaybo commune in Tramkak district near to a small town, called Ang Ta Som, about a 2 hour drive south of Phnom Penh.
It is fully equipped with a library, two toilets and a handwashing station.
If you would like to become involved and to help sustain our Cambodia schools and projects, please complete the Donation Form and send it along with your cheque made payable to Canadian Landmine Foundation to:
Patti Lee
8 South Kingslea Drive,
Toronto, ON M8Y 2A3
Canada
Visit www.banyantreeorganization.com for more details about our activity at ALL
of our schools in Cambodia.
In 2011, Patti Lee, Barbara Seagram and a group of 50, docked in Phnom Penh. We were armed with clothing, pens, notebooks, rulers, sharpeners, toys, pencils, stickers, and other school supplies. We had heard about an Ontario volunteer, who had dedicated the last few years to working in Cambodia for several months per year. Working alongside her was a fabulous lady, Australian Pauline Johns. Pauline has lived in Cambodia for up to 6 months per year and heads up the Cambodian organization 'Banyan Tree Organization', which manages all of our projects in Cambodia. Pauline volunteers all of her time and pays for all of her travel and living expenses.
Our group and other friends from the Toronto area donated 40 bicycles to a school outside of Phnom Penh. We went there in a small tuk-tuk along the dusty roads through Phnom Penh and out into the countryside to find that the school was a one-room shack with a cement floor and no desks or chairs. The bikes were given to children, mainly children of landmine victims. It was all very uplifting but Patti and Barbara looked at each other and wondered how long this shack would remain standing.
Over the years, many outreach programs have been undertaken to help these landmine-affected families to become self-sufficient: a bike repair business, sewing lessons with a sewing machine, crafts, and a technology centre. We also support a nearby weaving centre, by purchasing their scarves and re-selling them here. This ensures jobs for those women.
There are many who do not have a safe, private toilet. The absence of a safe, private toilet leads to serious health issues, as well as sexual abuse of women and girls. Our schools all have toilets, but many of the government schools do not. We are building toilets and hand washing stations for the government schools, thus ensuring that the girls can attend school even during their menstrual period. Without toilets at the schools, the girls would miss 4-5 days per month. After a number of months, they fall so far behind in their studies that they quit school altogether.
Our focus is to ensure that our students and other villagers have: Good hygiene and sanitation practices. This has included installing toilets, wells, handwashing stations, teaching hygiene and distributing Days for Girls kits.
Read about our latest updates and achievements here
September 2018 - Chan Teap School
Cement paths are being laid at Chan Teap!
Teacher, Kunthea, and students will be very happy not to be wading through water in the wet season.
View LARGER images on FACEBOOK
August 2018 - Banyan Tree Organization Student Activities
Nov. 2017 - Family to Receive Toilet
BTO will provide a bathroom/toilet at the home of farmer Soem Thorn, who lives with his wife, khun Sithon and their 5 children in Angtasom, Takev. A further 9 families in Takeo and Kampot will benefit from this project in the coming weeks.Continued...
Oct. 2017
More Students Heading to University
Some of our students will be going to University next year. They're making good use of Am Pov's weekend computer classes. Continued...
Oct. 2017:
Construction for the new fifth school commenced this week in TaProm Village, Kampot Province. Savin has been teaching some students in his spare time. They're very excited to soon have a new classroom and library for their studies. SreyLin is our first scholarship student. With thanks to the support from Patti Lee and Barbara Seagram she is able to live in Phnom Penh and study at Pannasatra University. Continued...
Patti and Barbara are excited and optimistic about all of these projects and the fundraisers that we do every year. If you are unable to attend one of our fundraisers, but still wish to make a donation, we would be so grateful. Patti and Barbara are an Agency of a charity in Canada; as well, they have formed an alliance with a charity in the USA. As a result, all Canadian and USA donors can receive tax receipts, valid for their own country.
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