Samnang Nory

My name is Samnang. I was born in a sad and poor family in Banan village, Kanteu Pir commune, Banan district, Battambang province. I have a younger sister. My sister and I live with only our mom who is basically our hope. My father has abandoned the family since I was a baby. Therefore, my mother has to take care of me alone. When I was around three years old, my mother decided to go to Thailand so she could raise me properly. She asked my aunt and uncle to let me stay with them. She sent some money to me every month. 

One day she got arrested by Thai police and was sent back to Cambodia because she had no passport. When I was about four years old, my mother had another husband and gave birth to my sister. She came back to Cambodia. About six months later the father also left the family because he had an argument with my uncle. He asked my mother to move to his hometown but my mother refused. Since then, my mother had a responsibility to feed two children on her own. She definitely worked so hard despite having many challenges. Sometimes, she worked for other people such as cleaning houses, cutting grass, washing dishes, etc. Day by day, my mother worked harder and harder. However, she could earn only a small amount which was not enough for us.

When I was ten years old, my mother was absolutely sick. She couldn’t even sit. She didn’t have any money to go to the hospital. At that time, I was in grade 5. Once, TASSEL advertised about the English program. When I heard that it wouldn't cost any money, I really wanted to study. I came back home and asked my mom to study English but she said she was sick and didn’t have any money. I replied I needed only 500 riel a day ($0.12) so I can eat, but she could not afford it. Thus, I decided not to study.

Later, my aunt and uncle who believe in Jesus asked if my mom would follow them. They said they will take care of her. My mom agreed with them immediately. They treat my mom very well. A few months later, my mom got better and better until she could walk and work as before. Then, in the middle of 2015, she decided to go to Thailand again, and left me and my sister with my aunt and uncle because she wanted to send me to English school. She said it was because she didn’t have education, so she couldn’t have a good job. She didn’t want me to be like her. I was incredibly sad because I didn’t want to stay away from her again. I really enjoyed learning English and time passed. I missed my mom so much. There were times I wanted to give up on my studies because I felt wormless and discouraged. However, I realized that I have to study hard to make my mom’s effort worth it.

I rode a very old bicycle to school. Surprisingly, I was in first place every month. One day, Teacher Phirun, my English teacher at TASSEL, visited me at my aunt’s house. When he asked about my parents, I started crying. He encouraged me to keep studying hard and even harder. Then, TASSEL started helping me with giving rice. I felt loved. Following that, Teacher Joji also visited me but my mother was still in Thailand. My aunt told my mom everything about that. My mom decided to come back because she felt so sad. She arrived with a little money. A few months later, Teacher Joji brought foreigners to visit my family because he saw that I really needed help. My house was tiny and horrible in condition. When it rained, it leaked every into my house and we could not sleep during night. It was covered by coconut leaves. Seeing that, TASSEL began supporting my family with money every month, then we could eat enough; especially my sister and I could go to public school and English school. Eight years later, I graduated high school and level 8 at TASSEL, too. After that, I asked TASSEL if I could be a volunteer because I love teaching and I love the mission that TASSEL is doing. I wanted to help the poor in my village and I also wanted to transfer love and kindness to the people. Moreover, I wanted to make people feel loved like the way TASSEL made me feel. Finally, TASSEL gave me a chance. I am so excited and grateful to become a part of this organization.

I have been working with TASSEL since 2022. Since I started working with TASSEL, I realized that this organization is not just an organization but also my family. I remember the first day I joined TASSEL, the teachers welcomed me. They were absolutely friendly to me. That made me feel home and comfortable.

Furthermore, I felt cared and loved by many people. TASSEL has taught me a lot about life. I also have learned a lot from the Khmer teachers and the foreigners. I was a very quiet person before, but I have changed throughout having visited the students and villagers and more. It also made me completely know that there are many people who are suffering and fighting against difficulty. They have no money and even food to eat which is a very challenging condition. There are many children who don’t have money to attend private school to study English. However, TASSEL has saved thousands of poor people. If it weren’t for TASSEL, many children wouldn’t have a chance to study English and receive love. I can tell that TASSEL is their hope because we teach English for free and we give rice, too. Additionally, I hope I could transfer my knowledge to the children so that they could develop themselves and reduce poverty. I want to see more children in Cambodia get educated, especially in rural areas.