Hope springs eternal

Wednesday, 04 June 2008

Cambodian orphanage is providing new hope for HIV-positive orphans, with Sydneysiders playing a significant part, reports Peter Hackney.

When Tim Berry learned of a group of 38 orphaned children living in a tin shed in western Cambodia, he knew he had to do something.

The children were being cared for by a Buddhist monk – but without toilets, showers, and clean drinking water, their basic needs were barely being met.

So Berry, owner of Sydney’s longest-running gay club, The Midnight Shift, and former Governor of the AIDS Trust of Australia, decided to step in and set up his own orphanage, with the help of the Trust.

Established two years ago, the facility has evolved into a fully-fledged charity organisation: Hope for Cambodian Children. The registered charity runs the orphanage in Battambang province, which now cares for almost 100 children, and has a dedicated child sponsorship program, through which Westerners can sponsor a child and monitor their progress.

“Cambodia is a poor country,” says Berry, explaining the rationale for the project. “They’ve had their culture decimated by war and half their population killed. They’re still in a process of rebuilding. But Battambang, the area where the orphanage is, is poor even by Cambodian standards.

“HIV/AIDS has hit the area hard and left them with a lot of orphans. And to make things worse, the orphanages there won’t accept HIV-positive orphans.”

For, like Australia at the dawn of the AIDS epidemic, when HIV-positive toddler Eve van Grafhorst and her family were hounded out of their Gosford home, HIV/AIDS is still poorly understood in Cambodia. Many people believe the disease can be spread by sharing utensils, and basic physical contact like touching or kissing. HIV-positive people are pariahs.

“The children are literally tested by the other orphanages, and if they’re HIV-positive, they are turned away,” says Berry. “They also don’t generally accept land mine victims or kids with any other major disease or disability, because they just don’t have the resources to cope with them.

“We’re trying a new approach. Not only do we accept HIV-positive children, but none of the other kids know who has HIV or not ... Rather than putting kids who are HIV positive in one room, and these in another, everyone’s all together as one happy family. There’s no segregation, apart from the boys and girls having separate dormitories.”

The approach of Hope for Cambodian Children, and its inclusive ethos, has not gone unnoticed. The official opening of the orphanage in March this year was attended by a slew of Cambodian officials, including Deputy Cambodian Prime Minister, Sok An.

It’s also what attracted award-winning Australian actress Joy Smithers to the project. Smithers, perhaps best known for acting the pants off co-star Nicole Kidman in Bangkok Hilton, and a long-running stint on Channel Seven’s All Saints, sits on the board of Hope for Cambodian Children, working to raise awareness and funds for the operation.

“What’s been set up is really incredible,” she tells SX. “There are 97 kids there. They’ve got wonderful accommodation, good food, they have computer classes, there’s a library – which the local community uses as well – there are ‘house mothers’ on site, who have about ten kids each who they mentor and look after ... The kids go to school every day, and are so well cared for. We have teachers, volunteers, and Terry Trethowan, the previous CEO of the AIDS Trust, is up there running the centre. We’ve even got out own ambulance.”

Smithers, who travels frequently to the orphanage between acting work, such as her role in new independent film Newcastle, says the organisation needs ongoing support, however, and that child sponsorship is particularly needed.

“When I first got involved, I asked Terry, ‘Should I try and organise clothes donations here in Australia?’ and he said, ‘Joy, for $5 I can clothe those kids for a year.’ So if someone donates $20, it’s like donating hundreds of dollars. People might think $20 or $50 is nothing – ‘What’s that gonna do?’ – but really it provides an incredible amount for the children.

“The interaction when you sponsor a child is a lot more hands-on than other programs,” she adds. “I sponsor a World Vision child as well and this is a lot more hands-on. You can go and visit the child if you want; there’s a whole procedure. You can go and volunteer over there as well.

But really, just to sponsor a child is an amazing help – so that we can get these kids who are damaged and educate them, nurture them, and make them into strong, brilliant people who will help build Cambodia.”

For more information on Hope for Cambodian Children, including children’s stories, picture galleries, and how to sponsor a child, visit hopeforcambodianchildren.org