Davik Teng walks toward LAX s Tom Bradley International Terminal as her mom, Sin Chhon, wipes away tears late Wednesday. After 9-year-old Davik underwent surgery to repair a heart defect and several months of recovery, the pair are returning to their village in the Battambang Province of Cambodia. (Jeff Gritchen / Staff Photographer)
Davik Teng, 9, solemnly walks through the Tom Bradley Terminal at Los Angeles International (LAX) Airport on her way to her flight home late Wednesday, July 9, 2008Shrugging into a pink Disney princesses backpack and toting a rolling carry-on bag with a stuffed elephant and a small American flag, Davik Teng said goodbye to a group of about a dozen friends at Los Angeles International Airport and boarded a flight bound for Cambodia. Davik was accompanied by her mother, Sin Chhon, Hearts Without Boundaries president Peter Chhun, and vice president, Lucky Chhuon, and Chantha Bob, who played a pivotal role in locating the 9-year-old Cambodian girl. Davik received a number of gifts and cash and plenty of hugs and tears before departing. She now returns to her tiny home village on the outskirts of Battambang City in Cambodia. The one-room bamboo hut where Davik lives has no electricity, running water or bathrooms. She will return to the embrace of about 20 cousins, aunts, uncles, a grandfather and grandaunt. Davik was brought to the United States for life-altering open-heart surgery, which was performed in March. The Press-Telegram will have a wrap-up story with photos and multimedia which will be in Sunday's newspaper and on-line.
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