David Awcock and his partner Koeun
via CAAI News Media
Published Date: 07 April 2010
A FORMER Cavendish School pupil has set up a charity in Cambodia.
It was one commute too many that saw Eastbourne man David Awcock make the biggest transition of his life. Another cold, grey morning on the platform at Clapham Junction; one more missed connection and the lure of a poster promising the opportunity of working in the sun drenched Maldives was just too tempting. The timing seemed right, so he applied for a posting with the charity Voluntary Service Overseas.
Thirty years experience in health management in Sussex made David a prime applicant but VSO had different ideas and he never did make it to the Maldives.
Instead he traded the occasional grumpy train ticket inspector for the risk of ambush by rogue Khmer Rouge bandits in Cambodia. David arrived in the remote northern province of Preah Vihear, the last bastion of the Khmer Rouge, in 1998. This was the beginning of the country's emergence from a 30-year civil war.
David worked with the Cambodian ministry of health on its work to eliminate leprosy before going on to manage the programme of British charity, Health Unlimited, training health workers and building health centres. He worked with both sides from the civil war, former Khmer Rouge and government forces.
Now David and his partner Koeun, an experienced Cambodian midwife, have started the charity M'day Reak Reay, Kone Reak Reay which translates as 'happy mother, happy baby'.
They are working to reduce the risks to pregnant women and newborn babies in remote Cambodian villages by improving access to antenatal and postnatal information and care.
For details of the charity go to http://www.mrkr.org/.
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