Come learn

As part of our Company’s Corporate Social Responsibility program, our company selected four volunteers to help out in the Clean Water Project with JWOC for 6 Days. I was fortunate to be the team of volunteers to have the opportunity to contribute. I arrived in Cambodia on 19th October...

Arriving at JWOC on our first day we really had no idea what to expect. Following Andrew into a modern complex I was incredibly surprised to see how developed JWOC was, despite being a relatively new charity. Essentially none of us were entirely sure what we would be expected to do. Camilla,...

On the first Saturday during my time at JWOC a group of 4 of the TravelAid volunteers (myself included) and our respective interns attended the Clean Water Project. I had no idea of what to expect. The meeting at 7.30am was conducted in Khmer but JWOC staff were keen to elucidate about...

I sat next to a patch of ginger plants, shaded from the morning sun watching six village chiefs and heads of families being trained about good personal hygiene, how to use water filters and basic water pump repair by a group of university students and a well expert. It seemed a complete...

Many things have taken me by surprise here at JWOC. I never thought, for example, that I would find microfinance so interesting. In fact, before coming, I wasn’t even sure of what it entailed. In simple terms, it can be thought of as lending money, something that’s quite sequestered from...

It was the 3rd of August and the day before our first session of morning activities for the children. I found myself, alongside two other volunteers and three Cambodian High School interns, trying to brainstorm a dance lesson for an unknown number of children of an uncertain age range....

From a very young age I have played sporty type games with parents at home and friends in the playground so was really keen to do some sport sessions within our activities camp. Entertaining the younger ones with games out on the dirt field was easy and great fun – anything that involved...

When I think about my childhood, perhaps the strongest recollections are of long days spent drawing and painting in my bedroom, copying from books or simply dreaming up a more interesting world. I was forever collecting toilet roll tubes, shoe boxes and milk cartons in the aim of reproducing...

During our month long period of volunteering at JWOC we have each been paired with a Cambodian high school intern. This has been one the of the highlights of the project for me, as the opportunity to make friends with a local has allowed me to see Cambodian culture and everyday life in...

Capturing unique isolated moments at JWOC is what makes this charity so special. Having spent the last three weeks here running a children’s summer activity camp and teaching English I have been submerged into an organization which truly grows from the inside; JWOC is clearly defined...

Today, as I sit in the sun reflecting on the last few weeks, I cannot help but feel fortunate. My time spent in Cambodia has been very rewarding, and my experiences with JWOC have helped me see Cambodia in a ways I would have never imagined. Over the course of my stay here, I have worked...

Almost every year The United States Military Academy sends a handful of cadets to Journeys Within Our Community (JWOC) to help conduct humanitarian efforts in Cambodia and Laos. The students sent to JWOC in 2010 were given three particular group tasks such as leading self defense classes,...

Just another beautiful day in Cambodia. Riding on the back of a motorcycle, camera slung across my shoulder, plastic playmate cooler balanced on my leg, straddling what was a complete stranger until yesterday. Somit and I are off to visit the village of Phnom Reum – proud partners with...

When I decided to take a journey to Cambodia with hopes of volunteering, I had no idea what to expect. With high hopes and low expectations I came to JWOC assuming I would be digging a ditch or sitting behind a computer, and hopefully helping in a classroom. What I found was so much...