Your Cambodian Street Children

December 18-21

I also worked a few days at a wonderful little place in north Phnom Penh -- a newly started center helping street children, which calls itself Your Cambodian Street Children Organization (YCSCO). Aptly named, since as members of the world community these children are indeed your children!









The center is situated in a poor neighborhood on a small side street in northwest Phnom Penh.










The kids range from about age 5 to 14. We were about 40 on the roof top that is their class room, clowning and goofing around together. The kids had such great energy and engagement, fully participating all together with such enthusiasm! Sometimes it got a bit chaotic but they were over-run with excitement.

I went away for a couple of days to clown elsewhere, and when I came back the kids were out on the street and upon seeing me gathered all around me calling my name. Suddenly an impromptu clown workshop formed on the street as the kids on their own initiative formed a circle with me and started playing the games I had taught them before. These are the moments that make you feel the venture you set out on is worthwhile.


















YCSCO is a new organization and these children have only recently had the opportunity to come here to get shelter, care and education. So they are still very much in need and hungry for stimulation. These are kids who live either by themselves or with their families on the street; they have no homes. Other children who benefit from YCSCO’s services are poor kids from the neighboring community. No one is turned away who wants to come and learn and play.

Learning English is seen as a gateway to a successful future, offering better options for gainful employment – and so YCSCO offers English lessons every afternoon after regular school. At this time, the space for the children is an open roof-top, and the organization is hoping to be able to build a roof over this space so that a place can be created where the children can learn at all times even during bad weather, and so that those children who are homeless (and parentless) can have shelter for the night. If you would like to support their fundraising effort to make this happen, please go to http://www.yscso.blogspot.com or email info@ycsco.org.


Sorn Lorn is the founder and director of YCSCO. He is a man in his 30’s with great enthusiasm, dedicating himself wholeheartedly to helping these children. In a world so full of corruption (especially in Cambodia) and self-serving people following the ‘each man to himself’ principle, driven to make the most money they can (for themselves), Lorn’s self-less engagement in these children’s future is exciting and heartening.









Above, Sorn Lorn with Leakana in front of his YCSCO center.

And, right, Leakana all done up and ready for school!