Like many other countries, Cambodia commemorated Labour Day on May 1st. While this day is a celebration of workers everywhere, it is also a reminder of the daily struggle for those who lack steady, rewarding employment, especially in poor countries. The dearth of honest, regular, well-paid work is a constant worry for many of Phnom Penh’s most vulnerable groups – something we witness all the time in our city. So, the kids and staff of Little Hearts decided to do something on Labour Day to help the needy in a revival of our Random Act of Kindness (RAK) initiative, which has yielded such positive results in the past.
Our target group on Labour Day was the cyclo drivers who ply the avenues of central Phnom Penh. (What’s a cyclo, anyway? It’s a three-wheeled, pedal-powered taxi used in much of Southeast Asia. Here in Phnom Penh, cyclos are used primarily by tourists for sightseeing.) Cyclo drivers are a vulnerable group that Tony has taken a special interest in, having often noticed them idling without work during his morning walks. Many of them sleep on their cyclos because they don’t have a home, relying on petrol stations to use toilet facilities and bathe. Their livelihoods depend entirely on having passengers; if there are no passengers, they earn nothing and have little to eat. Especially during low tourism season, they often go hungry.
On Labour Day, therefore, the children and staff cooked and assembled 150 food packages in the Little Hearts kitchen. Each lunch pack contained fried chicken, vegetables stir-fried with pork, rice, and a few candies. They also sorted and prepared some second-hand clothes, shoes and blankets, as well as children’s toys, and loaded everything in two large tuk-tuks plus Tony’s car. They drove to the ferry terminal, crossed over to Phnom Penh and then split up into three teams, each headed for an area where cyclo drivers tend to congregate: near the National Museum, around Wat Botum Park, and next to the Central Market (Phsar Thmey). At each location, we distributed the lunches and other goods to the cyclo drivers, who were extremely glad for this unexpected gesture and thanked us profusely.
While the cyclo drivers’ gratitude was reward enough for our efforts, it’s difficult to ignore the fact that the need is far greater. One meal distributed once a year is hardly enough, and there are many other groups, besides cyclo drivers, who require assistance as well. So RAK will be deployed again in the near future. Our next target will be the homeless, especially children living on the streets. During our outreach to the cyclo drivers we encountered several homeless individuals who also asked for food, and not being to help them right away was heart-breaking. We hope to be able to cater to their needs on our next RAK adventure.
We also hope that this post will inspire others to join our initiative. If you’d like to be involved in the next RAK outing, please get in touch. To continue with RAK projects, and to undertake them more frequently, we also need financial contributions, so please consider donating to this cause. Every contribution, no matter the amount, will enable us to reach more individuals and offer a lifeline during these challenging times. You can make a difference today by scanning the Little Hearts QR code below. Thank you for your kindness.
