On Sunday July 23 ninety students of the Inclusive Education Programme for post school youth and the one hundred and three students at LaValla School actively participated in the turning of the soil to commence this construction project. Despite the limitations of some physical disabilities, every student joined the staff in taking their turn with the shovel at this momentous and joyful occasion for the Marist project in Takhmao on the edge of the capital Phnom Penh.
The Community Village will comprise 8 residences for students, 2 staff residences and a number of communal facilities such as a dining hall and kitchen, health centre and a study centre for tutoring, library and information technology.
Work will commence on the roads and land preparation this week and then the building construction begins in two months time. A local contractor has been responsible for a creative design of the Village and the project’s implementation all of which is under the direction of Mr Sopagna, a senior staff member of Marist Solidarity Cambodia.
The Village represents a long held dream of the Australian Marists who have worked in Cambodia as well as the dedicated Khmer staff. Brother Terry Heinrich, the founder of the LaValla School, has been the main driving force of this innovative response to care of young Cambodians leaving the Marist School for their next phases of education.
Breaking the soil means a dream becomes a reality for the young Cambodians who, because of a physical disability, are often excluded from education especially in the rural provinces. Access to quality Marist education is at the heart of this village.