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Dance, undies, t-shirts and pneumonia |
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| Free for all Friday - 83! |
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| Slippery slide gangsters |
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| Swinging time |
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As expected the past few months have been no less hectic than those that preceded them. We’ve had some fabulous volunteers, wonderful donations and lots of excitement, even a hospital stint. The new roof is up and being enjoyed immensely, swings are swinging, the slippery dip is slipping and we have reached a new all time high for fabulous free-for-all Friday … an incredible 83 little mouths to feed! Life in gecko land has been anything but boring.
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| Shelter fun and games |
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| Slippery slide |
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| Shelter donors...Nan Yan Uni |
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July was dance fever. One of the most dynamic volunteers ever to grace the geckoes was young Jillian from the US. Within a week she had hands twirling, heads bopping, feet tapping and faces beaming with sheer joy and an unparalleled sense of achievement. Jillian captured the kids’ interest and enthusiasm in abundance and in return they captured her heart. She has left a legacy behind of budding dancers who perform at a drop of a hat. Thank you Jillian for the merriment you manifested.
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| Dance moves |
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| More grooves |
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| Undies - hooray! |
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August had a fever of a different kind. What started as a mild bronchitis for me ended in an emergency trip to Phnom Penh hospital for double pneumonia. One would imagine a weird illness for a place so hot. Anyway - to say the least - the situation was frightening and somewhat uncomfortable; fever, shortness of breath and an allergic reaction to the bacteria in my lungs. What made things worse emotionally was that I had been admitted into the same hospital room that my father-in-law had stayed less than a month earlier.
I owe much thanks to Marie (my French mother) for ‘forcing’ me to seek a second opinion, to Chrissy our longest ever volunteer and to Todd and Hollie; two amazing volunteers - hot of the tarmac - who grabbed the unruly reins by both hands and kept the centre open (and pumping) in our absence. Big love and gratitude goes out to them, to all the volunteers who helped out during this time and to all the love and well wishes we received during my recovery.
Sickness aside, August also brought much loved and needed ‘undies’ thanks to the brain child and fundraising efforts of Sharon - one of our most steadfast supporters - many previously bare bottoms are now covered… so thank you! As you can imagine they were a big hit, for the first 3 days, I heard nothing but Tinyar, Tinyar (Tania) and turned to kids stretching their underwear above their shorts displaying them with pride!
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| t-shirt yahoo! |
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| Proud as punch |
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| thank you |
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The excitement had only just started to subside when their custom designed gecko t-shirts arrived. The delivery created as much pandemonium as if a soft drink truck had just lost its load. They absolutely went crazy for them despite the rigmarole that goes with putting one on –jumping in the shower, washing their dirty clothes, hanging them out to dry - THEN and only then do they get to put their new t-shirts on. At the end of the day, they hand them back and put their freshly washed clothes back on. The new routine works a treat and the kids’ look and feel great… thank you Yvette, family and friends.
Thank you also to all the amazing photographers - professional and hobbyists alike - who have taken some incredible shots of the kids. Thanks Andy and Lynsay for most of the ones I have used today and thanks to Tom and Chris who have uploaded their beautiful images of the kids on the web to share. You have captured the children with such love and integrity, thank you for talent, time and generosity. Please check them out when you have time.
Tom’s pics: www.pbase.com/alimo3/green_gecko
Chris’s pics: www.siemreap-angkor.com/kids/kids.html
And to some of our volunteers that have spend time with us over the past few months… THANK YOU for your love and your time and the fun we had! |
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| Jillian bidding a teary farewell |
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| Mo and Chrissy |
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| Tornta and Lyndsay |
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| Chrissy, Hollie, Debi, Tornta and Saron |
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| Baby Chan and Todd |
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| Chris and class 1 |
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| Andy and Vun |
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| Visitors from Ireland - great dancers |
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| Edward the marathon man |
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I guess that’s enough for one email, until the next gecko adventure and on behalf of Rem and the kids and myself, I thank you for your ongoing support.
Tania |
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