Many months ago Dean and I decided to stay at Hotel De La Paix in Siem Reap. Then while in New York on our recent trip I was reading an article all about how the hotel is dedicated to working with and supporting the local community. This is something we knew about as part of our 3 night Connect package we have the following included "Complement your Connecting Experience with a tuk tuk ride to the local village or pagoda to deliver Family Food Support" and some other options, we had planned on doing an order with Viking Direct for pens, pencils etc to be donated to a local school.
Well then I looked a little more into how the hotel works with the community - honestly, I was crying earlier reading about it! The Community page on the hotels website describes what you can do and donations you can make. You can, for example, sponsor a child to go to school for USD10, buy two pigets for a family to raise for USD 70 that 6 months later then can sell for 8 - 10 times that, provide 5 families with a water pump and seeds for USD 90.
For a lot of these activities you can arrange before you go so you can go and meet the families you have helped and see the impact you've had on a community.
And then I got to the big one - Build a Home. The housing market in the UK is a nightmare, I don't know how people are supposed to get on the property ladder here in the UK.
Well in Cambodia it will generally take about two and a half years for a family to save enough to buy posts, wood for the frame and tin for the roof of their own home. They will then construct that and live in it without any walls for a further two and a half to three years. For approximately USD 1200 you guy build a brick house including a toilet and give them security and hope for a better life. And if planned in advance you can be with the family when they move in to share the joy and excitement of it!
I must admit, I've never really read of a hotel that is so focused on encouraging its guests to help and support the local community, personally I think its great. We have the big charity events in the UK like Children in Need or Comic Relief. You can give your cash and know its being well used, but to be able to do that and then see it being used, well that is another story all together!
Would be interested in anyones experiences of similar hotels or involvement in community support events of this type. If I can raise the cash I would dearly love to Build a House for a family, or if not a house use it on many of the other programmes they offer.
Well then I looked a little more into how the hotel works with the community - honestly, I was crying earlier reading about it! The Community page on the hotels website describes what you can do and donations you can make. You can, for example, sponsor a child to go to school for USD10, buy two pigets for a family to raise for USD 70 that 6 months later then can sell for 8 - 10 times that, provide 5 families with a water pump and seeds for USD 90.
For a lot of these activities you can arrange before you go so you can go and meet the families you have helped and see the impact you've had on a community.
And then I got to the big one - Build a Home. The housing market in the UK is a nightmare, I don't know how people are supposed to get on the property ladder here in the UK.
Well in Cambodia it will generally take about two and a half years for a family to save enough to buy posts, wood for the frame and tin for the roof of their own home. They will then construct that and live in it without any walls for a further two and a half to three years. For approximately USD 1200 you guy build a brick house including a toilet and give them security and hope for a better life. And if planned in advance you can be with the family when they move in to share the joy and excitement of it!
I must admit, I've never really read of a hotel that is so focused on encouraging its guests to help and support the local community, personally I think its great. We have the big charity events in the UK like Children in Need or Comic Relief. You can give your cash and know its being well used, but to be able to do that and then see it being used, well that is another story all together!
Would be interested in anyones experiences of similar hotels or involvement in community support events of this type. If I can raise the cash I would dearly love to Build a House for a family, or if not a house use it on many of the other programmes they offer.
