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    VSO - Sharing Skills, Changing Lives

    Sue Brown - Cambodia

    Sue Brown went to Cambodia in February 2007. She’ll be working as a teacher-training advisor for the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport.



    I’d thought of VSO for quite a long time (about 40 years!) - when I was at uni and it was very different then, but life does funny things, and I got married instead, immediately after graduating. Twenty years on with two children, mid-teens, and having taken nearly 10 years out to look after them when they were young, my husband and I parted. At that point, I felt I needed to secure a pension, so continued teaching at the school I had just joined.

    Thoughts of VSO hovered, and in 2005 I spent my summer holidays in a school in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, acting as a management adviser. This confirmed my wish to put something back into society on a broad scale.

    I applied to volunteer with VSO in February last year. I reached the magic 60 in July, and wanted a bit of a break before starting a new life, so I stated that I could start in Jan 2007. After the assessment day (gruelling interview, but I think very justified to make sure people know what they are letting themselves in for!) I was accepted.

    Then it was VSO’s Harborne Hall in Birmingham for training, which seemed almost like a second home by the time I left UK. I also moved house. In the end I had a tremendous rush - to pack up my belongings, let my new flat, and sell my car, as my departure date was brought forward from 28 Feb to 17 Feb at the beginning of Feb. So I panicked briefly, and set to... It was such a relief to be on the plane.

    On arrival, I was really well looked after - met at the airport and brought back to the VSO office, where I met some other volunteers who looked after me the first day (Sunday). Settled in on Monday, and met several important people on Tuesday. On Wednesday I caught the bus to Battambang Town and was met by my assistant, a handsome young man called Boeb, who speaks excellent English. For the first time I rode pillion on a motorbike, complete with my shiny new crash helmet! Met another volunteer (who lives about twenty miles away from me in the UK!) and shadowed her for a couple of days, saw my actual placement, and had a good time. I also met all the other education volunteers in Battambang Town. Bus back in time to meet the rest of my batch - there are 12 of us from all over, and on Wednesday we came to Kampong Cham for our 7 week language training.

    Having a ball!

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