Day 6 - Goodbyes at camp!

Well the camp has ended. It was a very bittersweet moment as it is every year. While we are so glad that all the children had so much fun, had great field trips, good food and met new friends; we were so sad that it was time to say goodbye. Some tears were flowing at campfire last night so we were trying to hold it together early this morning!

We woke up to the hottest and brightest day in Nha Trang. It was a good send-off for the kids at 6 am! We all went to find our respective "families" and made our rounds of good byes with all the children. Last night they had small gifts for us and this morning there were a few more. One project stayed up to decorate some fans for us, some stayed up to finish their thank you letters. A little girl said to one of our team members that she was so sad that she wanted to cry but she wouldn't so that we wouldn't start to cry too.

Most of these children have been abandonded or orphaned. Living on the streets was a life they were used to and we had expected them to be a lot "tougher". But they were so sweet, honest, well behaved and just plain wonderful. I was asked many times why spend all this money on a camp - why not just donate it to all these shelters so that they can stay open and help more children? The answers come when we realize that for a few short days these children did everything that a child should do...laugh, play, get rowdy, meet new friends, smile, rest and most of all feel unconditional love.

When we started this expedition, I had told the team that this experience changes you - bad or good - meeting these children will change your life. They are resilient and tough as nails when it comes to what they have endured. Our girls at the Little Rose Warm Shelter have all been victims of sexual abuse and over half are victims of sex trafficking to Cambodia. Most had been living on the streets for over 3 years before they came to live in the shelters. Some are orphans of parents who had AIDS, some were sold into prostitution by their own parents, some are separated from their siblings that are also living on the streets, some that are 15, 16, 17 years old and have just begun to learn to read and write, some have been beaten by other children just because they are homeless...these are children that have endured so many hardships.

But what we did by providing them with these fun-filled days is give them a sense of hope. Each one of our team members connected with at least one if not many children who they couldn't communicate with in language but by the holding of a hand or the constant hugs. We gave them our undivided attention and unconditional love and the reassurance that there were many people that will always care about them. We reiterated to them that if they stay in school and study hard that their futures would be bright. And mostly we wanted them to know that they deserved to have FUN.

We may never see these children again, after all the shelters are supposed to be temporary homes. At the Little Rose Warm Shelter our goal is to help the girls get an education, learn a vocation or reunite with their families in a safe home. They will probably never see us again but they will always remember the Summer of 2004, the "Trai He Yeu Thuong"..."Cherising Camp". The summer when a group of Americans came to just play with them and carried messages from other school children, friends and families that said that all children of the world deserve love. Each one of us can make a difference in the life of a child.