News & Events:

Dec 12, 2011

Dear friends and partners,

Today the weather is beautiful. Crisp, cool air and 23 degrees – we are all wearing sweaters and looking forward to perhaps a day of wearing socks. It puts me in the mood for the holiday season. Several people these past few days have wished me Peace of Earth. It’s a lovely sentiment – but it’s a sentiment that starts me thinking.

Peace on earth. For so many people in Cambodia there is no peace – not because there is war or insecurity – not because there are riots or general discontent – there is no peace because life is too hard.

Peace comes when you have enough to eat – food that fills your belly and nourishes your body – food that makes your hair silky and your skin glow. Peace comes when you have enough water to grow your crops year round and can bathe daily. Peace is when children can spend their youth in the search of knowledge by going to school rather than spending their days scouring the countryside for edible foods such as frogs, snails and crickets.

more>>

For more news from the field, please see Janne's newsletters from Phnom Penh

Welcome

This is the home page of Tabitha New Zealand. We support Janne Ritskes and Tabitha Cambodia an NGO helping the poorest of the poor.

Here you will find some accounts of the organisation, its origins and present activities, new from Janne in Cambodia and accounts of trips by house-building parties from New Zealand.

January 2012

Dear friends and partners,

Happy Western New Years and Happy Chinese New Year’s – how fortunate can a person get - we get to celebrate two different new years in one month. Then we get to celebrate Khmer New Years in April. For me, New Years is always a symbol of new beginnings, new hopes and new dreams – it’s a wonderful way to celebrate life itself.

The year 2012 has started with so many dreams, we have over 47,000 families in our program – which means at least 376,000 people are working out their dreams with Tabitha. In recognition of our work, I have been chosen to receive an award – I am humbled and grateful for that honor. Let me share what it is:

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November 23, 2011

Dear friends and partners,

It’s a very busy month for us – a very good month. This week we have seven house building teams in country out of 13 teams in the month of November. 250 families are getting a new starter home this month. Someone asked me how long the houses last. It’s a difficult question to answer because the houses we build are starter homes. This is the beginning of a sturdy permanent home. Our task is not to build a finished permanent home but to begin the process of a family moving in the direction of dreaming for and completing their own dream home – Cambodian style.

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Nokor Tep Women's Hospital

November 2011

Dear Friends,

It has been awhile since I last wrote to you. We have been busy – first our registration of Nokor Tep Foundation in Cambodia is complete. It is a very important step which gives us the ability to work within the legal framework of Cambodia. It means that the Royal Government of Cambodia approves. What a joy and honor that is.

We are still working on our new web site for Nokor Tep. It’s proving to be a bit of a challenge but when finished will make it easy for all of us to see what is going on, the progress and what is needed. It is a tool which we are looking forward to – but a tool that is a bit complex in its formation.

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Where we've been
Some history of Tabitha in New Zealand. more>>

House-buiding trips
Participants tell their stories. more>>

Tabitha NZ | Your help will last a lifetime

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News & Events:

Welcome

January 2012

November 23, 2011

Nokor Tep Women's Hospital

November 2011