by We apologize that it has been so long since we have updated our friends and support network about the happenings at the Spitler School. It has been a trying time for just about everyone having to find ways to cope with this economic tsunami, but especially for those of us in the housing industry. Which is why we are especially grateful to those of you who made generous contributions to the Spitler School Foundation.
From our 420 bright-eyed children, and their teachers and families, please accept our heartfelt thanks.
Of course we are still basking in the memories that we made in November when we were able to visit Cambodia and spend time at the school and with Sarin and Mary. We were excited about being able to take this trip with my father, Irvin, and my sister, Kay, along with good friends Cheryl Turner and Melissa Fox. The trip turned out to be quite exciting as our return travel plans went up in smoke when protesters shut down the Bangkok airport. Dad, Kay, Cheryl, and Melissa wound up stuck in Bangkok for an extra eight days before finally getting a long flight home. Pam and I were luckier in that we were stuck in Cambodia trying to get back to Bangkok, so it was easier for us to find an alternative route home through Vietnam and Hong Kong.
The only problem we had was that Sarin was having to scramble around helping us secure airline tickets and space on rapidly filling flights on the day that Mary was going into labor and trying to deliver their second child. We are grateful that Sarin was able to put us on our airplane and race to the hospital in time to greet his new baby daughter, named Vitee.
Obviously we were thrilled to arrive home and find an email from Sarin letting us know that Mary was doing fine and 7-year-old Vita had a healthy baby sister.
As Christmas was approaching, our friend, Virginie Paessler, who taught English at the school as a volunteer for a month in 2007, pledged some funds to purchase all of the children some fruit for their Christmas celebration.
The following month a dozen concrete benches were delivered to the school purchased by Irvin Spitler and Cheryl Turner.
Our family members made contributions to the foundation in lieu of Christmas gifts this year, so we appreciate those donations from Mom – Rae, Sister – Kay, and Kids – Lindsey and Kyle.
After the first of the year we celebrated with Sarin as he completed his university studies and will be graduating with his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. He continues to amaze us that he has been able to administer the school and lead tour groups during the day while attending his university classes at night. In between all that he gets to be a Dad to Vita and Vitee. I am sure that he gives a lot of credit to Mary for helping him to achieve so much.
We were happy that our friends Elizabeth Merrifield and Jeanette Harrington were able to visit the school in February. We traveled with Elizabeth and Jeanette to Antarctica in 2007, and we were glad that, when they made plans to visit Cambodia, we were able to connect them with Sarin and they visited the school along with their travel companions Sharon Lund and Carol Osborn. The ladies brought school supplies and hundreds of toothbrushes to give to the children, and they also made donations, which were used to refurbish the tables in our kindergarten class.
Additional funds were donated to help with the ongoing fence project. The new fence will provide additional security for the children as well as keeping domestic animals from causing damage to the school buildings and landscaping.
We are also grateful to other visitors to the school, Rich & Judy Kalich and Bruce & Janelle Osborn. Both couples donated funds to the Spitler School Foundation designated for the drilling of two water wells. Sarin was able to coordinate the drilling of these wells in early March so that more children will now have access to clean water.
April is always an exciting month in Cambodia. It is when the country celebrates the Cambodian New Year, and it is the biggest holiday of the year. The school will be closed for this three-week holiday, and we are hoping that our students and teachers will have the opportunity to celebrate a safe and fun-filled new year with their families.
As we look toward the future we are preparing for another building project. New construction needs to happen before the rainy season begins in the summer months. When we add a sixth grade class next year we will need another classroom. In December we were fortunate enough to be able to purchase some additional land bordering the front of the school property. This additional plot of land will give us the room to add one more classroom without taking away from the playground area in the middle of the campus.
We are also very fortunate to have a wonderful supporter of the school, Mr. Karsten Schroeder, who is providing enough funding to the foundation to cover the cost of the construction of the new classroom. So, in the near future, we plan to celebrate the dedication of the “Karsten Schroeder 6th Grade Classroom.”
We also hope to be able to rebuild our kindergarten classroom. This is the oldest of our classrooms, built with inexpensive materials and a thatched style roof. While the foundation of the building is still good, the structure has not held up well to the three rainy seasons that it has endured, and we are hoping to be able to rebuild it with the heavier construction materials that were used for the three buildings that we erected in 2007. We would like to begin this project as soon as possible and have it completed before the worst of the rainy season arrives this summer. Naming rights are available to anyone who would like to participate in this rebuilding project.
Some day we would like to assist the village in repairing the road leading into the school, which becomes almost impassable during the rainy season, but we are hoping that the local government will provide more than half of the funding for this project if we can raise a matching amount. It appears that this project isn’t workable within this year’s government budget, but we will continue to work with the village leaders to pursue this project in the future.
Finally, we are extremely pleased to celebrate the continued support of Richard Chong and his organization called AKIDS from Singapore (www.akids.info). On their yearly visit in March the team from AKIDS delivered school supplies to each student at the school (notebooks, a pencil and pen, a sharpener, an eraser, a ruler, and some snacks). They brought two soccer balls and some general supplies for the school. They also did an advance survey to identify our students who are orphans or who live in single parent homes. Each of these students received a 5kg bag of rice. We are extremely grateful to Richard and all of his team members who made the visit to the school and to their donors, who continue to provide assistance to several schools in Cambodia.
We wish to acknowledge, with sincere appreciation, those who have provided donations to the Spitler School Foundation over the past four months, since our last newsletter. We can’t tell you how much your caring support means to all of us involved with this important endeavor.
Karsten Schroeder
Richard Chong and the AKIDS Team
Terry Lyman
Lynn & Faith Olson
Rae Spitler
Kay Spitler
Lindsey and Kyle Spitler
Irvin Spitler & Cheryl Turner
Barbara & Jerry Shapiro
Elizabeth Merrifield
Sharon Lund
Jeanette Harrington
Carol Osborn
Jim and Mary Wiggins
Elva and Terry Paul Schoenrock
Rich and Judy Kalich
Bruce and Janelle Osborne
Lisa Hoffmeyer
Joan Gilbert & Joel Armstrong
Windy Zachek
John & Ada Cillis
Jeanine Watson
Greg Johnson
Lou & Claudine Hopper
Ida Cutberthson
Susan Galliher
Dick & Maureen Wright
Lynn Mar
Bob & Jean Kilker
Danny & Pam Spitler, Directors
Spitler School Foundation
P.O. Box 730
Peoria, AZ 85380
“Providing Resources for Cambodian Children”
www.dannypam.smugmug.com