LocoCincoMiami: Party for a Cause

Last February, two friends and collegues Lisa and Noemi took a tour through Cambodia. While incredibly beautiful and a must-see for everyone, it was also an eye-opening experience for them in many ways. Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, named a world heritage site for being one of the grandest and most beautiful religious temples in the world, attracts more than 2,000 visitors daily during the busy months of Oct-Feb. But the highlight for them was not being in the architecturally spectacular 12th century temple, it was meeting the students, volunteers, and caretakers of New Hope Cambodia, a local non governmental organization based in Siem Reap. Having experienced Cambodia myself, we are proudly joining the list of sponsors to this event.

Why getting involved with an NGO?

Cambodia, just like a large portion of Asia and the majority of Africa is utterly bloated with child laborers. There are over 300,000 of them in Cambodia (in a population of 14 million people in total) and an estimated 1,500 children living on the streets of Siem Reap. Tourists are the most lucrative and reliable market for child labor. Through buying from sellers, they are keeping the demand for labor flowing and reinforcing the notion held by poverty stricken parents’ that their child is of more value at work than at school. With 50% of the population under the age of 18, you see them everywhere. They may be picking trash outside your 5-Star hotel, or maybe they’re just selling you trinkets and postcards by the gates of Angkor.

What’s even worse is the danger these children face when it comes to human trafficking. Whether sold by their parents or lured into a car off the street, it is a lucrative underground business that aims to take advantage of the unfortunate. Often, girls end up forced to work in brothels and die at a young age of STD’s.

How does New Hope help?

New Hope was founded by a local Cambodian who grew up on the streets and picked bottles out of trash to pay his way through school. His dream was to find a way to provide free education to children who are growing up on the streets just like he did. With the help of an Australian woman, they founded New Hope in 2007, with nothing more than 2 grass huts on a concrete base. Four years later, with the help of donations and volunteers, they completed construction of their new site, which houses a school, restaurant, and health clinic.

New Hope’s motto is “free education for all,” recognizing the vital role education plays in breaking the cycle of poverty. They provide free education to over 800 students, 6 days of the week. At their free clinic, volunteer doctors and nurses see over 100 patients daily. Furthermore, they’ve established a crisis care club - helping families in extreme conditions, an outreach program, and sustainable farming projects just to name a few. Every donation goes far because they are able to keep administrative costs down to 6% (that’s incredibly low). Furthermore, by building self-sustaining projects, it ensures long-term success for the community.

Event Facts:

Party/Fundraiser called LocoCiNcoMiami

Date: May 5th 2012

Time & Place: 7-11 pm at the Coral Gables Museum (DJ, open bar and raffle)

The After Party will be hosted by John Martin’s Irish pub with more drink specials.

All proceeds from ticket sales go to New Hope Cambodia. Their website is www.newhopecambodia.com

If you want to attend, and your friends’ friend’s to attend, you’ll all have to buy a ticket here: http://paperless.ly/wK149d

“Like” event page for updates on sponsors, New Hope, and general event information:  www.facebook.com/lococincomiami

If you want read Lisa's and Noemi blog of the trip, and learn why they decided to do this in the first place: http://noemad.travellerspoint.com/16/

If you can’t be there but would like to contribute with a TAX DEDUCTIBLE donation please conctact Noemi at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it