Published on August 25th, 2008

Early in 2008, Annie Christie flew to Denver to present a $10,000 check from The PEACE Fund to Teachers Across Borders. "I was very impressed with the energy and passion of the people I met," said Annie. "What seemed to move them the most was actually seeing at first hand how much it meant to Cambodian teachers to have these learning opportunities."

Deciding on which of the many thousands of good causes we will contribute to is not an easy thing. So when we were short-listing some excellent organizations early this year there was one that stood out for us- Teachers Across Borders. Why?

In the first place, it is an excellent fit with our three primary goals in relation to making a difference to children’s lives: educating, aiding and caring. Secondly, it is carrying on its work in one of the most devastated countries in the world – Cambodia. Thirdly, it is an organization that has demonstrated that it can deliver on its goals and has integrity. Fourthly, it tries to help people to help themselves so that there is a long lasting effect that carries on when TAB is not present. Lastly, it runs in a very lean way with almost all of its efforts coming from volunteers.

Cambodia has been struggling for many years to overcome the horror under Pol Pot which resulted in schools disappearing from everyday life and teachers being murdered. With teachers today being paid so poorly, the challenge to return Cambodia to its pre-Pol Pot levels of literacy are truly daunting.