Thoeun was born on 18th May, 1994 in Phnom Penh. He has 3 younger brothers and sisters. An older brother died drowning at a water fall.
When he was 9 years old his father was killed in a motor bike accident.
For many years his mum would collect rubbish with a cart, up and down the streets of Phnom Penh with her baby daughter.
Tim and a fellow worker went into the slum of Cheumran Pol and met some families. They shared some food.
Bonli and her 4 children were invited to come to the Bridge of Hope, a center close to the slum for street working children that Tim had just opened.
The whole family started to go to a local church where they heard the Good News.
Sometimes Thoeun would help out his mother to collect rubbish as there was no other income for the 5 of them.
Bonli and her family moved from Cheumran Pol (as the land owner decided to build to another slum), to Bong Tampon on the outskirts of Phnom Penh.
They had no place to stay, just cardboards and a plastic tent till Martin (serving with Tim as a volunteer) got a friend to build a little house in the slum that was slightly better to live in.
An American lady, who one day saw the terrible condition Bonli and her family were living in, decided to help pay the rent of a small apartment away from the slum. Life became better.
Bonli became the cleaner at The Bong Paoun project and started a little business at the market selling drinks. And thank God there was no need for her to go collecting trash anymore.
Thoeun entered ‘Jesus school’. He turned his life to Christ and was baptized.
He loves going to church each week, loves playing guitar and being part of the football team.
After a short training at Hagar (Christian NGO), he is now working at Sumatra, a restaurant in Phnom Penh owned by a missionary couple.
He also studies English at The Learning Lab, a Christian school.
A Cambodian Christian business woman blessed him recently with a motorbike.
Tim
April 2012