Once subject to ridicule because her parents died of AIDS, 15-year-old Chamroeun is now an educated leader in her community.

August 2010

By Ratana Lay and Rachael Boyer

AIDS robbed Keu Chamroeun, 15, of both of her parents. “My grandmother told me my father passed away when I was 5 months old, and my mother passed away when I was 1 year and 10 months old,” says Chamroeun, holding the only remaining photo she has of her mother. “Both of them left me because of AIDS.”

Chamroeun’s aunt, Kithy, says, “If there was ARV, my younger sister would not have died,” talking about the anti-retroviral drugs that were not available 13 years ago.

‘A very difficult situation’

“I have been living with my grandmother in [a] very difficult situation,” says Chamroeun. Her grandmother used to pick lotus leaves to sell at the market. Sometimes they had enough food; sometimes they didn’t.

“Before [World Vision], I went to school irregularly because I had to spend time to work in other people’s farms to earn money,” she said. “My classmates did not play with me because my parents died from AIDS. My community discriminated and hated my family. I did not get support from them. When I was sick, there was no medicine. All these reasons discouraged me from studying.”

A change for the better

Thankfully, things started to improve after Chamroeun found help through World Vision’s HIV and AIDS programs. She got support and encouragement from World Vision staff members, who also connected her with other community resources. “The support encouraged me both physically and mentally,” she says. “I now have hope and I am determined to study hard for my future.”

Her hard work and studying is paying off. Chamroeun is an outstanding student at school, and she was elected as a leader at a local children’s club, where she teaches other children after school about what she’s learned from World Vision. She teaches and speaks about proper hygiene, how HIV is transmitted, and how to prevent becoming infected.

Help from World Vision also means that she doesn’t have to work in other people’s farms instead of going to school. She has the school supplies she needs, and she and her grandmother have enough food to eat.

An ongoing battle

But for millions of other children around the world, AIDS remains devastating. An estimated 17 million children under age 18 have been orphaned by this global humanitarian emergency, which also destabilizes entire families and communities. Children are left without the care and support necessary to survive and grow up to be productive adults.

Because of its debilitating effects on vulnerable children and its contribution to the cycle of poverty, World Vision is engaged in the global fight against this crisis. Join us as we work to bring relief to those who are suffering because of HIV and AIDS, while preventing the spread of this disease that wreaks havoc all across the world.