In 2007 Sister Regina, a Korean Nun, was selected as a guide for a Cambodian-Buddhist Monk during his visit to Korea. He shared with her his country’s history and its struggle in developing and improving the way of life for the Cambodian people. Six months later Sister Regina moved to Cambodia, setting up the Non-Government Organisation MJM Cambodia.
 MJM stands for the Korean word majoongmul which is related to the analogy of priming a pump. If you’ve ever seen in the movies one of the old water pumps that were used many years ago where one literally pumps a handle up and down to get water from the well you might be familiar enough with this analogy for it to make sense. Often what happens is that in order to extract water from the well one needs to pump the handle several times before any water begins to flow, this is called priming the pump. After a water pump is primed with an injection of water, the flow will continue without additional action from the operator. This applies to human behaviour, the idea behind ‘pump-priming’ is that an initial injection of resources will lead to a sustainable and ongoing increase in activity through a multiplier effect.

The Work 

Initially, Sister Regina began MJM Cambodia by providing scholarships to the 30 top students attending Prey Poun high school, a government school of 800 students. Nowadays, the number of scholars and students on vocational scholarships are growing. In exchange for tuition, books, uniforms and sometimes even room and board, these students do volunteer teaching in various villages throughout the province which in turn creates free public education for the village. They set up provisional academies where Khmer (national language), English and other subjects are taught for at least one hour each day. It is open to students of any age who are willing to learn. Sister Regina personally oversees the academy operations of the student-teachers, providing support where it is needed. 

This program is unique because in exchange for scholarships, the students have to teach younger students in the villages during after-school programs. That is, it teaches the high school and middle school students the idea of giving back to their society and taking an active part in their personal and community development. The older university students are paid a monthly salary in exchange for managing/operating this program, giving them the skills set they need to become future leaders in Cambodia. They have created their own NGO, ‘Seeds of Kampuchea’ with the hope that they will be self-reliant and sustainable over time. 

Recent volunteer teacher Mona McRae stated that, “These teenagers want to be successful and want to be helped, every kid we worked with wants to be an accountant, banker, teacher or doctor, they want to return and help their village, not move away to Singapore”. Sister Regina highlights the importance of aiding the students and their villages in becoming self-sufficient rather than being reliant on international NGO’s. 

 Sister Regina and MJM’s focus on broader issues than just education, MJM is also working on public health and sanitation. MJM Cambodia supports families that suffer from AIDS, providing them with much needed food, support and transportation to the hospital to receive free medication. Furthermore, she raises funds for infrastructure which benefits the entire community. With generous donations and help from her scholars Sister Regina has successfully built not only a well in the village, but new buildings for the schools, including a library.

Vocational School 

 In addition to the community projects mentioned above Sister Regina has also established a vocational training school in her house. She chooses young women from most impoverished villages to train in a specialised stitching technique which is particularly popular in Korea. The women are paid a salary to work in the vocational school which they then use to pay for their own education. Orders from the vocational school can be made by emailing Sister Regina at regina822@hanmail.net (photos of the products will be posted shortly). 

How You Can Help

There are many ways that you can help Sister Regina, MJM Cambodia and the students in Prey Veng. The cost of donations and sponsorship are listed below, although any donation is appreciated!

  •  $25 will buy text books and dictionary for one student for a year 
  • $35 supports a family with AIDS for a month, providing them with food and money for transportation to the hospital so they can receive their free medicine (provided by another NGO) 
  •  $52 will buy a bicycle for a student so they can travel 9 kilometers or more to school or university each day.
  •  $140 will sponsor a grade 9 – 11 high school student to study and also teach in the villages for a year ($120 payment for teaching + $20 for school uniform)
  •  $200 will sponsor a grade 12 high school student to study and also teach in the villages for a year ($180 payment for teaching + $20 for school uniform) 
  •  $555 - $675 will sponsor a university student to study and teach in the village for a year ($280-$400 annual tuition + $180 payment for teaching + $75 boarding house + $20 uniform)
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We are in the progress of setting a PayPal account for donations, however if you wish to donate in the meantime please email Sister Regina at regina822@hanmail.net Perhaps the most rewarding donation you can make is your time. The students in Prey Veng study very hard, but they struggle with pronunciation as they have limited fluent English speakers to practice with. Your time is invaluable to the students who always want somebody to practice their English with .For details on visiting MJM Cambodia and experiencing their lifestyle first hand please email Sister Regina at regina822@hanmail.net and https://www.facebook.com/mjmcambodia

Sister Regina is an amazing example of a life dedicated to community service, but to be clear she’s not in Cambodia on a personal mission to convert them to Catholicism or Christianity; her whole intention and work is to give the young people a livelihood and hope for a better future.