Doris Dillon School in Cambodia

My name is Nico Angelo. I am a sophomore at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, California. I love basketball and have played competitively since I was in the 3rd grade.

I went to Doris Dillon School in Cambodia in February of this year to teach middle school kids the game I love. Doris Dillon School is located in Sangkae Doch village. It was founded by Denis and Jim Delong, educators from Almaden Valley, in 2007. The school serves five surrounding communities. Families there mostly subsist by raising rice in plots and selling it to provide funds for food and other necessities. Some families simply do not own enough land to raise enough rice to feed themselves. Other families do not own any land at all. Since these families cannot sell rice at the market, they must find other means of income to subsist. Sadly, this often forces their children to drop out of school to work at menial jobs to support their families. The work at Doris Dillon provides another path: education and a chance to go to a university, especially for girls who often pay the highest cost for the poverty they are born into.

I arrived with little expectation; most of the kids had never heard of basketball. What I found were the most engaging, curious, and loving kids. They took to it with passion and spirit; the smiles and laughter never stopped. Even the teachers and school staff joined in the fun. By the end of the week, we were playing basketball. The thing is, we played on dirt, with a makeshift hoop my dad and I put together, held in place with rice bags full of dirt. I wanted them to have a court. We told Jim and Denise that if the school would allow, I would raise the money to put one there. So that's what I am asking for. It does not matter how much; everything will help. Please give what you can. I can tell you that they are deserving people, appreciative, and full of life. Thank you.