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Battambang, KH – Grandmother DDK provides for her grandchildren and plans for the future – 9 Sep 2016

DDK harvesting organic morning glory from her vegetable gardenDDK and her husband live with their three grandchildren in the Sankeo district of Battambang, Cambodia. Their productive garden provides them with enough vegetables to eat and sell throughout the year.

It is a common story for younger parents to head to the Thailand border to search for consistent income, often leaving behind  their children with other members of the family. The DDK family are in this situation, but DDK is happy to care for her grandchildren and enjoys watching them grow up. Both DKK and her husband work as laborers in rice fields.

Since joining Healthy Life Shop’s organic vegetable garden program in 2015, they have maintained a productive garden that earns them approximately US$5 to US$7 a week!

DDK's organic vegetable gardenIn the dry season, her local river dries up and it is difficult to maintain her whole garden, so she is forced to reduce the amount of beds she plants. When the rain returns, she prepares and plants the rest of her garden. She is interested in digging a deep well on her property so that she can have water for gardening and home use all the year round.

She is also looking to improve her home so she wants to raise ducks and pigs to earn the extra income to invest in her house.