Siem Reap, KH – Productive track record qualifies family for a Rent-to-Own home – 31 Mar 2022

Rey Diez is founder and manager of the Peaksneng Thormacheat Garden Shop that is a social enterprise assisting families and children with food, income and housing sustainability services. Rey talks about one of the families his shop has a relationship with. The BCO family currently lives in a rented house that is built with galvanized steel sheets. During hot days the house is like an oven, where it can heat up to as much as 110 F / 45 C degrees inside.

BCO is one of our long term family garden members. He grows vegetables seasonally when the weather is mostly favorable for the plants. He understands how important it is to consistently grow healthy vegetable for his family. One of the achievements he has had since he grew a vegetable garden has been selling surplus vegetables. He started the idea of selling vegetables when he saw that the garden that he and his wife cultivated were productive. They tried renting a small shop in Peaksneng market, and fortunately it worked and they started to build trust with their customers and families in the area. Now he is selling not only vegetables but other items like fish, sugar, fruit and vegetables. BCO even buys and sells cucumbers from the Peaksneng Thormacheat Garden Shop’s gardens every day.

The family has experienced these benefits since they took the step of starting a vegetable garden.

1. Better income for the family.
2. Provide job for his family and jobless neighbors.
3. Children have enough food, look healthy and are interested in going to school.
4. Can afford to pay school expenses for their children every day.

The family tell Rey that “we are feeling grateful that through small steps we are improving our living and feeling more confident”.

BCO believes that challenge makes him better. He said. “Daily life is full of chances, obstacles and problems, face it with smile!” The COVID pandemic is one of the challenges they have faced, there were no costumers to buy their products when a government order shut down the market places. This put them in a very difficult situation.

The BCO family have seven children, five with BCO’s first wife. He then remarried and is blessed with two more children. His dream is to have a decent and safe house for his children. It is hard to live in their current rented house during the day because of the heat. It is an unhealthy place to live! His parents are aging, so they need a comfortable home to live. BCO prays that his family’s earning track record will qualify them for a Rent-to-Own (RTO) home for his wife, children and parents.