Kampong Thom groundbreaking

The ground breaking ceremony went very well in Kampong Thom.  We drove up there on Friday to make sure everything was in order and that the ground had been prepared by the contractor as he had promised. We found it fairly level and the crew worked on it a little more so we could have the chairs set up and not tip over when people sat down. Then we checked with the tent rental company to make sure they were ready and they were so we headed to the nursery to make arrangements to rent the plants for the stage area. The nursery owner is a member and let us have the plants for the day for no cost and he delivered and set up and retrieved the plants. The only cost was for his gas. We stayed at a hotel in the center of town where there is a lot of traffic so it was pretty noisy all night. The cost was $15 per night and let's just say you get what you pay for. 

We were afraid there would be no one at the ceremony because it was time to start and very few people had arrived.  We shouldn't have worried because they soon came and the tent was full. The invited guest sat on the stage with the speakers and seemed to enjoy themselves. After the program the Branch had arranged for food for everyone as it was lunch time. You just don't mess with lunchtime here. 

The new building will be such a blessing for the church members. Their rented building is small and they have outgrown it.  The new one is in a great location that is near where many members live.  We had a lot of help from the missionaries there who helped with translation during the planning as the branch president only speaks Khmer.  There is a member who helped us a lot with tent rental and interviews that we recorded while we were there. Her name is Sophon and we had met her before as she has a sewing business and makes the ties that most members here wear.  She makes scripture covers and bags and several other items that are for sale at the mission home. 

The drive back to Phnom Penh takes about 4 hours on terrible roads.  Mostly under construction so very dusty and very rough.  The new road should be done by the time we leave!

We were happy to have completed a very successful groundbreaking and now on to Kampong Cham for the next one.