Meet the Cambodia Staff
Koung Khouch
Koung Khouch was born May 1, 1978 in Phnom Penh and has lived in the city
his entire life. Khouch grew up with three brothers and four sisters until
the age of nine, when his father died of alcoholism in 1987. Khouch then
had to leave his seven siblings to go live with his aunt. While living with
her, he finished high school and the moved on to begin work at the Tuol Kouk
Orphan/Church Home in 2000 as a security guard.
Khouch promptly became more involved in the Church and was a natural
caretaker. Usually a shy guy, God has given him a boldness to lead worship
at the church. Enthusiastically, he loves to worship and lead others into
the presence of God. He wants to continue working for God by teaching the
younger children and whatever else God would have him do.
One thing about Khouch that is noticeable is his servant’s heart. Though
soft-spoken, he is a hard worker and very willing. He likes working with the
children and loves to help them with all of his heart. He is most happy when
he is singing and teaching children.
As the Tuok Kouk Orphan Home grew and transitioned into the Chom Chao
Orphan/Church Home and Training Center he began training to become a
pastor. Now, almost his entire family has come to know Christ and joins him
at Church every Sunday where he leads worship. He has since married his
lovely wife, Srey Nit and has one daughter that is three years old. He is
expecting his second child in February of 2007. Khouch was recently
appointed as Pastor of the Chom Chao Orphan Home.
Pov Naret
Pov Naret was born April 13, 1984 in the Kompong Cham Province. Growing
up he lived in the Cham Kalin village. His parents were rice farmers. Naret
was able to go to only one grade of schooling there. He worked a lot in the
field helping his father.
Later on, the Pov family moved to Phnom Penh. Naret got involved in gang
activity there and was in a lot of fights. He felt bad about what he did but
didn’t know how to stop. Then, one day, 3 years ago, Pov Naret’s neighbor
told him about God. And then two nights later while he was sleeping he heard
a voice saying “you are my son”. He knew it was God speaking to him, and he
became a Christian. He says that when he believed in God he felt his mind
become clear again he was happy.
Pov Naret’s family is a strong Buddhist family. So when Naret told them he
had become a Christian they said that if he was going to serve God then he
could no longer live with them. One of Naret’s main goals in life is to see
his family come to know Jesus also! His favorite verse is John 3:16, because
it talks about God giving up his son and God’s great love for him.
Naret now lives at the Tuol Kouk orphan home. He plays the drums for worship
at church. Joking around and playing soccer with the kids he lives with are
some of his favorite past times. He would like to be a doctor, but is not
quite sure yet. And maybe someday be a youth leader and possibly go to Bible
college in the States.
Ung Malineat
Is from the Svay Rieng Province near the Vietnam border. He was born on
January 15, 1972. Most of his family is still living in Svay Reing, except a
sister who resides with him in Phnom Penh. He will be getting married March
10, 2002!
Malineat was young when Pol Pot started trying to destroy the nation of
Cambodia. Memories of hardly having any food to eat and be malnourished
plague him still. A type of rice porridge was the main meal that sustained
him daily. As a little boy he recalls being afraid a lot because of the
cruelty of the Khmer Rouge. Malineat’s father was a professor and very
knowledgeable. Being a professor made him a main target for Pol Pot. Also
his father was a man that strived to help the people of Cambodia. To
publicly make an example of those who opposed Pol Pot, Pol Pot had
Malineat’s father executed in front of a crowd. Pol Pot had forced his
mother to move to the Pursat Province, and it wasn’t until later that
relatives brought the devastating news…When she heard, she cried and cried…
Malineat attended medical school at the University of Science in Phnom Penh
and then returned to his home village to began work at a hospital. One day,
in 1993, pedaling on his bike home from work, a man rode up beside him and
started sharing the gospel with him. This man invited Malineat to come to
his office and learn more about Jesus. After one week he became a Christian
and was baptized!
Malineat, like his father, wanted to help people especially children. So he
now works for Foursquare Children of Promise. He travels to the orphan homes
doing medical check-ups and exams for the children. He enjoys being with the
kids and training them in health education.
Ngeth Moses
Ngeth Moses, was born September 21, 1983 in Phnom Penh. Now, 18 years
later he continues to live in Phnom Penh with his mother, older brother, and
grandmother.
Moses is one of the few second generation Christians in Cambodia. His
father, Ngeth Marin, was first saved when a man from America came to
Cambodia and told him about Jesus. Marin was the first one in his family to
believe, and as time went on many of his family members also came to know
Jesus. Moses’ family is one of the few families that were saved before Pol
Pot came into power. They saw many miracles during that time. One instance,
Moses’ father was reading the Bible and felt that God was telling him to GO.
And also his two of his aunts felt that God was telling them the same thing.
There was enough food and milk in the village, but still for some reason,
God had said to GO. So they left. Later, Pol Pot’s men came and totally
wiped out the village. God had saved the Ngeth family.
After Moses’ father’s death in 1997, Moses started to make a more personal
commitment to God. He loves Hillsong music, plays the guitar, and leads
worship at his church. One thing that he has learned is that no matter how
bad things are, he can always trust in God.
Moses has seen pictures of people bungee jumping and would love to go bungee
jumping himself someday! He would like to maybe be a pilot. He also has
thought about getting involved in politics either as a governor or advisor
to the Prime Minister. And he wants to continue playing music
Because he too has lost his father, Moses can relate to the children that he
works with in all the homes. His heart goes out to them.
Taing Lyheng
Taing Lyheng was born in Kompong Chhnang Province on October 10, 1980. He
grew up in the Phsar Leu village with his family who ran a fishing business.
His father taught him how to fish and catch snakes in the local waterways so
they could to sell the skin and meat for profit. By the age of six, Lyheng
learned that, in order to skin a snake, he needed to first sedate it with
tobacco. Once the snake began to relax and uncoil, his three foot, sixty
pound stature could then manage the snake without being overtaken. Lyheng’s
father died later that year.
Being the only boy in a family of six siblings afforded him the
opportunity to attend public school. Education was a resource that very few
had access to at that time and the majority of those who were able to
attended school were boys. Lyheng continued to go to school until is mother
died six years later of malaria. However, when his older sister became his
primary care taker she pushed him to pursue further education.
In 1999 he began teaching English at the Chom Chao Orphan Home in Phnom
Penh. He fist heard about God from one of the younger children who also gave
him a Bible. After receiving the gift, he went home and read the book of
Proverbs and liked it very much. The director of the home explained to him
what the Bible was about and who had written it. Lyheng began to attend
church where he heard more about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. During his
search to understand who exactly God was, he found him questioning and
challenging the words he read in the Bible. He began to pray, but, still
Lyheng did not put all his trust in God. The turning point in Lyheng’s life
came after a family member had passed away. While in route to go worship at
his ancestor’s grave, he asked God if He was real and to reveal Himself by
preventing prevent him from going to worship at the graveyard. Soon, Lyheng
came upon a bridge that was broken and impassible. There was no other way
to reach the grave. He was unable to continue! Lyheng, then accepted Jesus
Christ as his Savior and now continues to work in the Ministry.
Lyheng has attained a BA in Business Administration. He was married in the
spring of 2006 and is now expecting a daughter. Currently, his primary role
is managing the import and export of goods for the ministry. He also works
as a translator from English into Khmer for Church services, conferences,
and daily needs.
Anna Blake
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Jamie Gonzalez
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