ourtesy Photo Bonnie Nieman, right, along with her husband, Ted, left, and other friends have recently been concentrating on raising money for building wells for clean drinking water in villages of Cambodia. The Niemans have also worked with monks in Siem Reap to start a sewing center.
It all started with a trip to Cambodia and Vietnam in 2005 for Bonnie Nieman and her husband, Ted.
A longtime Frederick County resident, Nieman, who has been legally blind since childhood, said she was overwhelmed by the poverty in both countries.
“So we began raising money to build wells for clean drinking water in the villages,” she said. “The lack of clean water is one of the leading causes of death around the world. Nothing would grow, and the stagnant water was filled with dead animals.”
Since 2005, the Niemans, along with friends, Larry and Kolab Tyssens, Sensavon Bennici, and dozens of volunteers, have built 1,000 wells in Cambodia, which provide clean water for 3,000 people for only $100 per well.
The Niemans have also worked with monks in Siem Reap to start a sewing center, Ted Nieman said. The center provides jobs for women whose only other option might have been to resort to prostitution to feed their families.
Since the area had no electricity, secondhand trundle sewing machines were brought in for manual sewing.
When the Niemans learned they could clothe a child, provide books and send them to school for only $12 each, they decided to help, and now more than 130 children are being schooled.
When the Niemans realized the Cambodians’ main food staple was white rice, they began a program to feed the children, at least three times a week.
For her efforts, Bonnie was honored recently as part of the 100th annual International Women’s Day celebraton. Over 150 countries participated in the event on March 8, which, according to the organization’s website, is lauded as a worldwide celebration of women’s achievements economically, politically, and socially.
At a ceremony in New York City, Nieman received the Outstanding Service Award from the Women’s Information Network. Along with nine other women across the U.S., Nieman was honored for her extensive humanitarian efforts in Cambodia.
“It was quite uplifting to see what great works are going on around the world,” Bonnie said. “I was honored to stand up with these wonderful women … ordinary women doing remarkable things.”
The Niemans have created a website, www.cambodiawecare.org, to keep people informed of their activities, and to solicit donations.
Recently, they helped residents plant vegetable gardens and have just secured land to help build fish ponds to stock, so the Cambodians will have a more well-rounded diet.
A new school was built in 2009, and last year, the library opened.
Bonnie was a seventh-grade teacher for many years before she retired, and Ted still works at the Applied Physics Laboratory at Johns Hopkins. They grew up in Missouri and moved around the U.S. with the army for several years.
“We fell in love with Frederick when we moved here 20 years ago,” Bonnie said, “and we really felt like we were home.”
The Niemans still visit Cambodia two to three times a year, and Bonnie said it keeps them from being too cynical. “It’s very uplifting to see what great works are going on all across the world.”
Since 2005, the Niemans, along with friends, Larry and Kolab Tyssens, Sensavon Bennici, and dozens of volunteers, have built 1,000 wells in Cambodia, which provide clean water for 3,000 people for only $100 per well.
The Niemans have also worked with monks in Siem Reap to start a sewing center, Ted Nieman said. The center provides jobs for women whose only other option might have been to resort to prostitution to feed their families.
Since the area had no electricity, secondhand trundle sewing machines were brought in for manual sewing.
When the Niemans learned they could clothe a child, provide books and send them to school for only $12 each, they decided to help, and now more than 130 children are being schooled.
When the Niemans realized the Cambodians’ main food staple was white rice, they began a program to feed the children, at least three times a week.
For her efforts, Bonnie was honored recently as part of the 100th annual International Women’s Day celebraton. Over 150 countries participated in the event on March 8, which, according to the organization’s website, is lauded as a worldwide celebration of women’s achievements economically, politically, and socially.
At a ceremony in New York City, Nieman received the Outstanding Service Award from the Women’s Information Network. Along with nine other women across the U.S., Nieman was honored for her extensive humanitarian efforts in Cambodia.
“It was quite uplifting to see what great works are going on around the world,” Bonnie said. “I was honored to stand up with these wonderful women … ordinary women doing remarkable things.”
The Niemans have created a website, www.cambodiawecare.org, to keep people informed of their activities, and to solicit donations.
Recently, they helped residents plant vegetable gardens and have just secured land to help build fish ponds to stock, so the Cambodians will have a more well-rounded diet.
A new school was built in 2009, and last year, the library opened.
Bonnie was a seventh-grade teacher for many years before she retired, and Ted still works at the Applied Physics Laboratory at Johns Hopkins. They grew up in Missouri and moved around the U.S. with the army for several years.
“We fell in love with Frederick when we moved here 20 years ago,” Bonnie said, “and we really felt like we were home.”
The Niemans still visit Cambodia two to three times a year, and Bonnie said it keeps them from being too cynical. “It’s very uplifting to see what great works are going on all across the world.”
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