Haverford teenager is volunteer teacher

Croom Beatty is teaching English to Cambodian students in one of his volunteering assignments to Cambodia.

Lyle Beatty worried about many things when her 16-year-old son, Croom, went to Cambodia to teach English in 2006.
She didn't think about cobras.
Sure enough, her son came close to one while touring a temple in the countryside near Siem Reap.
Snake scares aside, Croom Beatty - now 17 and a senior at the Haverford School - has spent part of the last two summers teaching English in schools sponsored by the Ponheary Ly Foundation.
The Beatty family, of Haverford, met Ponheary Ly while touring Angkor Wat in 2005. Lyle and her husband had prepared their four children for the trip by watching The Killing Fields and learning about Cambodian history. But nothing compared to hearing Ly's personal stories, Lyle Beatty said.
"It was life-altering," she said.
Upon returning, Croom e-mailed Ly to ask what he could do to help. He envisioned raising money or giving a presentation at his school. Instead, Ly suggested that he return to Cambodia to teach. So Croom flew to Asia to teach for two weeks before meeting up with his family.
"The first day I walked into the school, I was very nervous," Croom said. "She dropped me off and had me do my own thing. When I walked in, everyone started giggling. It was challenging."
Eventually, Croom became more comfortable. Last summer, he returned with a friend for three weeks. They lived in the Ly guesthouse and rode their bikes to and from the school, witnessing Cambodian life firsthand.
"It was a lot of fun," he said. "Her family treated me like one of their own. The second year was a lot more relaxed. I got to know the kids better.
"It's amazing to see the potential of some of the students. . . . I was expecting to maybe give them enough English to work in a hotel. Some of them are exceptionally smart. They want to be doctors and teachers."
Lyle Beatty says her son has "learned so much. It went from being a vague do-gooder type thing to realizing what is there and the difference that one person or a lot of people can make."
- Chris Gray