A local CALA Homes employee is ready for the build of a lifetime as she prepares to travel to Cambodia to support a charity project building safe homes for vulnerable families.
Kathleen McLaughlin, Digital Marketing Manager at CALA Homes in Edinburgh, has been selected to join the CALA Build 2019 team, which will travel to the Battambang province of Cambodia in February with the aim of building a home for a local family currently living in an informal settlement.
The trip has been organised in partnership with international charity, Habitat for Humanity.
The CALA Build team is made up of 10 CALA employees from across the UK, selected for their commitment to the CALA core values of Quality, Delivery, Passion and Respect, in their everyday roles.
During the build, Kathleen and the CALA team will support in building walls, laying blocks, installing doors and windows and fitting roofs, amongst other more general build activities.
Kathleen said: “Everyone should have access to a safe and secure place to call home, and I can’t wait to have the opportunity to meet the family who we’ll be building a home for.
“I am fully anticipating the sheer exhaustion after each day’s physical exertion during the build, but knowing it is for a real family who face such extreme hardships will serve as fuel to push us all.
“The build is likely to be the most important things I will ever do and I know we’ll be making such a positive impact for a disadvantaged community.”
The CALA Build team has been busy fundraising ahead of their trip and the total money raised is set to exceed £20,000. The team has raised £15,500 so far, with a further £5,000 to be added through CALA’s Matched Funding Scheme for employees.
The funds raised by the team will go towards helping the work of Habitat for Humanity in Cambodia as well as crisis zones across the world, in areas where they are unable to send in volunteers but can assist with other types of aid.
Allan Walker, Director of Group Marketing at CALA Homes, said: “The CALA Build project is closely aligned with CALA’s company values, and we’re delighted and hugely enthusiastic about supporting the initiative with Habitat for Humanity.
“Kathleen was selected to be part of the CALA Build 2019 team as she consistently demonstrates the CALA values in carrying out her work. We’re looking forward to regular updates from the team once they begin the build.”
The Cambodian Government has estimated that at least 10 million of its people lack access to decent housing. 17.7% of the population – or 2.8 million people – still live in extreme poverty, and an estimated two million houses are in critical need of improvement to meet minimal quality standards.
It’s estimated that more than one million homes will be needed by 2030 as a result of population increase and rural urban migration in Cambodia.
Tum Kazunga, CEO at Habitat for Humanity Great Britain, said: “Following decades of war under the Khmer rouge, Cambodia has seen its level of poverty decline but huge inequalities still persist.
“The food and economic crises in 2008 and 2009 led to an exodus, mostly fleeing rural poverty for the cities – which has resulted in concentrated poverty in both rural and urban areas.
“The CALA Build team’s mission for February 2019 is to deliver a safe home and improved quality of life for a Cambodian family, and with just 10 days to complete as much building work as possible, it is the ultimate challenge. I have no doubt that the CALA team will rise to the challenge and we look forward to making a lasting legacy for a family very much in need.”
More than 22 million people have secured new or improved housing through Habitat for Humanity since the organisation was founded in 1976, with more than 8.7 million people served in the last year alone.
For more information on Habitat for Humanity, visit www.habitatforhumanity.org.uk.
For more information on CALA Homes, visit www.cala.co.uk.
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