Dan Roberts has been a sponsor with Cambodian Children's Fund (CCF) for around seven years and says it has been an amazing and rewarding experience, which he highly recommends to anyone who will listen.
Keen to support CCF further by sponsoring a second child, Dan decided to ‘gift’ a sponsorship to his young godson, Jacob, who also lives in the UK.
“It seemed like a great opportunity to get Jacob involved. Jacob’s such a bright, thoughtful boy that I was confident he’d get a lot out of the sponsorship experience, and, once I’d run the idea past his Dad, he jumped at the chance to get involved,” says Dan, from the UK.
Jacob, 11, is now connected with Ratha, who is nine.
It’s nice to learn about Ratha and his life
The two boys - 6,200 miles (10,000km) apart and worlds away - are now getting to know each other, swapping information about their very different lives.
“It’s nice to learn about Ratha and his life, and also to have a friend to talk to,” says Jacob.
“Getting to know him has made me grateful for the lifestyle I have, and makes me glad that we can support him and his friends in some way.”
Jacob’s dad, Trevor, is a friend of Dan’s, and the two took part in the CCF Miles for Smiles 2025 charity bike ride from Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, to Phnom Penh, helping raise more than US $74,000 for CCF's Kindergarten Program.
When Dan kindly offered to sponsor a child on behalf of Jacob, I knew it would not only benefit a Cambodian child’s life, but also enrich Jacob’s
“After visiting CCF at the end of the ‘Miles for Smiles 2025’ sponsored bike ride, I saw the life-changing difference CCF makes to the children and families that need it the most,” says Trevor.
“When Dan kindly offered to sponsor a child on behalf of Jacob, I knew it would not only benefit a Cambodian child’s life, but also enrich Jacob’s, increasing his cultural awareness and showing him how we can make a real difference.
“Jacob has absolutely loved getting to know Ratha, sharing their individual experiences of home and school life. They have formed a real connection, and Jacob loves telling his friends and family all about Ratha and his achievements.”
Ratha says, “I am very happy to have Jacob as my sponsor. He is so nice.”
I’m really looking forward to seeing Jacob and Ratha build a friendship between their two very different worlds
Dan, who is based in London, is also happy that the sponsorship gift is working as he’d hoped.
“I’m really looking forward to seeing Jacob and Ratha build a friendship between their two very different worlds, which I know will benefit them both,” he says.
