Ika's house in Sumatra, Indonesia has finally been rebuilt in February, 2026 and the family has moved back.

My name is Riska Andriani, and I am 25 years old. I come from Sibolga, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Today, I live in Jambi Province, in Merangin Regency, Bangko District.: On October 23, 2025, at 9:30 in the morning, a fire broke out and burned my house. It destroyed the entire kitchen and part of the main structure of the home.

My name is Riska Andriani, and I am 25 years old. I come from Sibolga, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Today, I live in Jambi Province, in Merangin Regency, Bangko District.

I am an English teacher. I teach at an English course called AiBi (Intelligent Bimbel). I am the eldest of\ three siblings. I have a 24-year-old sister and a 19-year-old brother. I live with my mother. She is a widow.

My parents divorced when I was only 11 years old. After the divorce, my mother took the three of us to Jambi, far from our hometown, to start a new life.

This is where we learned to live without a father, without relatives, and with only each other to rely on. My mother sacrificed everything so that we could survive, and because of her strength, I was able to finish my degree in English Education. Today, I am blessed to work as an English teacher. Besides teaching at AiBi, I also teach private lessons.

My monthly income is Rp2,000,000 ($120 USD) from AiBi, and Rp400,000 ($24 USD)from private lessons. With this modest income, I gathered the courage to take a mortgage so I could finally have a home of my own. All my life, we lived in rented houses, moving from place to place. Having this house meant stability—something we had long dreamed of. But after living in this home for almost four years, something unimaginable happened to us.

On October 23, 2025, at 9:30 in the morning, a fire broke out and burned my house. It destroyed the entire kitchen and part of the main structure of the home.

The fire took everything in the kitchen, which was made of Glassfiber Reinforced Cemenr (GRC), leaving nothing behind… not even a single item to save. It also burned my younger brother’s bedroom, which was close to the kitchen. All of his belongings were lost in the flames.

I have trouble sleeping at night, and at the time of the incident, my sister and I were sleeping. My brother had already left for work. Suddenly, the neighbors were shouting and banging on our door, trying desperately to wake us. I opened my bedroom door and saw thick black smoke and fire exploding from the kitchen. I quickly woke my sister, and we ran for our lives. 

After escaping, I worked with the neighbors to fight the fire and save whatever little we could. Not long after, the firefighters and police arrived and managed to put out the flames.

According to the police investigation, the fire was likely caused by an electrical short circuit. This tragedy broke our hearts. It left my family and me devastated, lost, and unsure of what to do next. I even thought that maybe returning to our hometown was our only option. 

But when I told my friends, Mr. Rupak and Mr. Marc, they gave me hope again. They told me that 100friends could help us rebuild the home we lost. I cannot express how grateful I am to Mr. Rupak, Mr. Marc, and 100 Friends.

Their kindness came at a time when we had nothing left—not even the strength to hope. I pray that 100 Friends continues to grow and succeed. May God bless everyone who is part of 100 Friends. You have brought light into a moment of darkness in our lives.

Scholarship 2026 for Toem Bopha Cambodia January 14, 2026

 Hi Marc,

Here is the letter from Bopha who wishes to get the scholarship from 100friends.

     ----------------------------------------------------------------

My name is Toem Bopha. I am 17 years old. I was born in Ampil Village, Mream Commune, Romeas Hek District, Svay Rieng Province. I come from a farmer family, and I have 7 members in my family, I have a Grandma, a Father, a Mother, two older Sister and a Younger Brother. My father is a construction worker, and my mother is a farmer. Nowadays I live in a rent room with my Aunt at QMI Market, Phnom Penh City, to study at university.

Because there are many family members and unstable income, my parents are having a hard time paying for my school fees until I graduated.

Despite our financial difficulties, I am committed to my education; I attend university every morning and work every afternoon. My ultimate goal is to complete my degree in Public Administration to have a chance become a police officer, allowing me to serve my community and support my family.

Why I Want a Scholarship, because first, the family's financial situation is unstable, second, my family has many members, which makes the cost of children's education a huge pressure for parents. If I get this scholarship, my parents will no longer have to worry about earning money to pay for school and will be able to use that money to support the lives of my family and other members.

I promise that if I receive this scholarship, I will try to study to the best of my ability so as not to disappoint my sponsor, who gave me this valuable opportunity.

     -------------------------------------------------------------------------


Here is the breakdown of what she needs for the scholarship.


     1. University for one year : 600$

     2. Transportation, study material, and some living expend                1400$

          TOTAL : 2000$ for 2026

In return, she will volunteer to help with kindergarten or English class before she gets her full time job.

Thank you very much,

Ly An

Jan16,2026 100Friends Trip with Rupak to Andong Village School, Help Grandmas and 100Friends English class at the province in Cambodia

 Hi Marc,

I hope you are doing well.

With your kind support, I am very happy to inform you that we were able to buy school supplies, cleaning materials, and some snacks for 220 children at our CBO.

We also provided support to 6 grandmothers and 1 grandfather who are living in very difficult conditions. I will send you more detailed information about each of them in separate emails.

We also visited a school in Kampong Speu province that 100Friends helped to set up last year. There, we distributed pens, pencils, notebooks, and some snacks to the students who are working very hard with their English lessons.

Below is the detailed breakdown of how the funds were spent:

1. Car rental: $60

2. Gasoline: $40
   Total for transportation: $100

3. Support for 6 grandmothers and 1 grandfather: $30 × 7 = $210

4. Support for Um Vouch, my wife’s uncle, who grows vegetables at the 100Friends English class: $25

5. School supplies for CBO: $180

6. School supplies for 100Friends English class: $50

7. Give Chanra who help to facilitate the project 25$

Total: $590

Thank you very much,

Ly An

Video:

Jan16,2026 Andong Village: Helping Grandma Koeun Sophal and her family in Cambodia

 Hi Marc,  

Here is general information about grandma Koeun Sophal:  

Grandma Khoern Sopal is 72 years old. She lives with 3 children and 18 grandchildren. They live in a very small rented house (20 m²) and pay 60 USD per month. There is not enough space, so some people sleep inside and some in front of the house.  

They do not have enough food. Sometimes they find fish from the lake near by the village and spend their little money to buy rice for all the whole family members. Grandma works at a church and earns about 90,000 riel per month.  The children often get sick with the flu and go to the community hospital for medicine.  

They need food, a monthly payment rental house, medicine, and clothes. They have no food supply and very little money. In the rainy season, the family living condition is getting even harder due to the flood in their home area. Because they are sleeping on the floor and there is flooding, they will not be able to sleep in the house any more.  

When we asked her what she wants the most, she said she wants her grandchildren to have enough food and to live in better living conditions. Life is very difficult, but she continues to struggle for her children and grandchildren. 

I will find out more how to help the kids and grandma Koeun Sophal to live in a better condition.

Video:

Cambodia: Jan16, 2026 Andong Village: Helping Grandma Chhun My

Grandma Chhun My is 64 years old. She lives with 2 children and 3 grandchildren. Her husband works to earn money, but sometimes the income is very small because he is sick with diabetes.

She also has some health problems and gets medicine from Samdach Techo Hospital. The family eats together and shares the food they have.

interview by Ly An & Chanra 

Alipit, Magdalena, Luzon The Philippine is a a community largely composed of farming families. January 5, 2026

The community in Alipit, Magdalena is largely composed of farming families whose primary source of livelihood comes from agricultural work. Because the area is located far from the main road, the community has often received limited assistance, and some households still do not have access to electricity. 

Many children also engage in farming activities to help support their education and contribute to their families’ livelihoods. This community was brought to our attention through a concerned citizen — a factory worker under my father’s supervision — who is familiar with several residents in the area and shared their situation with us, prompting our initiative to extend support.

I’m happy to share that we were able to successfully distribute another set of grocery packs to our local farmers. The farmers in the photos are mostly new faces, and they were even joking that they wanted “exposure” too, which made the distribution light and joyful. 

As seen in the pictures, the darkening sky was already hinting that a heavy downpour was about to happen. As much as we wanted to personally give the other grocery packs to farmers who live a bit farther from the field, the rain soon started pouring hard. 

The farmers advised us that it would be better if we handed the remaining packs to them, and they would be the ones to distribute them to the others who could no longer come due to the weather.

Each family received the following:

• 5 kilos of rice
• 4 canned goods
• 3 packs of instant noodles
• 1 pack of soy sauce
• 1 pack of vinegar
• 1 pack of fish sauce
• 1 dozen powdered milk
• 1/2 dozen chocolate milk drinks
• 2 bars of soap
• 3 tubes of toothpaste
• 1 pack of biscuits
• 1 pack of shampoo

Thank you so much for your continued support. We truly appreciate being able to extend help to our local farmers through this initiative.

Respectfully,
Anne Camille Kurtney Videña

Jan16, 2026 Andong Village: Helping Grandma Chhae Khoeun Cambodia

 Grandma Chhae Khoeun is 65 years old. She lives with 5 children and 8 grandchildren in a small rented house (20 m²) and pays 60 USD per month. The house is very crowded, so some people sleep inside and some in front of the house.

They do not have enough food. Grandma collects scrap to sell and uses the money to buy rice. She earns about 12,000 riel per day, sometimes more, sometimes less. The children are often sick with flu and get medicine from the community hospital.

They need food, house rent, medicine, and clothes. The most important needs are money for health, rental house, food, and clothes, especially in the rain season, during floods. Daily life is hard, but Grandma never gives up hope and keeps struggling for her children and grandchildren.