Weaves of Cambodia, Cambodia
Weaving Studio in Northern Cambodia - NGO run by Carol Cassidy
The humble workshop is located in Tbeng Meanchey, in the rural Preah Vihar Province of Northern Cambodia. The remote town lies just 60km away from the old Khmer Rouge stronghold of Anlong Veng near the Thai border. Carol Cassidy was first approached in 1999 as a textile specialist before she became the Director and benefactor of the NGO in 2003.
In 1997, Bud Gibbons, a Vietnam veteran working with Veterans International Cambodia (a branch of Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation), established a silk weaving center to provide jobs and incomes to the polio and landmine victims in Tbeng Meanchey. A group of women was sent to Siem Reap to learn weaving and local artisans built the wooden looms. The project included silk farming and relied on five weavers to produce silk scarves and sarongs for an overseas market. The program encountered many technical difficulties and some staff problems until Gibbons asked Carol Cassidy for advice. She traveled to the dusty town of Tbeng Meanchey where she provided training in weaving, dyeing and designs. The costly and labor-intensive silk farming was abandoned; instead, raw silk was imported from China and Vietnam. Most importantly, Carol modified the looms and designed a specific system for the landmine amputees. The usual two bamboo treadles (foot-pedals) were replaced by three pedals, allowing the weavers to rest their prosthetic leg on a stone, while working the three treadles with one foot. In 2003, the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation (VVAF) could not support the program any longer and Gibbons asked Carol to take over for good. She hesitated at first, but took on the new challenge, mainly because she knew she could trust the Cambodian staff to meet her quality expectations.
Read MoreThe humble workshop is located in Tbeng Meanchey, in the rural Preah Vihar Province of Northern Cambodia. The remote town lies just 60km away from the old Khmer Rouge stronghold of Anlong Veng near the Thai border. Carol Cassidy was first approached in 1999 as a textile specialist before she became the Director and benefactor of the NGO in 2003.
In 1997, Bud Gibbons, a Vietnam veteran working with Veterans International Cambodia (a branch of Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation), established a silk weaving center to provide jobs and incomes to the polio and landmine victims in Tbeng Meanchey. A group of women was sent to Siem Reap to learn weaving and local artisans built the wooden looms. The project included silk farming and relied on five weavers to produce silk scarves and sarongs for an overseas market. The program encountered many technical difficulties and some staff problems until Gibbons asked Carol Cassidy for advice. She traveled to the dusty town of Tbeng Meanchey where she provided training in weaving, dyeing and designs. The costly and labor-intensive silk farming was abandoned; instead, raw silk was imported from China and Vietnam. Most importantly, Carol modified the looms and designed a specific system for the landmine amputees. The usual two bamboo treadles (foot-pedals) were replaced by three pedals, allowing the weavers to rest their prosthetic leg on a stone, while working the three treadles with one foot. In 2003, the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation (VVAF) could not support the program any longer and Gibbons asked Carol to take over for good. She hesitated at first, but took on the new challenge, mainly because she knew she could trust the Cambodian staff to meet her quality expectations.
