Ung Savy
Superintendant of Schools and Country Manager
Savy was born in 1969, just one year before the Pol Pot regime was established in Cambodia. Between the ages of 1 and 6 he lived in war torn conditions, separated from his family and provided with limited food supplies he was made to work for the Khmer Rouge destroying termite mounds and making fertilizer to put on rice paddy fields. He did this until age of 10 when the Vietnamese army forced Pol Pot’s regime from power.
Aged 13 he started in grade 1 at school and graduating from grade 6 in 1988 at age 18. He then joined the Vietnamese army and started to learn English – which was then illegal. In 1993 the UN armies arrived in Cambodia and Savy was able to use his knowledge to provide translation services. He was also able to return to school to continue his studies in grade 7. Between 1994 he relocated to Siem Reap, attaining work as an English teacher, in his spare time took tourists to temples on a motorbike that he hired from his neighbours. In 1998 Savy took a course to become a tour guide.
In 2003 he was introduced to Jamie and Bill Amelio. He accepted his current role and became an integral component in the growth and success of the organization.
Savy and his wife Mom have one child named Dawson who was born in June 2011.
Kristie Hess
Chief Financial Officer
Kristie Hess holds a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Accountancy from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. She is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).
Prior to joining Caring for Cambodia as Chief Financial Officer, she was Controller of Sound Enhancements, a subsidiary of The Marmon Group. Here she was responsible for all financial and audit aspects of this manufacturing concern, from payroll to inventory costing to independent audit examination. Prior to this, she was with the parent company, The Marmon Group, as a financial reporting staff accountant. Her public accounting experience came prior to this as an Audit In-Charge at Blackman Kallick, Chicago, IL and an Audit Staff Accountant at Baird, Kurtz & Dobson, St. Louis, MO. While living in Pennsylvania, she volunteered for a Montessori school in Bucks County, Pennsylvania utilizing her educational and professional background.
Kristie and her husband Erik and two children currently live in Chicago, IL.
Natalie Bastow
Chief Operating Officer
Representing Caring For Cambodia throughout Asia, Natalie Bastow directs all volunteer programs, oversees annual events, and raises funds and public awareness for our vast educational initiatives in Siem Reap. A key strategist for the organization, Ms. Bastow possesses a strong educational background and has come up through the ranks of CFC—previously serving as both Volunteer Coordinator and Chair of the Education Committee. Ms. Bastow is known for successfully building important relationships for our organization as she works with great dedication to convince others that “Education is the route to change in Cambodia.”
Kay Flanagan
Singapore Country Manager
Kay Flanagan is originally from London and joined CFC as Singapore Country Manager in April. She is responsible for coordinating and developing all volunteer operations and programs in Singapore.
Graduating from Leeds University in 2002 with a degree in the Arts she went on to work for several talent agencies; notably Ken McReddie Associates Ltd based in Piccadilly, whose client list included Dame Helen Mirren, Emily Blunt and Joseph Fiennes, but her real dream was to work in the charity sector, she realised this by going to work for the famous Battersea Dogs and Cats Home; whose patron is Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Working alongside the dedicated volunteers that are so invaluable to the Home was inspiring and these experiences have given Kay the determination to continue giving back, no matter where she is in the world and her new position at Caring for Cambodia will ensure that she does just that.
Kay has been in Singapore for three years and in that time has served as office administrator to the American Association of Singapore and was a manager of the 2010 Singapore Sun Festival.
Megan Smith
Deputy Country Director
Megan Smith assumed her current role in July 2010. Based in Siem Reap, Cambodia, she supervises programs, coordinates visitors, and facilitates communication between Siem Reap and CFC worldwide.
Megan served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Timor-Leste from 2004 to 2006, where she worked on health education and promotion with a local health center. Megan also worked at Children at Risk in Houston, Texas as Development Coordinator, where she fundraised for the organization’s research and advocacy work.
Megan received her MA in International Educational Development from Teachers College, Columbia University in New York City. She received her BA in History from Rice University in Houston, Texas.
Megan is Co-founder of /Collaboration Cambodia, a network of NGO workers and volunteers with the aim of strengthening their work in Cambodia through collaboration. Megan edits and publishes The Siem Reader, an English language quarterly literary magazine for the Siem Reap community.
Diane Ayers
Teacher Training Director
Diane’s role involves working with teachers in each of the CFC schools to improve the quality of teaching from Preschool through to High School.
She was born in the south-east of England and began her teaching career in 2001 after receiving a BA Hons in Education with Qualified Teacher Status. She taught in the UK for 6 years before moving to Singapore in 2007 to teach at Tanglin Trust School – a British International School. During her 4 years in Singapore she taught Reception (Kindergarten equivalent), was Assistant Head of Year and traveled to Cambodia 3 times to take part in Caring For Cambodia’s Teacher Training program.
In 2011 she moved to Siem Reap to take on her current role. Throughout her teaching career Diane has always been focused on curriculum development to ensure that children receive the best opportunities possible and on making learning fun!
Diane believes that Education is the key to change.
