A safe, dignified home and community for elderly people in rural Cambodia.
Four grandmothers are already waiting for a home.
When we first met Daniel, he was sleeping behind the post office. He had a roll of drawings under his arm — careful drawings of the buildings he used to work on. He wouldn’t let go of them, even for a blanket.
Three years on, Daniel still has those drawings. They’ve yellowed at the edges. They’re pinned above his bed now, in the apartment he rents from us.
A home is the smallest, largest thing. A key you don’t surrender each morning. A shelf where a roll of drawings can wait for you.
We help when we can. We house when we’re allowed to. We stay.
Before the first spade of earth was turned, we already knew who would live here. These are not future tenants on a brochure. They are real women — with names, with stories, with hands that have held whole lives.
04 — Two years of showing up
400+
food baskets delivered to elderly people and families in need.
35
elderly people currently supported through regular visits and care.
2 years
of continuous support — through the season and through the hard days.
And many small moments that never make it into a number — a hand held, a quiet visit, a meal shared on a hard afternoon.
05 — Our Story
The work didn't begin with a plan. It began with showing up — and then continuing to show up.
01
Helping elderly people with food, medicine, essentials and the unexpected needs that arrive without warning.
02
Providing regular food and care to elderly people living in rural villages — not once, but consistently.
03
Bringing people together through travel, art, culture and meaningful encounters — turning visitors into witnesses.
04
Creating a permanent place where elderly people can live safely, independently and together. Not a new beginning — the natural next step of the work we have already been doing for years.
06 — A Home, Not An Institution
Each resident will have her own private home, while sharing warm communal spaces with the other grandmothers — a kitchen and dining area, a garden, a Living & Art Room and outdoor spaces.
A place where people can live independently, but never feel alone.
07 — What will make it a home?
Not grandeur. Not perfection. The small, repeated things that make a place feel like yours.
A
A small, comfortable space that each grandmother can call her own.
B
Space to grow vegetables, sit outside, work with plants and enjoy everyday life.
C
A communal kitchen and dining area where everyone can cook, eat and spend time together.
D
A shared space for drawing, making things, reading, talking, welcoming visitors and simply being together.
E
Comfortable bathrooms, clean water, safe paths, gentle entrances and facilities designed with elderly people in mind.
F
A small guest house where volunteers, supporters and donors can stay and experience the Home.
08 — The Land
A place connected to the community we already know — not chosen from a map, but returned to.
We want to build the Home close to the village where many of the elderly people we support already live.
This is a community we have been visiting and supporting from the very beginning. We know the people, we know their stories, and we have developed a very special connection with this place.
"We don't want to take people away from their community. We want to create a safe home within it."
09 — Where we are now
Last updated · October 2026
Currently in progress
We have found the land for the future Art of Kindness Home and are now working through the necessary permissions and approvals before construction can begin.
There is still a lot to do — from finalising the plans and preparing the land to building the first home.
This is not a finished project. You are watching it become real.
Project progress
10 — Building the Home, step by step
While the community continues to grow around them.
0 – 4 months
Land preparation, the first permanent home for two grandmothers, bathroom, water and electricity, wastewater, accessible paths, a small outdoor kitchen and the essential furniture and equipment.
4 – 6 months
Two additional homes, the main communal kitchen and dining space, sanitation, water and wastewater infrastructure, paths and garden areas.
6 – 8 months
Two additional homes, laundry, Living & Art Room, small volunteer and admin house, landscaping, garden and additional infrastructure.
8 – 9 months
The remaining residential capacity and shared facilities, perimeter wall and gates, landscaping, furniture, equipment, finishing and contingency work.
11 — Built for safety. Built to last.
The Home will be designed around the realities of the local environment and the needs of elderly residents.
Because the site may be affected by high groundwater and seasonal flooding, the final wastewater and drainage solutions will be determined with qualified local professionals after the necessary site assessment.
Safety is part of the design from the very beginning — not a feature added once the walls are up.
12 — What it takes to build the Home
Estimated project budget
€195,000
Our current estimated budget for the complete Art of Kindness Home, including land, construction, infrastructure, furniture and equipment, professional services, project management, team salaries and essential operating costs during the development of the project.
13 — Every milestone brings us closer
Our construction and local project costs are calculated in USD. Each amount reflects what is unlocked at that stage of the build.
~$45,000
Land & initial site developmentThe foundation everything else stands on.
~$78,500
The first 2 residents can move inThe moment the Home becomes real.
~$125,000
6 residents can live in the HomeCommunal kitchen, paths and gardens take shape.
~$180,000
10 residents can be accommodatedLiving & Art Room, laundry, volunteer spaces.
~$220,000
The Home is fully completedUp to 12 residents — a complete, lasting community.
Each milestone represents a real stage of construction and the people it brings through the door.
14 — A home needs people too
People are part of the infrastructure too. Building a home is not only about bricks, roofs and plumbing.
01
Working with contractors, suppliers and local partners to keep the build moving.
02
On-site oversight to make sure each stage is built safely and to standard.
03
Caring for the grandmothers who will live at the Home — daily, gently, consistently.
04
Sourcing materials, managing deliveries, keeping track of every detail.
05
Welcoming the people who come to help and making sure their time matters.
06
The quiet, necessary work that keeps a project like this honest and running.
The team will include the foundation director, project manager, local assistants and other essential staff.
"We want to build a home where people are cared for — and that requires people who are there to care for them."
15 — A Personal Invitation
If you donate €100
we would be delighted to welcome you to the Art of Kindness Home once the centre is completed.
With advance booking and subject to availability, we will offer you a complimentary stay for a few nights in our guest house on the property.
You will be able to meet the grandmothers, spend time at the Home, share a meal and see for yourself what your support has helped create.
We would love to welcome you here. ❤️
17 — Transparency
We will continue sharing the progress of the Home as it happens — including land, permissions, construction, infrastructure, milestones, residents and the use of funds.
This page will become a living record of the project.
Samalia Swan
Artist · Storyteller · Founder
18 — Meet the Founder
"I never planned to build a home for elderly people."
Art of Kindness began much more simply — with meeting people, listening to their stories and trying to help where I could.
Over the years, those individual encounters became something much bigger. I kept coming back to the same villages. I kept meeting the same grandmothers. I kept seeing how much a small act of kindness could change someone's day.
And eventually I realised that sometimes kindness needs a place to live.
This Home is my way of creating that place.
19 — The Next Chapter
Four grandmothers are already waiting.
We are starting with two.
€195,000 is needed to build the Home.
One home. One grandmother. One act of kindness at a time.
Every contribution moves the first grandmother closer to her door.
