Christian and Marie-France des Pallières’ Ordinary Courage: For a Child’s Smile, Part 2 of 2

In the beginning, the young ones were afraid of Mr. des Pallières because he was so big and had large hands. But little by little, the children learned to trust him and have fun with him. Mr. and Mrs. des Pallières’ unconditional love and kindness for these children won them over. He said: “It’s certainly like your own children. They become your own children.” The children wanted to call them “Mom” and “Dad,” but these children already had parents, so Mr. and Mrs. des Pallières suggested Papy and Mamie. And that is how they are still affectionately known today, even by Cambodian Royalty!

When the couple asked the children living on the landfill what they needed, the children also asked to be able to go to school, like all the other kids. So, Mr. and Mrs. des Pallières found a piece of land for sale near the dumpsite and began building a school. However, the couple faced adversity from the parents because going to school meant that the children would not be making money for their families by working at the dumpsite. Always courageously facing every obstacle together, Christian and Marie-France des Pallières found a way to make up for this by providing rice to their students’ families. This solution was a success! The children could study, and the families could eat.

It wasn’t very long, however, before the couple noticed that, even with primary and secondary schooling, graduates often had to return to working at the dumpsite. It became clear that they had to add quality vocational training to their curriculum so that their graduates could find an adequate job. They began teaching popular trades such as cooking, waitressing, mechanics, hairdressing, construction, management, sales, and cinema, and they now teach a total of 28 different trades.

Right from the beginning, Christian and Marie-France understood that Cambodians had to run the organization, because they had the knowledge to make the correct decisions in their own country. Mr. des Pallières found talented collaborators, and now, more than 600 Cambodians are employed by PSE. Many of their own students now work at the center, striving to carry on Mr. and Mrs. des Pallières’ legacy for generations to come. PSE received the French Republic’s Liberty, Equality, Fraternity Human Rights Prize in 2000. In 2014, they were honored with the AidEx Humanitarian Hero Award.

Mr. and Mrs. des Pallières’ extraordinary adventure has been brought to the screen by the talented French director Mr. Xavier de Lauzanne in the documentary titled “Les pépites,” or “Little Gems.” The film not only chronicles the couple’s journey through their own words, but also shares the children’s touching stories. The movie was released on October 5, 2016, just a few days after Mr. des Pallières’ passing.