Mr. Touch’s touching tale
(This was one of the feature articles I wrote when I was working at the Ke Alaka’i [The Leader, BYUH's university paper]; about Sophornn Touch’s inspiring story on his pursuit of learning and being educated. Date published: January 26, 2005. Headline altered.)
Entrance: Brigham Young University-Hawaii
Walking for three months at the young age of 14 from his home country of Battambang, Cambodia to Thailand, BYU-Hawaii student Sophornn Youch, 29, carried along with him a strong desire for an education. He came to Thailand with zilch — no money, no food — basically nothing.
“When I was little, I didn’t see education [as being] so important to me; because in my hometown, we were raised in a family focused on work instead of education,” Touch said.
In Cambodia, his daily routine was waking up early in the morning to go to school, come home, work in the farm, then go back home and sleep after an exhausting day.
The next morning, he would do the same things over again. Therefore, Touch didn’t have the experience of studying at school or doing homework, he merely attended school for the sake of being there.
A Cambodian farmer
“Sometimes, because of the workload, our parents [asked] us to skip school,” Touch related. During breaks from school and on weekends, he and his family spent up to 15 hours at the farm with meager time to rest and eat meals.
“But when my mind started to develop, I realized that education was so important to me,” he said. I saw its importance in terms of finding a job.” He said he realized how much he could do for and in his society if he was educated. “And plus,” he emphasized “I saw… my friends who have gained beyond my capacity in terms of education: they dress nicely, they have money, and they have work because they have a degree. I want to get out of the circle of what we call the ‘farming circle.’” he added.
Typical Farming Day at Cambodia
But when the civil war in Cambodia erupted, he was forced to stop school. “I thought that my education had ended.”
However, the war didn’t totally hinder him or wither his will to have an education. He asked his supportive parents if he could go to a refugee camp in Thailand to continue his studies. They allowed their 14-year-old son to travel by foot with nine other Cambodian boys.
‘We didn’t have transportation, so we walked,” he explained.
That’s how he began his three-month journey toward gaining an education and a new life in Thailand. It wasn’t easy. “We slept under the trees, and when it rains, it’s cold — we traveled during the rainy season,” he related. “We walked through the jungle. We took baths in rivers on the way.”
They carried no food with them. “I didn’t have any money,” he continued. “We just asked for food from people we met along the way. They [provided] us food to eat.”
That’s how they survived the long and exhausting journey with nothing — not even a tent to shelter them or a bag with bread and water. They were traveling like homeless beggars.
When they finally got near the refugee camp in Thailand, their guide who was a soldier instructed them to carry a log with them (weighing approximately 50 kilos, perhaps heavier that they were ).
“We need to carry or offer something, If we don’t Thai soldiers will shoot you or beat you up,” he said.
Since they didn’t have anything to give the soldiers, Touch and his friends, trembling from exhaustion and hunger, somehow found the strength to carry a log on their shoulders; to be spared their lives and be able to cross the border.
“I was so hungry and tired, I saw a leaf and I ate it. It was sour like a tamarind. I don’t know if it’s edible — I was so hungry, so I ate [it] just to ease my hunger,” he related, recalling how badly his body was shaking.
Not only did he and his friends suffer fatigue, hunger, and cold, but they also risked their lives in the pursuit of education.
The Cambodian Flag
Touch added, “when you are from Cambodia and you try to go in, you are in jeopardy.” Yet using his strong will, he successfully entered into an orphanage and continued learning in a nearby school in the refugee camp.
His goal of getting being educated was threatened when the refugee camp was accidentally burned down. Then a couple of days later, the Cambodian king ordered all his people to go back home. Hence, Touch and the rest of the Cambodians went back.
When Touch got back to Cambodia, he studied a vocational course and learned English. There he met a couple from the LDS Church who were serving a mission and the introduced him the Gospel. A few years later, he got baptized; the following year he left to serve in the California, Sacramento Mission.
"Enter to Learn; Go Forth to Serve."
Touch learned about BYUH through two of his friends who were studying at the university at that time. He applied at BYUH while he was in California. He is now happily married and about to march in the June commencement exercises; and is planning to enroll in graduate school to further his learning.
“I see education as a guideline in my life,” he uttered. “[My] education [now] is preparing me to pursue more education.”
Touch graduated with a masters degree at the University of Hawaii. (with him, his Filipina wife Ludy and daughter Chandy)
“Education plays a big role in my life because I have the blessing of coming here [at BYUH]; and my goal is to be educated, not for myself only but also for my country and my people in Cambodia,” Touch concluded.
( As related by his wife, this feature story had contributed to his acceptance in graduate school at the University of Hawaii. He and his family now lives in Cambodia).
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All obstacles can be overcome if we have the determination to succeed.
This is indeed an inspiring and a touching story!
Amazing!
The story reminds me of GOD,s unfathomable manifestation of HIS great love-that at times HE allows us to reach the tunnelto see the light and once over the trials,then countless blessings pour !
I felt so blessed to finish my studies without a touch of his experience. I never knew that some people are really experiencing such challenges yet they succeed!!
It’s really a privilege to be invited to visit your website,my day became brigther!!
can I invite my friends to visit ur website too?
MUCH THANKS ATE CHIT and CONGRATULATIONS ulit!!
My husband’s life has been a great inspiration for me. He is now currently working as a Church Educational Coordinator here in Cambodia. Our mission here is to touch the lives of the youth and build the Kingdom of the Lord here in Cambodia. We believe that we are called here for a purpose and God had prepared his life for this purpose. We are glad that the Lord had guided our way and we know that each person has its own purpose and mission to fulfill.We sure need to look beyond our challenges because there is a plan prepared for us even from the beginning.
My husband’s life has been a great inspiration for me. He is now currently working as a Church Educational Coordinator here in Cambodia. Our mission here is to touch the lives of our youth and build the Lord’s Kingdom here in Cambodia. We then need to look beyond our challenges for there is a plan laid for us even from the beginning.