In March 2026, Transform Cambodia welcomed a group of long-term supporters and leaders to Cambodia for a week the whole team described as truly memorable. The visit was never just about the people who flew in. It was about what happened when those people sat alongside the children, families, interns, staff, and legacy graduates who make up the TC community every day.
Transform Cambodia CEO Paul Mergard led the visit, joined by Wayne Patterson, Pastor Nathan Green, and Peter Bolt. Each of them brought something specific. Each of them rolled up their sleeves and got to work.
Wayne Patterson has been walking alongside Transform Cambodia since the very beginning in 2006. With a background in education, Wayne has spent years supporting the organisation in a range of roles and was in Cambodia this time to pour directly into the Curriculum Team. The children in TC’s programs benefit every day from the quality of what they are taught, and Wayne’s mentoring of the people who build and deliver that curriculum strengthens the foundation that everything else is built on.
Pastor Nathan Green, Senior Pastor of LifeGate Church in Sydney and a long-term partner of Transform Cambodia, spent time training the Worship Chiefs. These are young Cambodians who lead worship across TC’s programs and communities. For them, time with Nathan is not just skill development. It is investment in their identity as leaders and as people of faith.
Peter Bolt brought expertise in Vocational Training and worked directly with the TC team on a program that is still taking shape. Not every young person in TC’s programs will go to university, and the organisation is committed to ensuring that those who take a different path have access to real, practical training that opens doors to meaningful work. Peter’s involvement is helping TC build that program with the same care and intentionality that runs through everything else the organisation does.
The timing of the visit also carried weight. Cambodia’s Khmer New Year falls in mid-April, and the leaders were on the ground to celebrate it together with TC families, interns, and legacy graduates. Sharing that celebration was not a side event. It was a statement that this community matters, that its culture is worth honouring, and that the people who lead this organisation show up not just for the work but for the people.
Staff Impact brought the full TC team together to receive direction and encouragement from the visiting leaders. When staff feel seen and well supported, they are better placed to care for the children who depend on them.
This is what long-term transformation looks like in practice. Not a single intervention, but people showing up year after year, bringing their skills, their faith, and their time to a community that is slowly and steadily being changed.
Your support makes this possible. To sponsor a child or co-sponsor a TC intern through university, visit transformcambodia.com. The work is real, the results are real, and your giving matters.