The Village People

Fran is from the UK and has been living in Cambodia since 2022. Apart from running The Village People, Fran is a cognitive behaviour hypnotherapist and healer.

Fran worked as a secondary school English teacher for 12 years, finishing her career on the island of Penang in Malaysia as an assistant headteacher.

When Fran isn’t doing charity work or offering healing, she can usually be found sat under the jackfruit tree in her garden with her dogs, and a pen and paper in hand ready to write.

Vanaja is a wonderful woman: she’s kind, protective and strong with lots of life-force energy.

She was born and raised in Kantale, and even now, she lives next door to her mum and sisters. Vanaja worked in Kuwait for some years, returning to Sri Lanka when she had her sons, Thanush and Sabi. Vanaja is a single mother to her sons, prioritising their education to give them the best chance of having secure futures.

Vanaja is a great cook: she shows her love through cooking delicious Sri Lankan curries, coconut roti and apom.

Abdullah is a kind-hearted and committed person. She thinks of great initiatives to support her local community.

She was born in Kinniya, in the north-east of Sri Lanka, into a large family: she has 4 sisters and 3 brothers. Now she lives in Kantale, with family very close by. She has two children: a son and a daughter.

Abdullah teaches English across primary and secondary school in a local school for muslim children and has been a teacher for 22 years. When Abdullah isn’t teaching, she enjoys chicken farming and growing vegetables.