Childless Parents Newsletter, Winter 2020

Newsletter for Childless Parents | www.tcf.org.uk 3 Julian’s Legacy When Julian Johnson died, he asked his family to support the work of Cambodian Children’s Fund. His mother Barbara Boxhall made the emotional journey to Phnom Penh to see her son’s wish fulfilled. The green plaque on a wall at the entrance to the school library reads: “In honour of Julian for his commitment to the care and safety of Cambodian children.” Standing next to the sign, in the late afternoon sunshine, is Barbara Boxhall, holding a framed photograph of Julian, her son, a handsome young man with kind, brown eyes, and a warm smile. In a moment, she will step through the doorway into the library and see the result of Julian’s legacy. People who visit Cambodian Children’s Fund do so for many different reasons, motivated by varying purposes, but linked by a common aim to see the work that is being done to turn around the lives of children and families in one of the most deprived parts of Cambodia. For Barbara Boxhall, the 10,000km trip from her home in the UK to Phnom Penh meant more than most. It was a deeply personal, and painful, journey, to see that her son Julian’s last wishes were fulfilled. Julian, her only child, took his own life in August 2017 at the age of 36 after a long struggle with both mental and physical illness. In a letter he left for his mother, he asked her to make