When Geraldine Cox first arrived in Cambodia in 1970 she was a fun-loving twenty-five year old with no idea of the role the country would play in her future. Working as a secretary in the Australian Embassy she dreamed of ‘swanning around in a cocktail dress and seducing James Bond types’. Instead the Vietnam War was spilling over the border, American B52s were dropping bombs and the country was in turmoil. Many years later Geraldine Cox returned to the place that had made such a big impression and founded three orphanages. Today she also oversees a network of non-residential centres, community-based education and other welfare enterprises. Now in her 70th year, she’s at a crossroads with responsibility for four hundred children but no heir apparent.