December 6, 2015, updated and real names changed January 23, 2016
Dear Friends and Family,
It has been more than a month since I returned from my Mission trip with Vision Beyond Borders (VBB) to Nepal and Thailand, and I am finally sitting down to tell you about it and say Thank You for your support. VBB is a Christian organization that coordinates with numerous other Missions to provide relief in areas impacted by war or sex trafficking. This trip we took clothing, toys, project supplies and Hygiene packs to refugee camps in Thailand and to a Safe House in Nepal.
First of all, my trip was Wonderful, full of Wonder that is, but not easy. Most of you know our grandson, Terrick, died a month before the trip in a vehicle accident, but I felt God was calling me to continue with the planned trip. I am so glad I did.
It was very hard to say Good-bye to Richard in the airport in Belgrade, in a way I hated to leave, I was afraid either he or I would die while I was gone, but the Lord had other ideas.
I had a dizzying time on the many airplanes we caught, changed, and went through an array of security, customs, and long lines of waiting. Our excellent team leader, Sarah, kept us moving in the right direction. Sarah and I started in Bozeman, Montana the rest of the team members met us along the way, Mickala, (Sarah’s assistant) and Laura in Denver, Karen in Tokyo, and Lisa in Kathmandu.
Our Mission began in Kathmandu, Nepal. When we arrived there was a gas shortage as India was refusing to allow fuel and other supplies across the border into Nepal. Nepal’s new constitution embraced a secular form of government and India wanted them to have a Hindu government. There were mile long lines at the gas pumps everywhere we saw a filling station. Nepal suffered an earthquake last May and many buildings were damaged. The power lines were twisted balls of wire. I don’t know how they ever managed to make the electricity work. The taxi rides were exciting. We saw women in beautiful, colorful clothing walking in rubble and dodging dogs, cattle and vehicles of every kind.
The Safe House is a place for young women, rescued from the sex trafficking trade and from the red light districts in Nepal, to live. The women ranged in age from 15 to 22. Two of the older girls are in Bible College and several others hope to go to Bible College when they have completed their other studies. I will refer to them as “girls” most of the time but this is not in disrespect. For their protection I can’t use their names, though I do know them. The term “young women” gets tiresome after a while, and due to their youth and joyful hearts “girls” seems like the best description.
Mr. Sandy, the Administrator for the Safe House, took us to meet the young women living there. The drive from our hotel to the Safe House was 45 minutes to an hour each way. I wondered how many of Mr. Sandy’s friends and relatives stood in line all night to get gas for us to make our daily trips, maybe he did it himself.
The Safe House is a beautiful building. There were 7 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, large kitchen, and rooms for learning trades including sewing, hair care, manicure/pedicure, and perhaps cooking. (The girls cooked us a complicated lunch from scratch, and it was the best food I had while in Nepal.) A short distance from the Safe house is a Beauty Salon where the girls can work as apprentices under the leadership of the woman who is a licensed beautician. There were clients having treatments each time we visited the Salon.
Jianna, a licensed Psychologist and Counselor, guides the young women through recovery. Four other adult women live there and were in and out daily. I believe several of them stay the night at the Safe House. We had been cautioned that the girls may be shy or uncomfortable around us. That did not turn out to be a problem. Sarah and Karen had met the girls on a previous trip to Nepal and the girls were delighted to see them. Their love and joy spilled over to the rest of us and we were all loved by the residents and most of them seemed very comfortable with us.
Team member Lisa, an airline stewardess for United, shared her testimony the first day and she was able to identify with the girls and they with her. Lisa’s testimony seemed to open everyone’s hearts and the girls bonded with us, and we bonded with them. We were there to serve them and show them they have value and were not on the bottom of the social scale. Each young woman is extremely valuable to the Lord and to her Christian brothers and sisters. We helped them wash walls and floors, we did their hair, and they did ours, we traded manicures, and some of the team members received facials. It was so much fun; we had lots of giggles, laughter, singing and dancing. Another team member, Karen, and I, both of us in our 60’s, were washing floors and one of the young women, Nina, (not her real name) took my hand and said, “Grandma, don’t mop.” Another girl did the same with Karen. Mr. Sandy laughed at this and told us it was hurting their brains to have elderly women mopping. He said to let them pamper us, so we did. We got to sing and listen to music, dance, and play with little Deepita. (Deepita is only 4 and lives in the safe house. She is the daughter of one of the girls or one of the employees.)
Most of the week continued this way, morning devotions at the Hotel, then a trip to the Safe house. We did Bible lessons with the girls and craft projects. My granddaughter, Cassidy, wanted to share beading friendship bracelets so I took the beads and books on how to make bracelets to the Safe House and, of course, everyone else already knew how to make them. We had a wonderful time just hanging out with the girls. Most of the time Jianna interpreted for us to reduce confusion, but we didn’t always need her as we seemed to understand the girls pretty well, except when someone gave a lesson or a testimony. Love goes through language barriers.
Each young woman was in a different place as far as healing and recovery are concerned. One girl, we called Hope, age 15, was still struggling daily with grief, anger, and disillusionment but she asked us to pray for her that she would be able to follow Jesus. Then she found out that her parents and siblings were in a desperate situation and were unable to pay bills or buy groceries. Mr. Sandy, Jianna, and Hope rode on a motorbike to the village where Hope’s parents lived. The need was real so Mr. Sandy took steps to see that they were helped. Karen, Lisa, and I prayed the whole time they were gone as they went to a dangerous place, and it was Hope’s family that sold her into the sex trade. I know this is so terrible to hear, and she still loves them, but Mr. Sandy was unwilling to leave Hope with them until he was sure Hope would be coming back. We all heaved a sigh of relief when Hope returned. I noticed Hope took her hygiene pack, that we brought to her from America, to give to her family, such generosity. (The Hygiene pack contained shampoo, conditioner, soap, comb, brush, toothpaste, tooth brush, and so forth, to last a year.) The girls are so loving. I love them so much. . . . two of them came to me privately and asked if I would be their Grandmother. I was so honored, of course I said yes.
There were tearful goodbyes as we prepared to leave. The Safe House is an island of light in a place of danger and darkness.
Next we went to Bangkok Thailand to prepare for the trip to the refugee camps.
We flew from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, Thailand and stayed one night. The next day we traveled north about 5.5 hours with a stop at Gretchen’s (not her real name) friend’s house to purchase clothes, extra toys, and get additional toys for the camps. We each brought 2 duffle bags filled with hygiene packs, clothes, and toys for the children in the orphanages. First we went to the Karen people in the jungle along the border between Myanmar (used to be Burma) and Thailand.
We parked near the camp, maybe half a mile away, and hiked a few minutes to reach the living quarters. The houses were of bamboo, on stilts, the roofs were thatched with leaves. Each leaf was about 10X12 inches in size and they were laid like shingles. The camp caretakers said they shed water pretty well most of the time. It was uphill all the way to the camp and the big boys helped carry our luggage. That was a relief. They were so joyful and glad to see us.
Our mission was to bring supplies, clothes, and toys for their birthday celebration. Everyone’s birthday was celebrated on the same day, the day we arrived. There were about 100 children at the orphanage. Some of them had aunties or a parent or grandparent but they were basically without homes. The children ranged in age between two weeks, the baby was born in camp, to about age 20. There were many bamboo houses where the children and their caretakers lived. They had a Church building and bathroom buildings. The camp was very steep, and the jungle mingled with the houses. Chickens and ducks were everywhere. Two girls, ages 9 and 11 decided I was too elderly to walk by myself and held my hands wherever we went. It was goofy and fun because wearing flip-flops in steep muddy terrain did make me stumble sometimes but the girls were in danger of being crushed if I fell on them at almost any moment. One of the caretakers thought it was funny but she said, “let them take care of you. It is making them happy.” It was making me happy too.
The birthday party was that evening. We had cake, toys, clothes, hygiene packs and new winter coats for the children. We played games, sang songs, and had a quick Bible lesson. All the kids put on their new winter coats, it was 85 degrees and humid, but that didn’t matter. In the winter it gets down to 50 degrees or so, so they do need coats. Everyone was up way past their regular bedtime, 8:30, with lights out at 9:00. The Church has a generator so electric lights were used but it was still pretty dim. The party lasted until 10:30 or so. One of the stars of the party was the world’s toughest piñata. After all of the little kids and the biggest boys tried to break it with a baseball bat, they finally had to have several boys with their blindfolds off and the piñata on the floor before they could get into it. Nothing can liven up an evening like blindfolded children swinging big sticks with all of their strength. Did I mention it was a huge piñata stuffed with candy and small toys?
We spent the night in camp. I had not seen any mosquitoes but we had netting anyway, just to be safe. We had sleeping pads, sleeping bags and pillows so we were as comfortable as any camping trip.
The next morning we had Church service at 4:30, then breakfast, the kids had their studies and then about 10:00 we went down to the riverbank to play with the new toys. The children numbered off in fives and lined up, 20 to a line, and do relay races. They shrieked with laughter and everyone joined in. Some of the attached pictures show the games. After play time and lunch we gathered in the Church to do crafts. Even the older kids seemed to enjoy it. When in repose, sometimes their faces show deep sadness, they are orphans, they have seen and experienced terrible things, but they embrace life and are filled with joy too.
After the craft time, we prepared to leave. In such a short time we were able to get to know the children and I will especially miss my girls, the sisters who led me everywhere the entire time. They told me, in English, their mother had died. I could only hug them and say I was sorry.
We had the long drive to Chiang Mai, short night in the hotel, and off again north east this time 4.5 hours to the Karenni refugee camp. (Really, I’m only guessing about the direction but the camps were hundreds of miles apart, but both along the Thailand border with Myanmar.) We were not allowed to visit the Karenni camp, the Thai government does not allow foreigners to visit the camp. We met the children in a Baptist Compound. The kids walked an hour and a half through the jungle to get to the compound. This camp was home to about 100 orphans, but these children were older than most of the ones in the Karen camp. The compound had a Church, kitchen building, sleeping buildings and bathrooms – with western flush toilets, such luxury.
We had the birthday party here too, but the kids, many teenagers, entertained us with music, dancing and a fashion show. The girls were already accomplished seamstresses and had made most of the clothing they were wearing. The Karenni are a completely different ethnic group from the Karen but the Burmese government wanted to eliminate them too. Now, Burma (Myanmar) has a new government that will not continue the genocide against these people groups and the refugee camps will be repatriated. In March of 2016 the refugees will be going home. There are places for them to go, near a big city, where they should be safe and begin to start a normal life again. The persecution has been going on for 20 years. Most of the refugees have never had freedom to leave the camps. They are looking forward with both fear and excitement.
We spent two days with the Karenni children but we didn’t stay at the compound. We had games, singing and worship. I was able to teach a Bible lesson, with the help of an interpreter, from Jeremiah 29, about God’s plans for them for blessing and hope and about putting on the full armor of God from Ephesians. It was exciting to teach this group of avid listeners. They seemed to understand and turn in their Bibles to the right places. . . . Not that I could read anything in their Bibles. Even the alphabet is very different from ours; however, they sing some of the same songs we do.
Well, this letter is so long, I guess I’ll stop. See the pictures below.
Thank you again for supporting my trip. We met our goals, supplying the orphanages and the safe house with needed items, showing love and support to the rest of the Missionaries that live there full time, and giving love and support to those whose lives have been so hard due to war or sex trafficking.
God Bless all of you in Jesus’ Name,
Diane
Top left: Most of the girls at the Safe House and the team. Top right: one of the bamboo houses at the refugee camp. Middle left: My girls that led me everywhere. Middle right: party time
Bottom photos: Games at the beach and the talent show with the Karenni kids.
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