Report from Thailand: Midland Mission Team Re-Visits Old Friends, Partners

A short-term mission trip to Thailand by a group of Midlanders has led to new friends and new contacts ... but oit has also provided them an opportunity to re-visit with old friends and mission partnerships that were first established during an earlier mission trip in 2008.

One of those established friends and mission partners is the Mae Kha Chan Children's Home, a place in northern Thailand where orphaned Hill Tribe children may come to live and grow in body, mind and spirit. The home represents a remarkable coming-together of many caring groups and individuals, guided by the Holy Spirit. It left an indelible impression on the hearts of the 2008 Mission Team, and the 2013 mission team is reinforcing that first impression.

The home houses Hill Tribe children, ages 6-17. "Our goal is nurture their given talents while allowing them to study in many various fields and teaching them valuable skills they can use to better not only themselves, but also their community," they explain. "We encourage them to pray for God’s direction in their futures and teach them how to study the Bible and follow Jesus." The children have come to the home for various reasons, such as the death of one or more parents to AIDS, and/or extreme poverty. It is noted that many children their age are sold into prostitution or forced labor to pay for family expenses.

The home began through the love of a single woman ..... "while visiting a Hill Tribe village which, like most, had no electricity, bathrooms, or schools; Lawan Promwongsak, a Thai Christian woman, met five children that desperately wanted to study the Bible but had no education to speak of. God gave her a vision to work for these disadvantaged children and give them the education that was necessary to develop their communities."

She brought these children to live with her in an abandoned house in the town of Mae Kha Chan, which she was allowed to rent free-of-charge because the owner and other members of the local community believed it was haunted by ghosts. The building may have been small and dilapidated, but the mission continued to grow - but so did the surrounding community. As the area began to develop, the owner of the house began asking for rent. They prayed for help and guidance - and that prayer was answered through the Manna Foundation (follow this link to see the establishment of the Children's home in 1998). The result was a large piece of land very close to town and a brand new building, which opened in November, 2006.

Here is an album photos taken of the 2013 mission team's visit to Mae Kha Chan and Dong Mada, taken a few days ago by Pirote "Hong" Sachew, another friend and contact established in 2008, and an invaluable guide to West Texans in the Far East.