FBC Missions

the following is a letter from Brett;

Our trip to the larger IDP camp up the river was canceled. They have been having a difficult time crossing the border in this area and we were not feeling like a 6×2 hour ride in the back of the pickup worth the gamble. These larger camps are supplied by Bob and Robert and are at the greatest risk, both from attack and malnutrition. Seeing them would have been a blessing, but it was not to be.

But this left us with the opportunity to serve this wonderful church in town. Bill observed on Sunday morning that a Karen man in a wheel chair could not make it into the church due to the lack of ramps. When I say lack of ramps, this country is the worst I have ever seen (that sounds like I am a big world traveler… not) or could imagine for foot traffic around town and into buildings, we have yet to see a handicap ramp. Anyway, Bill is a mason by trade and suggested we buy some concrete and build a ramp for the church.

We met with the pastor, Roger, and bounced the idea off of him. We did not want to run the risk of giving them something they did not want. It was determined the church wanted the ramp and were hopeful it might encourage other people with disabilities to attend, unfortunately land mine victims are a growing demographic. So we rented the truck and driver from our guest house, bought a wheel barrow, concrete, trowels (Bill complains he cannot do his best work, his “art”, with these trowels) and began to “make mud”. Oh I forgot… DOCTOR Tucker had to buy gloves! But to his credit, they did not stay on his tender “money makers” (my term not his) very long… he’s got manly man hands now!

So we spent all yesterday afternoon making the first ramp and then this AM we built a landing and two more ramps. Needless to say, they turned out pretty nice. I think it is safe to say this is the only church in Mae Sot, maybe all of Thailand with wheel chair accessibility. Bill’s idea was top notch, and very kind. He did take a fair amount of ribbing on not having his cell phone and truck, this kept him on the job site and dirty, a rare turn of events Steve tells me. 

(below photos; Everyone helps to mix cement)

Pastor Roger is the greatest guy. He is 38, looks about 20, plays football (soccer) and has the greatest laugh. He joined us in the mud bowl and was fun to work with. He speaks very little English and as you all know I struggle with my native tongue as well. But we made do. He attended 4 years of Bible college in Bangkok and as I mentioned in my earlier blog, he leads his church with a passion for the lost.

If I could have any “super power” it would not be flying or x-ray vision, it would be the ability to speak and understand any language at any time. I really feel like I miss so much with my version of “foreign language charades”… but if I repeat myself and get louder with each repetitive question, I really think I really make some headway in the language barrier. My linguistic technique did learn that Roger’s father fought for the Allies in WWII (for Burma) and was killed in action (by Burma) as a Karen soldier 20 years ago. Roger has two brothers, one a pastor in Chiang Mai and one a Karen soldier. His office was abysmal (none of us would be willing to work out of his office) and he only had a few well worn reference books, but we share the same taste in many of our books and I bet I could learn a great deal from him if I could speak Karen.

Today, after working together for a couple of days he asked me how big my church was. I was dreading that question and said “pretty big”. He’s no dummy… he laughed and pressed me for the truth. I told him about our church and he took it in stride. They have about 100-120 attending and about 300 kids on their Wed. night program. But if you saw this town, saw their building, saw their resources (whole church budget… $7,000 a year) you would know the truth about church effectiveness, they win. Roger and I are alike in one way.

At lunch today he and some church girls were eating some noodles (way too fishy for my taste) and offered me some, I declined and said all I wanted was oranges. Later Robert ordered out pizza and I offered Roger some, he said no thanks all he wanted was oranges, and sat and ate oranges. Turns out our pizza is covered with rotten smelling and tasting milk… we call cheese.

I haven’t said much about Robert, I will get to him on another day. But I can say I am proud to call him a friend and our church is fortunate to have him as one of ours! He is making a real difference in the lives of the Karen and works tirelessly in doing so. If you ever wonder if missionaries work hard and sacrifice, pop to Mae Sot and take a look. Robert meets people and makes connections, we share that gift.

His latest buddy is an older English gentleman named Fred Stockwell. Fred in now a US citizen and lives in Ashland. He is a photographer by trade and very good at what he does. He likes to use his art and talent to support a cause, and his cause de jour is the Karen people. He has been traveling every step with us taking pictures of every thing we have done, he even endured my sermon and the 3 hour service. Fred is in his 60’s seen just about all of the world, been in 4 plane crashes and is a GREAT guy. He gets our sense of humor and has begun to pick on me just like the rest of the gang. He is committed to doing shows to highlight the plight of the Karen people and raise money for the cause. You might want to check out his current web site. http://www.stockwellphotos.com/ I would hope to have Fred do a show in Eugene so you could all invite a friend and meet him.

Today after we finished the concrete work we “headed out the highway looking for adventure, what ever comes my way… born to beeee wiiiiild” and the gang zipped up to “friendship bridge”, a big, ironically named, rarely used bridge across the river to Burma. The helmets that are standard issue with the bike are sort of glorified hard hats made for really small Asian people, needless to say “I am stylin” in my lid. Frankly, it is a pointless endeavor to wear one, but Steve sports his on a regular basis. It looks so funny on him, Todd and I just about crashed in laughter. Last night I hiked my pants up a skosh and I wore my helmet into the dessert restaurant and shared some American style with the locals. A shaved noggin the size of mine is just not seen in these parts.

I know you know this, but the only difference between Americans and Karen, Thai, Burmese… is money and opportunity. We have it and they do not. This gives us advantages and to some degree takes away some of the beauty and kindness they emulate. The tendency of short term’ers like us is to hammer this fact way too much, I will try to avoid that tone. But, the reality is still there, we have it and they don’t.

I wish you could see the opportunities we have with our giving. We need to finish the FBC Eugene’s clinic on the Thai side, kitchen, bathroom, supplies and staff… $3,000. Support FBC Mae Sot’s mission in the remote villages, $50/month per missionary! Support a back pack medic, $50/month per man. Build a bamboo school for the IDP camp we visited and support the teacher so he/she does not need to forage… $2,500 for the building and a years salary. The list goes on and on.

Many of you supported our trip, and we have/will give it all to meet some of these needs, but more should be done. Much of the need could be met by those outside the church and outside the faith… I mean schools, rice, teachers, medics, all of our friends and co-workers could jump on that wagon. Let’s try and figure a way to broaden the circle.

OK, these are turning into novels. I will quit. We leave Mae Sot tomorrow, tonight we take Robert, Fred, Bob and his son, Roger and His wife out for a grand dinner, wish you were joining us!

In Christ,
Brett for Steve, Todd and Bill

the following is a letter from Brett;

The most common method of travel in this country is in the back of a pick up or on a 125cc scooter; millions of both.

Yesterday we jumped in the back of a pick up and rode 2 or 3 hours to visit a couple of IDP camps, actually IDP villages. The difference being these small communities have been in place long enough to begin to resemble something of a village. We jumped in a long boat and were taken across the river into Burma. In the villages we found traditional bamboo huts most raised off the ground and nearly 800 people in each village.

(photo; Long boat - a typical mode of transportation)

The organization Robert works with had just delivered rice to keep these people alive. When I say “organization” please don’t think in your mind of a UN vehicle swinging by the camp to drop off food. It is a man I will call Bob and his son who left Burma on foot 10 or more years ago, they have spent most of that time living in a refugee camp on the Thai side of the river with 50,000 other Karen refugees. In fact his wife is still in the camp and teaches in the bible school for the kids; yes she lives in a bamboo hut. Bob and his son have been our constant companions; the son is like sunshine he is so happy all the time. He is the driver of our pickup; he drives fast, aggressive and laughs as he does it.

In an odd way, two doctors, a pastor and a contractor sit in the back of the truck trusting this young man with our lives, and frankly enjoying it. Bob was an attorney in Burma and now lives a couple of days in the refugee camp with his wife and the rest in his “home office” working who knows how many hours a week. I think it is safe to say every Baht Bob receives buys rice, medicine, gas and goes to print a magazine highlighting the plight of his Karen countrymen. Oh to be like Bob. Bob’s son was educated in the refugee camp and has been studying law in S. Korea, he hopes to move to the US and finish a law degree.

Back to the camps… you cannot imagine how rough this life is. Granted, many of the Karen are rural people who live in these circumstances most of the time, but now they cannot farm, have an aggressive army over the next hill and never know when they will be attacked. As a result, life is reduced to existence.

But in a proud way they rise above this, in one village they had a bamboo clinic, a school, and a church. They instruct their kids in the school, hold services each night in the church and the clinic is staffed by a Back Pack Medic. It is truly amazing.

In the first village we entered they showed us a sight they have selected for a clinic (this village had no clinic, church or school) and were hopeful that some Western Shelters from Eugene could be supplied to get them established. (This is another story, but I will make a presentation to WSS when I return and am hopeful they will support this effort). In this village, Todd and I played a form of volleyball in which you can only use your feet, knees and head! We watched the young men play and decided to give it a whirl. Needless to say it drew a crowd and lots of laughs (I tend to ham it up a bit). But in the end, we did pretty well and I did not pass out of heat stroke, my main goal.

I know how frustrating it can be to be sitting in your place hearing us tell you how rough these people have it… seems like short term missionaries do lots of that. So I will say this, it as bad as you could imagine and maybe even worse… except for their spirit to survive and stay planted in their homeland, and their faith, which gives them hope.

Near each IDP camp or village is a Karen Army Outpost. We walked to one of these as well. The Karen Army is defensive only, they do not fire on the Burmese Army they only defend themselves and the camps. There are 500,000 Burmese soldiers and 8,000 Karen Soldiers, these brave men are really at risk.

In the camp I sat and visited with the commander, he joined the Karen army at 22 after school and is now 62. His wife has died and his children have fled to the US. It is an all volunteer army, I mean volunteer; they are not paid. They depend on food and medicines from the camps, and or they fish, forage and sometimes log and sell the wood. The camp was clean, orderly, had a flag pole with a white picket fence around it. They live in bamboo huts and meet to worship each night. By the way, I have better weapons in my hunting arsenal than this camp had at its disposal… WW2, Korean War arms, and a few really bad M16’s.

Remember the other form of transportation I mentioned? Well, last night Todd and Bill rented the only two scooters available at our guest house and Steve and I jumped on back. I think, no I know, trekking into camps in Burma was safer than riding with frustrated “bikers”. Today Steve and I rented our own motorbikes and lowered the risk only slightly. Did I mention that it is left hand drive here and that I am dyslexic… it has been a real adventure. But this combination is still preferable to embracing Todd from the passenger seat as we hurtle down the busy streets of Mae Sot. OK the bike gang just rolled up and are making a scene… time for dinner.

In Christ,
Brett for the rest

the following is a letter from Brett;

I left you last time telling you we would be visiting a clinic in Mae Sot and the leaders of the Back Pack Medic teams, another eye opening day. For some perspective…

Karen who have medical needs in the Karen State in Burma only have 3 options for treatment. First, if they are living in the jungle in hiding as over 1/2 million are, they must wait for a back pack medic to reach them… if they can get word to the medics. If they are close to one of the bamboo hut clinics scattered through out the State they can walk to the clinic, zig zagging between Burmese army outposts. If the medics or the clinics cannot be of help, their last option is to walk out of Burma to Thailand, sneak into Mae Sot and find the Mae Tao Clinic.

The Clinic is best described as a large slum treating about 100,000 Karen people a year. The treatment is done by “trained medics” and a handful of doctors, most on 6 month volunteer rotations from the West. It is hard to describe how grim it looked, felt and sounded. But the amazing thing was the resolve in the faces of the Karen people and those serving them. Since the clinic is located in Thailand, all the Karen are illegals, but the government turns their head and allows the work to continue. Next year will be it’s 20th year of service.

(photo below; Team visits an In-patient ward at the Mae Tao Clinic.  Notice the bare feet; shoes are not worn indoors)

NGO’s are everywhere in Mae Sot, and lots of Westerners in town serving in these international organizations. They are able to address needs in Thailand, but it is “illegal” for most of them to fund or resource any needs in Burma. That is the tragedy, very few are willing to help the people of Burma.

We met with a courageous group of men and women who comprise the Back Pack Medics. Most are young Karen men who come from their villages in Burma to receive basic first aid training. We were able to meet with the leader of this group and watch a training session in progress. The session was led by an ER doc from California, a team of ex military medics from Australia and an Indian dentist from California.

The young trainees will walk back into Burma and serve from a bamboo clinic for months at a time, some of the “walks” take up to 8 weeks! They pack rice on their backs and forage in the jungle for the rest. The new recruits are paid 500 Baht a month ($15) and the senior members are rewarded with 1,200 Baht. For reference… our dinner for 7 last night cost 1,200 Baht! These young men (and a few women) will be faced with land mines, gun fire and ongoing hunger. They will be asked to amputate legs, and carry people back to Thailand. I am overwhelmed with their courage and compassion.

All that was yesterday, today we ventured into Burma and visited two IDP (Internally Displaced Peoples) camps and a military outpost. More on that later.

I could not ask for better traveling companions, no complaints and willing to venture out. We have each been struck with the overwhelming nature of the dilemma and how little money it takes to make a HUGE difference. The medical clinic the church built is not made of bamboo, but instead of Teak… get this hauled by elephants over the mountains of Burma to the river and then floated to Thailand. It is a substantial building that will stand the test of time… this clinic cost $3,500 US Dollars!

Listen, I need to quit and meet the guys for dinner. I will jump on again tomorrow and tell you about the camps in Burma and more.

In Christ,
Brett, for Steve, Todd and Bill

The following is a letter from Brett;

We’ve settled in and been on the move since we arrived.

Yesterday we spent a great morning in the Karen Baptist Church. I was expecting to preach and ended up preaching, dedicating a baby and serving communion. Todd gave his story how he met Christ and sat on the platform with me through the whole 3 hour service. We had a great interpreter who emulated the qualities of his name, Tender.

After church we had lunch with the whole congregation, it was great. This church is primarily comprised of displaced Karen people who have emigrated or been driven from Burma. Some legal, but most illegal. There was also a smattering of Europeans who work in local NGO’s.

After lunch we met with the pastor and elders of this great little church. They informed us of their efforts to serve the Karen people and evangelize their community and even more remote parts of Thailand. I must say I was impressed.

First they have a program much like an ongoing VBS that attracts about 300 kids. They teach the Bible and share the gospel, they have computer classes and offer piano lessons. This is all done in a building about the size of your garage, assuming you only have a 2 car garage.

Second, they have adopted a village in a more remote part of Thailand, (I won’t even try to spell or say the name) where they have built a small church and have one person in place to reach out into the village. As far as they know there are two Christian families in the village, the rest Karen who have historically been Animists. It is their goal to place about 7 more people in this village and surrounding villages.

Lastly, they have opened a dormitory for Karen kids who need access to education and their parents are unable to support this effort. The dormitory houses 50 kids, all who sleep on the floor! They feed, care, educate these kids 10 months a year and they return home between semesters. All of these projects are ambitious and reveal a real heart for God and the lost. They asked us to consider partnering with them, both financially and with volunteers, more on this later.

(photo below -  FBC Team and Mae Sot Church “family”

Most of you know, but I will take a little time to explain the reason we are here. The Burmese government is systematically driving a minority people out of Burma, the Karen. When Great Britain left Burma this put those people who were supportive of their occupation at great risk. The Karen were left the most vulnerable. In essence, this cleansing has been taking place since 1948 but has become much worse since the late 1990’s. Now most Karen are living on the run being pursued by the Burmese army. Many try to flee to Thailand, but they are not welcome, hence they are really living in no man’s land. Robert has been working to meet the needs of the Karen by coordinating his efforts with others who are committed to this good work.

Our purpose in being here is to gain a better understanding as to how 1st B can be involved in a meaningful way.

Yesterday after church we met with a group that is best described as the Karen National Health Association in exile. These men and women served the health needs of the Karen State and have now moved their headquarters to Thailand to be able to continue their efforts. In short they establish small clinics in the areas of the Karen State that are stable enough to allow a small bamboo building to be constructed. In areas that are not stable, due to impending military invasion, they send in back pack medics to do their best to meet the pressing needs of the people. Our church has supplied the money to establish one clinic and we have supported the efforts of the back packers as well. In fact on this trip we brought amputation saws, forceps, suture, stethoscopes, dental tools and money for this great group of men and women.

We met in a “headquarters” that would best be described as “beyond depressing” if one only looked at the trappings… concrete garage in a slum, people sleeping on on the ground in garages all around the office, cooking in the street, poverty like this fat guy has never seen. When we entered the office we were greeted by well educated, articulate men who have given their lives to serving their people. The inside of the bunker was filled computers, maps and files, smiling people who man this headquarters 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Their leader showed a very compelling and professional done PowerPoint that explained in great detail their strategic efforts. Needless to say we were impressed, humbled and motivated to find a way to make a difference.

Today we visit a clinic and the leader of the backpack medics, more on that later. Lots more to say but have to run, off to visit a clinic built to meet the needs of the Karen here in Mae Sot that have no other options. Then we meet with the director of the back pack medics and learn more about that branch of the effort.

In Christ,

Brett for Steve, Todd and Bill

The following is a letter from Brett;

Greeting from Chaing Mai, Thailand.

The trip was long but uneventful, I sat next to Bill Voorhees on our 15 hour flight from SF to Hong Kong, great guy but we are both are a bit wider in the shoulders than the average traveler to Hong Kong, so sleep and comfort escaped me… Bill slept like a baby. Next time I will sit next to Todd or Steve and have plenty of room.

All the medical supplies made it through, gigli saws, forceps, suture, stethoscopes and assorted other small tools. We are humbled when the tools we bring to help in amputations from land mines are so treasured and welcomed. It gives a guy a little perspective on how blessed our lives really are. We hope that our time here can make a difference in the lives of others.

We will leave this AM for Mae Sot which will serve as our home for the next 8 days. We have a number of treks planned to see works already established and ministering to the needs of the Karen people. Keep us in your prayers and we will try to keep you updated.

In Christ,

Brett for Steve, Todd, Bill