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End of the year trip with Lahu Team

I haven't written in a while and not because of the lack of it. Perhaps more like a writers block.

Here a little post from our yearly trip we do as a team after all the Christmas outreach is done. This time we went up to Doi Mae Salong right up at the Burmese border. This is a village that is mainly populated by Chinese immigrants who fled here after the Chinese revolution. There are also many Akka hill tribes in the area. Doi Mea Salong is known for it's production of various teas. Of course we went to try them out in a special tea shop. It was great fun.

A roof on the house

Yesterday I was back in Hui Kau Laam to meet Cati and Mida to talk about the construction project, to bring money for building material and to visit Enoch. Enoch had had exams in Chiang Mai the last week and then went to Hot to do outreach in several villages. after that he got seriously sick with food poisoning so he had to stay put in hot. Meanwhile he is back in Baan Pong to regain his strength. Enoch is still very weak from the ordeal.

The construction of our new center is going very well. Yesterday I delivered the windows and doors for the upper floor. The roof is finished and this week the workers will do the floor and the steps.

 

Building project in Hui Kau Laam

Finally we were able to start with our new building project in Hui Kau Laam. Lately we thought alot about the development work in this village. Last year it was not easy to see any development. Things for the good change in a slow pace, whereas bad things seem to develop much quicker. The problems in Hui Kau Laam are multi layered. Only with patience, much love and continuous investment can bring change and a base for for the the next generation, the children.

We were asked by some parents in the village to start a preschool. Many of the smaller children running around the village without supervision and are overwhelmed when they later have to go to a Thai school and start first grade. They lack discipline, language skills and integration into a schoolroom. Mida is excited about the idea to start a preschool and we already talked about the increase work load and responsibility.

Since quite a while we were thinking about to exchange our old bamboo building with a more sturdy and bigger meeting house and living quarters for Cati and Mida. The old house cannot hold the amount of people we have now on Sundays and would definitely be to small for a preschool.

Here are some pictures from the construction site. We hope to finish the project till the end of the year.

Hui Ba Rai Water-project

Hui Ba Rai has been without a sufficient water supply for a while. The water that reached to the village was of low quality and not fit for drinking.
We were able to solve this problem through a new water system. After we found a new source of water in the mountain we measured and planed a new project. The result is a two kilometer long PE-pipe winding through the mountains, bigger water storage tanks and a new water distribution system in the village.

 

Here are some pictures:

Thanksgiving in Mae Gon

The harvest is brought in. For the Lahu people it is time to gather, to thank for the good harvest and to bring their gifts to the church. Family and friends from near and far are invited to join the service and a big meal afterwards. Every year I get invited from different villages. This is one of the rare occasions where the Lahu wear their traditional clothes.