From Katherine Parker, United Methodist Missionary who has been sent from California to Phnom Penh in the Royal Kingdom of Cambodia in Southeast Asia.
To the community of God that is in Bakersfield, to the children and youth and adults who gather this week for study and prayer and work and celebration, together with people from around the world who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: Grace to you and peace from God our Creator and Jesus the Christ.
I want to say hi to you with this formal greeting in the style of St. Paul's letters to the churches throughout the Mediterranean, to remind us that the church has always been more than a group of people in our own town with which we get together on Sunday. Rather, it is a community of people around the world who believe that we are called to love God and to love our neighbor. And, whether we see each other every day or every few years or we never get to meet, we are still a family, a community that supports each other to be the best that we can be.
I grew up in a town in California very similar to yours, participated in Vacation Church School in the summer like you, and then went to college to study biology. Now I live in Cambodia where I work as a missionary for our church.
And, one of my jobs now is to teach both children and adults about clean water.
Do you know what bacteria are? This is part of what I teach in Cambodia. Bacteria are very, very, VERY small creatures. Some bacteria can live in the water; and some bacteria can make us sick if they are in the water we drink. But we can't easily see bacteria because they are so small! So, how do we know if water has harmful bacteria in it?
In America, we have scientists who help us. They test the water, and if there are any bacteria in it, they kill them, and send us fresh, clean water through the pipes into our homes. But this is not the case everywhere; most people in Cambodia don't have water that comes into their homes through a pipe.
Right now, it is the rainy season in Cambodia. Every other day in the afternoon, the wind starts to blow and the clouds creep in and we have a fantastic rain storm with thunder and lightning. Many people here in the countryside have roofs made of leaves. They try hard to save their money to buy a metal roof. A metal roof makes a lot of noise when the rain comes and it is hot in the sun, but if your roof is metal rather than made of leaves, you can collect the water that comes off the top into a jar! If you keep the jar clean, this is very good water to drink.
How do you stay clean and prevent the spread of diseases? One part that is very important is to wash your hands, especially after you go to the bathroom or play with an animal. One of the games we play is about how to wash your hands. We practice washing our hands for 20 seconds to kill all of the bacteria. One way for the children to learn how long they need to wash their hands is to learn a song they can can sing while washing. But, let's get back to the water.
In the dry season, it doesn't rain for weeks and weeks, so then you want to have a well where you can get water to drink and to wash. Most wells are "open"; this is not so good, because then leaves and dead frogs and other things can get into the well and then more bacteria that can make you sick also get in. Some wells have a cover on them; this is much better, but sometimes the bacteria can still get in . Just like in America, if we know that the bacteria are in the water, then we can treat the water to kill the bacteria.
One way we kill the bacteria is by boiling the water. But, families in rural Cambodia don't have a nice gas stove or electric tea kettle; they have to collect wood to heat the water. Whose job do you think it is to collect the wood? The kids! Can you imagine if you had to go outside and look for wood for an hour everyday before you went to play with your friends? Not much fun. So, it is good to know which water has bacteria and which water doesn't.
I work with people here in Cambodia to test all of the water sources that they have. We test the rain water in the jars, the deep well water, the shallow well water, the pond water, the water in the rice fields and the water that people filter or boil. Then we can count the bacteria from the different sources. Here are some pictures of the water we tested. Can you tell which is best to drink?
There are many people in Cambodia who are teaching about clean water. What we are doing is important for two reasons. First, it helps people to see, often for the first time, that there are actually bacteria in water that looks clear and beautiful. Second, it gives people here a tool so that they can monitor their water supply the same way that scientists in America monitor our water supply. This way, if the community knows that its water is clean, then the children can spend their time going to school and playing with their friends, rather than collecting fire-wood.
And you are part of this too. Every time you drink a glass of clean water from your kitchen sink you can remember how wonderful it is to have good water come right into your house. We know that it will be great when everyone in the world has clean water just like we do, but how is that going to happen? It will happen because we learn together and work together. And that is what the church is. We are a group of people who support each other all over the world to work together to help our neighbors. You help your next-door-neighbors right there in Bakersfield and you help your neighbors in Cambodia to have clean water through your prayers and learning and gifts.
I am strengthened each day with the knowledge of your faith and the ways you show caring compassion to each other and to your neighbors.
Monday, August 11, 2008
Friday, April 18, 2008
An open letter to the Louisiana UMVIM Medical Team
by Irene Mparutsa
I just want to write to tell you about the wonderful things that are developing out of the work that the team did in February. Never could I have imagined that so much fruit could have come out of just that one week.
Maybe you remember there were several women with prolapses who had been referred for prolapse repairs. Four of them sixty years old and over, all from the same village and from Mission Church went together to the hospital, had their surgeries, recovered nicely and were sent home.
Pastor Prak Vuthy reports that there were 4 men who came the following Sunday to church and gave their lives to Christ. One of them brought all his talisman and asked Pastor to burn them; he wanted to put his trust in God.
There were 8 goiters who were operated on at the provincial hospital, including one man with a very large one on his whole neck. I imagined that he would be sent to Phnom Penh. It is just impressive how much capacity is developing in the province. There was, sadly, a tragedy that occurred when one of the women with a goiter who had gone for an operation as well, arrived home, getting off her moto and paying her fare, she was struck by a car and was killed instantly She was one I remember that Dorian saw. There still remains more hospital referrals to follow up at Chrolow Kok church.
We have been to the provincial offices thrice to continue to build dialogue and relationships. Rev Song, the MMC Superintendent and Kampong Chhnang DS and more than 10 pastors from the district joined in a presentation ceremony of the "gift" medicaments you left for the Provincial Hospital. The visit gave us the opportunity to introduce these pastors to the hospital management, a first step in helping them to begin expanding their ministries into health care advocacy. One of the pastors in the group had a chronic eye problem, so we were able to take her to the ophthalmologist and show her what to do. All the pastors in Kompong Chhnang District were grateful recipients of the basic medicines you left.
This past Tuesday, we were invited by the Provincial Health Director, to the Monthly Technical Group meeting. We were able to share about our work and learn about the work of the other health related NGOs in the province. Because of your work, we were held in high esteem. It was a very special reception and it was gratifying to think about how our ministry can be strengthened. We have shared with the province your plans to return next year and there is great anticipation about it.
Regarding the medicines that were left over, MMS (Methodist Mission Singapore) has agreed to store meds in their dispensary, so that Singapore teams can use and reimburse as they use. We will keep that money for you to use next year.
We give thanks for the new relationships that are growing between the local congregations and the community and between MMC and government health services. There was something very special about the spirit that the Louisiana team brought that God is using to get people to work together.
Looking forward to your continued participation in bringing care to the people of Cambodia.
I just want to write to tell you about the wonderful things that are developing out of the work that the team did in February. Never could I have imagined that so much fruit could have come out of just that one week.
Maybe you remember there were several women with prolapses who had been referred for prolapse repairs. Four of them sixty years old and over, all from the same village and from Mission Church went together to the hospital, had their surgeries, recovered nicely and were sent home.
Pastor Prak Vuthy reports that there were 4 men who came the following Sunday to church and gave their lives to Christ. One of them brought all his talisman and asked Pastor to burn them; he wanted to put his trust in God.
There were 8 goiters who were operated on at the provincial hospital, including one man with a very large one on his whole neck. I imagined that he would be sent to Phnom Penh. It is just impressive how much capacity is developing in the province. There was, sadly, a tragedy that occurred when one of the women with a goiter who had gone for an operation as well, arrived home, getting off her moto and paying her fare, she was struck by a car and was killed instantly She was one I remember that Dorian saw. There still remains more hospital referrals to follow up at Chrolow Kok church.
We have been to the provincial offices thrice to continue to build dialogue and relationships. Rev Song, the MMC Superintendent and Kampong Chhnang DS and more than 10 pastors from the district joined in a presentation ceremony of the "gift" medicaments you left for the Provincial Hospital. The visit gave us the opportunity to introduce these pastors to the hospital management, a first step in helping them to begin expanding their ministries into health care advocacy. One of the pastors in the group had a chronic eye problem, so we were able to take her to the ophthalmologist and show her what to do. All the pastors in Kompong Chhnang District were grateful recipients of the basic medicines you left.
This past Tuesday, we were invited by the Provincial Health Director, to the Monthly Technical Group meeting. We were able to share about our work and learn about the work of the other health related NGOs in the province. Because of your work, we were held in high esteem. It was a very special reception and it was gratifying to think about how our ministry can be strengthened. We have shared with the province your plans to return next year and there is great anticipation about it.
Regarding the medicines that were left over, MMS (Methodist Mission Singapore) has agreed to store meds in their dispensary, so that Singapore teams can use and reimburse as they use. We will keep that money for you to use next year.
We give thanks for the new relationships that are growing between the local congregations and the community and between MMC and government health services. There was something very special about the spirit that the Louisiana team brought that God is using to get people to work together.
Looking forward to your continued participation in bringing care to the people of Cambodia.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Binn Im's ministry
by Katherine Parker
Binn Im is the assistant pastor at Prekedai Methodist Church in a village about an hour down some dirt roads outside the provincial city of Batambong in Cambodia. Binn Im's story begins several years back when she received a gift-loan of a pig to raise through her participation in the Women's Association of the United Methodist Mission Initiative in Cambodia. She struggled to care for the pig and overcame several obstacles, including the death of her second litter and slow weight gain, to pass on piglets to another woman in her community.
It was during this time that Binn Im was responding to the call to ministry in her life. She applied and was accepted to study at the Methodist Bible School in Phnom Penh, where her son was also a student. Last year she graduated and was appointed as assistant pastor to her current rural congregation.
Four months ago, Binn Im welcomed a medical mission team to her church through the UMVIM (United Methodist Volunteers in Mission) partnership with CHAD (Community Health and Agricultural Development). The medical mission was a success and many people in her village received care. Binn Im has been working since then to ensure that those who need follow-up care are able to make the difficult journey into the provincial hospital at Batambong or all the way to Phnom Penh and serving as a patient advocate for them.
In the meantime, Binn Im has also continued her own discipleship training by attending workshops with the CHAD partner organization "Cheas Ponleau" (Bright Light). At Cheas Ponleau she was introduced to the concept of a seed-project. This is an approach to development where pastors are encourage to facilitate a group project using local resources.
Binn Im recognized the suffering of people in her community during the rainy season when there is insufficient rice to eat and local merchants charge 100% interest for a short-term loan of rice. She had a vision to start a rice-bank on the church property. With the approval of her District Superintendent Rev. Treung Bunny, Binn Im worked with a group of 15 families in her community to construct a barn to store the rice on the church property.
One church member traveled to the mountainside for 2 day to cut the trees for the frame. Other families donated nails and bamboo slats as they were able. And all of the families worked together to weave the thatch pieces to create the roof and walls. In two weeks the community had together build a small barn to store rice, something none of them had the resources to accomplish alone.
Through several visits, CHAD staff continued to support Binn Im by facilitating community discussions about how to write by-laws to govern a rice-bank. The community discussed many potential pitfalls, and because of their experience working together to build the rice-barn, they had the confidence to devise solutions to foreseen challenges and commit to continue working together regularly to avoid those future un-foreseen challenges. Yesterday, CHAD also provided a gift-loan to enable the community to purchase the initial rice to start the bank.
Binn Im knows that this is not the end of the story; the rice-bank is not only a means to address poverty-alleviation for the current 15 families who form the rice-bank group, but also an exercise in discipleship. She is continuing to nurture the community, so that as their faith and the rice in the bank grows that new members can join and eventually (in three-four years) they we be able to split and establish a new rice bank for more neighbors.
We love because God first loved us. Through your generous gifts, Binn Im was mentored into her role as a pastor and has been able to begin her vision of a rice-bank in her community. And through your continued prayers, Binn Im and her community will grow in their faith and learn the joy of giving. CHAD staff will continue to walk this path with Binn Im and her congregation, starting with a workshop on water and hygiene in two months time and continuing as the community identifies needs and areas for partnership. We hope you will continue to walk with us too.
Binn Im is the assistant pastor at Prekedai Methodist Church in a village about an hour down some dirt roads outside the provincial city of Batambong in Cambodia. Binn Im's story begins several years back when she received a gift-loan of a pig to raise through her participation in the Women's Association of the United Methodist Mission Initiative in Cambodia. She struggled to care for the pig and overcame several obstacles, including the death of her second litter and slow weight gain, to pass on piglets to another woman in her community.
It was during this time that Binn Im was responding to the call to ministry in her life. She applied and was accepted to study at the Methodist Bible School in Phnom Penh, where her son was also a student. Last year she graduated and was appointed as assistant pastor to her current rural congregation.
Four months ago, Binn Im welcomed a medical mission team to her church through the UMVIM (United Methodist Volunteers in Mission) partnership with CHAD (Community Health and Agricultural Development). The medical mission was a success and many people in her village received care. Binn Im has been working since then to ensure that those who need follow-up care are able to make the difficult journey into the provincial hospital at Batambong or all the way to Phnom Penh and serving as a patient advocate for them.
In the meantime, Binn Im has also continued her own discipleship training by attending workshops with the CHAD partner organization "Cheas Ponleau" (Bright Light). At Cheas Ponleau she was introduced to the concept of a seed-project. This is an approach to development where pastors are encourage to facilitate a group project using local resources.
Binn Im recognized the suffering of people in her community during the rainy season when there is insufficient rice to eat and local merchants charge 100% interest for a short-term loan of rice. She had a vision to start a rice-bank on the church property. With the approval of her District Superintendent Rev. Treung Bunny, Binn Im worked with a group of 15 families in her community to construct a barn to store the rice on the church property.
One church member traveled to the mountainside for 2 day to cut the trees for the frame. Other families donated nails and bamboo slats as they were able. And all of the families worked together to weave the thatch pieces to create the roof and walls. In two weeks the community had together build a small barn to store rice, something none of them had the resources to accomplish alone.
Through several visits, CHAD staff continued to support Binn Im by facilitating community discussions about how to write by-laws to govern a rice-bank. The community discussed many potential pitfalls, and because of their experience working together to build the rice-barn, they had the confidence to devise solutions to foreseen challenges and commit to continue working together regularly to avoid those future un-foreseen challenges. Yesterday, CHAD also provided a gift-loan to enable the community to purchase the initial rice to start the bank.
Binn Im knows that this is not the end of the story; the rice-bank is not only a means to address poverty-alleviation for the current 15 families who form the rice-bank group, but also an exercise in discipleship. She is continuing to nurture the community, so that as their faith and the rice in the bank grows that new members can join and eventually (in three-four years) they we be able to split and establish a new rice bank for more neighbors.
We love because God first loved us. Through your generous gifts, Binn Im was mentored into her role as a pastor and has been able to begin her vision of a rice-bank in her community. And through your continued prayers, Binn Im and her community will grow in their faith and learn the joy of giving. CHAD staff will continue to walk this path with Binn Im and her congregation, starting with a workshop on water and hygiene in two months time and continuing as the community identifies needs and areas for partnership. We hope you will continue to walk with us too.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Cow project in Atsue village
by Leng Thy
Living in Atsue village, Sombor Commune, Prasth Sombor District, Kompong Thom Province, Mrs. Morm Khy, a 55-year-old- widow is dreaming to own a cow one day to help her family farm the small plot of land that was left in her possession after a divorce in 1995. The divorce left her only with 1000 square meters of rice land and three young children. Since then, she became the breadwinner of the family and all the heavy burden of caring her children fell on her. To supplement the 72 kg of rice she harvested from her very small plot of land, Morm Khy has to work as farm laborer where she earns a meager wage of 5000 reils or $1.25 per day.
One year later, in 1996 her hope was restored as she joins a Christian community in her village. That group of people provides her a lot of support, even inviting her to be a member of the cow raising group project. Being one of the poorest families in the group, Morn Khy was chosen to be the one of first recipients of the cow gift loan from CHAD. She said that since owning a cow her situation has changed significantly. First and foremost, she benefits from building a good relationship with her neighbors who help her feel that she is not alone and who stood by her side during times of troubles and difficulties. For Morn Khy, owning a cow means she only needs to borrow one cow from her neighbor in order plow her field and transport firewood from the forest to her house. In the same way, she told that owning a cow also gives her the ability and opportunity to help her neighbors by letting them borrow her cow. According to her, she saves 30,000 riels for transporting firewood and about 1,500 riels/day for vegetables she harvest from her garden that has been fertilized by manure from her cow.
Another benefit she mentioned from owning a cow is it affords her to be more productive or keep her busy at home. For instance, with cow manure she started doing compost, clean area surrounding her house, do vegetable gardening--watering, cultivating the soil, and fertilizing it. According to her these works help her overcome her boredom, and also make her to become industrious. She said, “these benefits also enable me to send my 18-year-old youngest son in school till now.” With her smile, she expresses her joy even though she is working hard, Morm Khy said that she would like to say thank you for all the support from my church and the cow raising group that chose me to be first person to receive the cow gift loan from CHAD.
Living in Atsue village, Sombor Commune, Prasth Sombor District, Kompong Thom Province, Mrs. Morm Khy, a 55-year-old- widow is dreaming to own a cow one day to help her family farm the small plot of land that was left in her possession after a divorce in 1995. The divorce left her only with 1000 square meters of rice land and three young children. Since then, she became the breadwinner of the family and all the heavy burden of caring her children fell on her. To supplement the 72 kg of rice she harvested from her very small plot of land, Morm Khy has to work as farm laborer where she earns a meager wage of 5000 reils or $1.25 per day.
One year later, in 1996 her hope was restored as she joins a Christian community in her village. That group of people provides her a lot of support, even inviting her to be a member of the cow raising group project. Being one of the poorest families in the group, Morn Khy was chosen to be the one of first recipients of the cow gift loan from CHAD. She said that since owning a cow her situation has changed significantly. First and foremost, she benefits from building a good relationship with her neighbors who help her feel that she is not alone and who stood by her side during times of troubles and difficulties. For Morn Khy, owning a cow means she only needs to borrow one cow from her neighbor in order plow her field and transport firewood from the forest to her house. In the same way, she told that owning a cow also gives her the ability and opportunity to help her neighbors by letting them borrow her cow. According to her, she saves 30,000 riels for transporting firewood and about 1,500 riels/day for vegetables she harvest from her garden that has been fertilized by manure from her cow.
Another benefit she mentioned from owning a cow is it affords her to be more productive or keep her busy at home. For instance, with cow manure she started doing compost, clean area surrounding her house, do vegetable gardening--watering, cultivating the soil, and fertilizing it. According to her these works help her overcome her boredom, and also make her to become industrious. She said, “these benefits also enable me to send my 18-year-old youngest son in school till now.” With her smile, she expresses her joy even though she is working hard, Morm Khy said that she would like to say thank you for all the support from my church and the cow raising group that chose me to be first person to receive the cow gift loan from CHAD.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Why we form rice banks
by Katherine Parker
Cambodia is a country still visibly struggling to rebuild community trust, stability and self-sustenance after many years of civil war and foreign occupation. A significant job for the Community Health & Agriculture Development (CHAD) program is to share about the concept of stewardship and why we, as Christians, need to nurture, sustain and expand the resources that have been entrusted to us so that we can share with others. Cambodian staff person for CHAD, Mr. Thy, talks about a time when Cambodia was rich because people worked together, but now because of mistrust people are locked into poverty. It is from this starting place that CHAD works with church and community groups to start development projects. We ask the community to identify what needs it has and then what resources it has to begin addressing those needs. CHAD works together with the community to provide a gift-loan. It is called a gift-loan because the individual who is entrusted with the initial portion of money or, say, an animal is expected to return that to the group so that the gift-loan can be re-invested in the community, rather than being paid back to the donor.
CHAD began working with a community in Swaian village in Batanmbong province starting in 2005 to establish a cow-raising group. When we visited this week (March 2008), we met a five day old calf, the second to be born to this cow! This church community has worked well together for cow-raising and so we were excited to celebrate the beginning of a rice bank with 10 families.
The economics of rural Cambodia is that the primary source of income for farmers is selling their rice, which is usually harvested in December. Some of the rice is sold immediately after harvest, and some is kept to feed the family throughout the year. However, if the family needs money (such as for medical expenses or a wedding) they will sell their stored rice. For this reason, there is a lot of hunger in the months of October through December before the new crop is harvested. The local merchants charge 100% interest on loans of rice taken at this time.
Unfortunately, no one family has the money to build a structure to store rice. In the Swaian community, the families had all contributed money to purchase the supplies for building a communal storage house for rice (about $5 per family). We observed the cement pillars that had been erected for the storage building and the palm trees selected to be cut down for further construction materials. Unfortunately, the community member who is skilled at planking palm trees has been sick with a fever and so the rice store is not completed. The community hopes he will recover soon and the families can finish building the structure in the next week.
CHAD provided the $750 in capital to purchase the initial store of rice. The group has established its bylaws and policies for loaning out the rice (at 30% interest, about 1/3 the rate offered by local merchants). The group hopes that in three to four years it will have doubled its rice and can use this to start a new rice bank in the neighboring village. I was excited to listen to the families talk about how they hoped to use this rice bank to reach out in ministry to their community. They were realistic about the challenges and were committed to continue working together, expanding upon their initial success with the cow-raising group and building the rice storage house.
Cambodia is a country still visibly struggling to rebuild community trust, stability and self-sustenance after many years of civil war and foreign occupation. A significant job for the Community Health & Agriculture Development (CHAD) program is to share about the concept of stewardship and why we, as Christians, need to nurture, sustain and expand the resources that have been entrusted to us so that we can share with others. Cambodian staff person for CHAD, Mr. Thy, talks about a time when Cambodia was rich because people worked together, but now because of mistrust people are locked into poverty. It is from this starting place that CHAD works with church and community groups to start development projects. We ask the community to identify what needs it has and then what resources it has to begin addressing those needs. CHAD works together with the community to provide a gift-loan. It is called a gift-loan because the individual who is entrusted with the initial portion of money or, say, an animal is expected to return that to the group so that the gift-loan can be re-invested in the community, rather than being paid back to the donor.
CHAD began working with a community in Swaian village in Batanmbong province starting in 2005 to establish a cow-raising group. When we visited this week (March 2008), we met a five day old calf, the second to be born to this cow! This church community has worked well together for cow-raising and so we were excited to celebrate the beginning of a rice bank with 10 families.
The economics of rural Cambodia is that the primary source of income for farmers is selling their rice, which is usually harvested in December. Some of the rice is sold immediately after harvest, and some is kept to feed the family throughout the year. However, if the family needs money (such as for medical expenses or a wedding) they will sell their stored rice. For this reason, there is a lot of hunger in the months of October through December before the new crop is harvested. The local merchants charge 100% interest on loans of rice taken at this time.
Unfortunately, no one family has the money to build a structure to store rice. In the Swaian community, the families had all contributed money to purchase the supplies for building a communal storage house for rice (about $5 per family). We observed the cement pillars that had been erected for the storage building and the palm trees selected to be cut down for further construction materials. Unfortunately, the community member who is skilled at planking palm trees has been sick with a fever and so the rice store is not completed. The community hopes he will recover soon and the families can finish building the structure in the next week.
CHAD provided the $750 in capital to purchase the initial store of rice. The group has established its bylaws and policies for loaning out the rice (at 30% interest, about 1/3 the rate offered by local merchants). The group hopes that in three to four years it will have doubled its rice and can use this to start a new rice bank in the neighboring village. I was excited to listen to the families talk about how they hoped to use this rice bank to reach out in ministry to their community. They were realistic about the challenges and were committed to continue working together, expanding upon their initial success with the cow-raising group and building the rice storage house.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Introduction of Ken Cruz
Serving with the Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church, Kennedy (Ken) Cruz is in mission in Cambodia with the Community Health and Agriculture Development (CHAD) Program working as a Community Development Specialist. Mr. Cruz has served in that position since October 2007.
Born in the Philippines, Ken attended the University of the Philippines and received a diploma in forestry. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Letran College in the Philippines and is currently pursuing a master's in organizational leadership from Azusa Pacific University in California.
Mr. Cruz and his family have lived in Cambodia and Laos for many years, and his work focuses on community development and organization as well as program consulting. Much of his work has been among the poor in organization of holistic community development and resource generation.
Ken shares that his compassion for the poor was nurtured through the modeling of his physician father who became the foundation of Ken's early involvement in God's ministry. "I grew up and lived in a relatively poor neighborhood where my father gave free medical service for sick, poor people on a weekly basis."
"My work and ministry experiences have brought some of the most significant changes in my leadership paradigm and practice," Ken shares. "My choice of career in humanitarian and mission work transformed my leadership approach from positional to servant-leadership. My underlying leadership philosophy on this approach is 'meeting the needs of people as they work in accomplishing their jobs'. As a whole my faith, my journey and my relationship with Jesus is best captured in the words of the Apostle Paul in Philippians 3:7-14."
Ken and his wife and two sons are members of the Evangelical Baptist Church.
Make an online donation to: Kennedy Cruz #3019583.
Born in the Philippines, Ken attended the University of the Philippines and received a diploma in forestry. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Letran College in the Philippines and is currently pursuing a master's in organizational leadership from Azusa Pacific University in California.
Mr. Cruz and his family have lived in Cambodia and Laos for many years, and his work focuses on community development and organization as well as program consulting. Much of his work has been among the poor in organization of holistic community development and resource generation.
Ken shares that his compassion for the poor was nurtured through the modeling of his physician father who became the foundation of Ken's early involvement in God's ministry. "I grew up and lived in a relatively poor neighborhood where my father gave free medical service for sick, poor people on a weekly basis."
"My work and ministry experiences have brought some of the most significant changes in my leadership paradigm and practice," Ken shares. "My choice of career in humanitarian and mission work transformed my leadership approach from positional to servant-leadership. My underlying leadership philosophy on this approach is 'meeting the needs of people as they work in accomplishing their jobs'. As a whole my faith, my journey and my relationship with Jesus is best captured in the words of the Apostle Paul in Philippians 3:7-14."
Ken and his wife and two sons are members of the Evangelical Baptist Church.
Make an online donation to: Kennedy Cruz #3019583.
Monday, December 31, 2007
Chan Ran story of healing
by Leng Thy
“The American medical team is very kind to me. They sent me to be hospitalized for months to cure my leg, costing so much money, the amount that I really could not make although I work hard for my whole life.” Chan Ran said while visiting him at Calmette hospital.
Living in a remote village, Pheakdei Village, Takream Commune, Battambang Province, which is about 50 km from Battambang town, Chan Ran, 39 years old, and his 35 years old- wife, Kieng Pha do not even owned a small plot of land or a draft animal to farm to make a living. In order to feed his wife and his four children, Chan Ran work as a laborer to cut trees in the forest that gives a meager income of Riels 5000 ($1.25) per day.
Lying in Calmette hospital bed, he said that his leg was bitten by a poisonous snake on September 2007 while he was walking in the forest to cut trees. Since then, he could not walk any more as his wound turns from bad to worse. Although desperate for help, Chan Ran is not so hopeful to get any help from his relatives or his neighbors who like him are making a living just to survive. He said “with no one to turn to he has given up hope for his healing while his fears about his family survival and future grow each passing of days.”
Hearing a medical team is coming to help the poor people in his village by providing free medical clinics his hopelessness somehow disappeared. He was ready and waiting for the coming day. After coming back from seeing a doctor during the medical mission on October 22, 2007, he was extremely surprised to see June Essing, (team leader of the Rocky Mountain Medical Team) with some church leaders and CHAD staff visit him at his home with an offer to pay for his hospitalization in Phnom Penh. Since he arrived in the hospital his hope that he can walk again someday grows not only because of the treatment he is receiving from the hospital but also because of the love and care, the pastor, church workers, and CHAD staff show to him and his family.
He said “I have stayed in hospital for 84 days so far, and right now I feel that about 70% of my wound is healed. During these days I am spent a lot money for my medicines, accommodation, transportation, and even the food for me and my wife who looks after me. I am very thankful and grateful to the Rocky Mountain team for their great help to me and my family. Please kindly continue to help the poor Cambodians who cannot meet their basic needs” He continues “Now, I understand how God’s love gives me new hope in life.”
“The American medical team is very kind to me. They sent me to be hospitalized for months to cure my leg, costing so much money, the amount that I really could not make although I work hard for my whole life.” Chan Ran said while visiting him at Calmette hospital.
Living in a remote village, Pheakdei Village, Takream Commune, Battambang Province, which is about 50 km from Battambang town, Chan Ran, 39 years old, and his 35 years old- wife, Kieng Pha do not even owned a small plot of land or a draft animal to farm to make a living. In order to feed his wife and his four children, Chan Ran work as a laborer to cut trees in the forest that gives a meager income of Riels 5000 ($1.25) per day.
Lying in Calmette hospital bed, he said that his leg was bitten by a poisonous snake on September 2007 while he was walking in the forest to cut trees. Since then, he could not walk any more as his wound turns from bad to worse. Although desperate for help, Chan Ran is not so hopeful to get any help from his relatives or his neighbors who like him are making a living just to survive. He said “with no one to turn to he has given up hope for his healing while his fears about his family survival and future grow each passing of days.”
Hearing a medical team is coming to help the poor people in his village by providing free medical clinics his hopelessness somehow disappeared. He was ready and waiting for the coming day. After coming back from seeing a doctor during the medical mission on October 22, 2007, he was extremely surprised to see June Essing, (team leader of the Rocky Mountain Medical Team) with some church leaders and CHAD staff visit him at his home with an offer to pay for his hospitalization in Phnom Penh. Since he arrived in the hospital his hope that he can walk again someday grows not only because of the treatment he is receiving from the hospital but also because of the love and care, the pastor, church workers, and CHAD staff show to him and his family.
He said “I have stayed in hospital for 84 days so far, and right now I feel that about 70% of my wound is healed. During these days I am spent a lot money for my medicines, accommodation, transportation, and even the food for me and my wife who looks after me. I am very thankful and grateful to the Rocky Mountain team for their great help to me and my family. Please kindly continue to help the poor Cambodians who cannot meet their basic needs” He continues “Now, I understand how God’s love gives me new hope in life.”
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