So we’re back in Canada — West Kelowna to be specific.  We were told we would experience reverse culture shock and to some degree we have.  As we unpack our belongings from storage, I am stunned at how many clothes we own, how many toys our children own, how many home decor items collect on our kitchen table as we lift them carefully from the boxes, and how many photo albums and ‘memory boxes’ we discover.   Vastly different from our Burmese friends in Mae Sot with hardly any clothing, few toys, a home with walls that would fall over in a windstorm, and no camera with which to take pictures.   

On the other hand, we’re doing better than we expected. We’ve been welcomed back by our church and are enjoying our work as Peachland Campus Pastors.  Additionally, we continue to work with Imagine Thailand from Canada.  It helps our hearts when we remind ourselves that we are still involved in making a difference in the lives of the children we have come to love. Our blog will continue so that we can tell you stories about our experiences from this end of the world. 

As we follow the news on the Thai/Burma border, we read the sad news but the good news is not far behind:

• A federal election (that no one believes will be fair) takes place on Nov. 7. 
• 13,000(!!!) Karen people fled across the border to Mae Sot three weeks ago to escape the fighting in their villages.   
• Water systems continue to be installed.
• School resources are in the hands of 28 schools. 
• Stateless children are being documented.
• Teams and families from Finland, Thailand, Canada, and USA are scheduled to volunteer in Mae Sot this year.
• Our Karen team in Mae Sot continues to work on Imagine Thailand projects. 
• In less than one month, our friends, Dave and Lorelie Hanson, along with their three girls, will arrive in Mae Sot to take our place. 

So don’t forget about Mae Sot.   Our view may be different from here but the crisis is still the same.  We still need you. 

What do we do with Imagine Thailand?

     Our main role is to visit schools, community organizations, and churches to show them the possibilities of what could be different in Thailand if they became part of the growing team of people interested in helping.  For example, today we visited a pastor in a South Okanagan community.  He invited us to speak at his church in October and then he would like to send a team to Thailand in 2011.  We’ll help with the training and then we’ll hand them off to the staff in Thailand for an amazing adventure.  Earlier this week, we met with a youth pastor who would like to bring 40 teens and parents with him to run life camps in a number of schools in Mae Sot. 

Perhaps your church or school would be interested in a visit? 

Perhaps you’d like to book a coffee date to talk about what you can do to make a difference?

     Imagine Thailand is planning a donor conference that will take place in January 2011.  For those interested in visiting all the areas in which Imagine Thailand works, we’re setting up an official ’Social Justice’ tour.  Visiting Mae Sot, Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and Takua Pa will give individuals a good understanding of the needs and will create an environment where they will be able to discuss how they can become part of the solution. 

Perhaps this tour would interest you?

     Once school begins, we’ll talk to social justice classes, give ideas for raising money for orphans, and even set up direct partnerships with Canadian schools and migrant schools in Thailand. 

Perhaps you’d like to introduce us to the principal or a teacher from your school? 

Perhaps you’d like to us to come over and share our stories with your family? 

 From one family to another, we would sure love to give you a new view from YOUR living room window!