Preparing to Launch

By now you’ve probably heard that our family received a call to Thailand. It all started toward the end of last year when Paul and Lena Adams asked me whether I would consider coming to serve as the principal of their grade-school-level vocational training program at the Sunshine Orchard Children’s Home and Learning Center, operated by Karen Outreach.

About Sunshine Orchard: The students and most of the teachers at Sunshine Orchard are from the Karen tribe, which has been under attack by the Burmese army in Myanmar for over 50 years. If it wasn’t for the rugged terrain in Burma, the Karen people probably would have been completely exterminated or expelled from Burma long ago. Today, I am told that most of the Karen people have either immigrated to countries such as the USA or Australia or live as refugees in Thailand in camps along the Burma border.

By the time of graduation at Sunshine Orchard in March, there were around 215 Karen students in kindergarten through seventh grade, ranging from 6 to 21 years of age. Some children come from homes in nearby villages in Thailand along the border, but most travel by foot from the jungles of Burma and brave crossing the border in order to attend our school. Some of these children have lost their fathers in skirmishes with the Burmese army, and others come from homes in which the parents are abusive or are not at all friendly toward Christianity. As most of the children declare that they are Buddhist when they register for school, the teachers and staff at Sunshine Orchard have a wonderful opportunity to minister to these children and help them get a clear glimpse of the love of God and the everlasting gospel.

The teachers are doing their best, most of them with little if any curriculum to work with—and all with no complaints. Since the students do not presently have textbooks or workbooks, the lessons are taught orally with the aid of the chalk board, and the students copy down their lessons in notebooks. As you can probably imagine, I have a great burden to be able to provide books for these students that will enhance their learning experience.

Because Sunshine Orchard is not a school licensed by the Thai government, we have been told recently that we cannot continue operating as a normal school on a normal calendar. Instead, we will be permitted to operate as a vocational training program, offering three-month training programs with one-month breaks between. Thus our nine months of education will be spread out over three 3-month terms during the year. I believe this emphasis as a vocational training program is a blessing, and we envision teaching practical skills that will help prepare the students for the work God is calling them to do. Agriculture will be strongly emphasized, and we will also be teaching such things as sewing and weaving, building and construction, mechanics and small engine repair, hygiene and sanitation, medical missionary work, cooking and nutrition, music, and computers.

The call to our family seemed to come at the right time in the education of Sharon (19) and Hannah (16), and we have seen evidence that God is leading in this call. It seemed like it wasn’t long before I was offered a trip to Thailand so that I and the teachers and students could get acquainted. Now I’ve just returned from spending most of the month of March at Sunshine Orchard. It is both exciting and challenging to consider how we can more fully implement God’s principles of true education. (I have been getting a great blessing in re-reading the book Education, by Ellen White. I challenge you to read it, too, and see how much of it you can apply in your daily life.)

During my stay at Sunshine Orchard it was necessary for me to meet with the teachers several times to prepare for the coming school year. I believe the need for these meetings was providential. We often spent time in prayer, each of us asking the Lord to unite us with Him and with each other, and it was evident that the Lord drew our hearts together. By the end of my time in Thailand, I felt even stronger that God is calling us to help in the work there.

There will be opportunities for our entire family to serve at Sunshine Orchard. Brenda took nursing in college, and there is a great need for educating and training the children in health principles as well as caring for those who are sick. Any “free” time can easily be taken by caring for villagers who show up with all sorts of maladies.

Sharon and Hannah will be able to help in a variety of areas, including caring for the sick as well as helping in various aspects of the educational program. We expect that this practical experience will only enhance any future training and will help them to make wise, God-led decisions for their lifework.

How you can help: Now we are inviting you to pray with us that, if it is His will, the Lord will provide the funds for us to move to Thailand to work there for perhaps for the next two or three years or more. If funds are available in time, we hope to leave for Thailand around June 20, two weeks before the next three-month vocational training program, which is currently scheduled to start July 4. That means a lot needs to happen quickly! We are praying that the Lord will provide $36,000 for launching expenses by June 5, and we would like to have at least half of this by May 5. Although Sunshine Orchard has offered us a monthly volunteer stipend, we would like those funds to be available for other needs. Instead, we would like to raise commitments totaling $1,600 per month for support for our family over the next year.

Most of all, we solicit your prayers for divine wisdom as we help lead out in this mission school. Please let us know if you would like to be a prayer partner and would like to be kept informed about special prayer requests.

In closing, God does not call everyone to a work in some foreign land, but He does call us all to work for Him. We pray that God is working in your life as well, showing you how to prepare for Christ’s soon coming and how to minister to others in your own circle of influence. If you are also involved in mission work, we would love to hear from you and pray for you as well.

Sincerely,

Harvey, Brenda, Sharon, and Hannah Steck

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