February 12, 2023:
Our team finished today with a grateful kind of tiredness.
We started the morning at Good News Church where our Mighty Oaks Staff brings a lot of leadership and many of our sponsored families attend. 
I was asked to prepare an activity, game or craft to do with the children before the church service.
I led a learning activity where someone is blindfolded and led by verbal instructions through a maze of children to reach the speaker at the other end. The children were enthusiastic as we took turns with different variations of distraction and leadership through the maze. We talked about the benefit of having someone walk us through the maze instead of shouting instructions over the crazy noise of life. Having the Holy Spirit to lead and guide is such a gift. David is so great with the group and added jokes and fun commentary to my instructions as he interpreted them. It was a fun way to begin!
I led a learning activity where someone is blindfolded and led by verbal instructions through a maze of children to reach the speaker at the other end. The children were enthusiastic as we took turns with different variations of distraction and leadership through the maze. We talked about the benefit of having someone walk us through the maze instead of shouting instructions over the crazy noise of life. Having the Holy Spirit to lead and guide is such a gift. David is so great with the group and added jokes and fun commentary to my instructions as he interpreted them. It was a fun way to begin!Gan opened the morning in prayer and invited our team up to introduce ourselves. They surprised us with a gift of orchids that are grown on the sides of trees here. They all know how much my Mom loves them!
Steve spoke about what kind of legacy we want to leave in life. He did a great job of tying in the morning learning activity so the children could connect to his message. Gan is a wonderful translator. It is exhausting work to listen hard to what is said and then switch languages to capture the thoughts. I am amazed by Gan and David as they demonstrate their love for people in their serving. It is clear that the people love and respect them! Mighty Oaks is in good hands with the staff here. They are awesome people who invest deeply in others.
At the end of the service, Gan invited our team to pray for anyone who wanted prayer. The front of the church was full of people kneeling on the rugs to pray with us. It was a special time of connecting in spirit that transcends words.
After church lunch is shared by everyone. There is a group who serve selflessly in the kitchen to make sure the physical needs of the community are cared for.
Throughout the morning, Mom would reconnect with people who rejoiced in seeing her again.
I captured photos for Mom and after each encounter, I would ask about the story behind their connection. My parents gave one woman a hearing aid they upgraded from, and she could now hear! A blind elderly woman used to crawl around on the bamboo floor of her hut to avoid a hole in the middle that dropped several feet to the ground since it was erected on stilts. Mom and Dad used donations to have that house dismantled and a new concrete home built for her family. 
Story after story helped me see how my parents’ lives are woven into the fabric of the people here. I met my sponsor child at church today. Nat is a beautiful young teen with a reserved manner, but we quickly embraced and felt comfortable standing with an arm around each other as we waited for Gan to facilitate a conversation. She is precious. I am so thankful we got to connect. I will see her again at the camp next weekend!
This afternoon, we hosted a celebration of my Dad’s life at the Mighty Oaks Ministry Centre. It was a beautiful service with elements from our Thai friends and our family.
So many people came from the early days of my parents’ Thailand trips. It was like a reunion for Mom. I tried to keep up with her after the service to capture photo memories of this special day. We met many of our Mighty Oaks graduates who are working in a variety of stable professions. Some travelled three hours from Chiang Mai to be there.
After everyone left, Steve, Mom, Sylvia and I gathered on the upper deck to talk and relax. David, Gan and Beulah (their amazing teen daughter) brought dinner in tonight and we enjoyed recounting parts of the day and one another’s company as we ate together. Mom shared about how in the early years she had to work hard to change mindsets. It took persuasion for some parents and grandparents of our sponsored children to value education over getting them working earlier. The investment in a brighter future has brought a new level of security to whole families. There is so much to be grateful for, and so many young ones we continue to meet who need a chance at an education and a supportive community to become all they can be. This work is just getting started!
February 10:
After a relaxed breakfast in this beautiful seating area at the hotel, we left Chiang Mai for our next adventure further North.
We were so thankful that our lost luggage was delivered to the hotel a day after we arrived. Now those 8 large suitcases and 4 carry-ons and personal bags all were tied into the back of the truck with room left for Gan to stretch out near the tailgate.
It was a three-hour drive to Fang following a road that runs parallel to the mountain range at the Myanmar border. The mountains were so different from any I’d seen in North America. They are tall and narrow like a camel’s hump and covered with tropical forest undergrowth. As we drove the curvy roads, we had a great conversation about spirit houses and the burden of having to appease, strive and earn favour. Grace has been such an important learning curve in my own growth that I was struck by our human need to try to control, please and earn.
After a quick lunch, we finally arrived at our Mighty Oaks Ministry Center – a place I had only seen in digital drawings during the design phase.
The staff came to greet us with beautiful flower wrist hangings, a sign and hugs!
Each room has a name: Goodness, Mercy, Peace and Joy were the rooms we claimed.
It feels luxurious to each have our own room with a bathroom.
The view from the upper deck is stunning and our staff proudly gave us the grand tour of the Isaiah 61 Home, the Ministry Centre and offices, the gardens, the fish pond and the grounds! It is beautiful or สวย (pronounced as sÇ”uai in Thai)! I picking up a few words and phrases of Thai’s tonal language.
This is the view from the upper deck to the back of the property where the Agape girls home, fish pond and gardens are.
We watched the sunset as we dined outside at a place Mom loves. I learned that the smog that shrouds the mountains is caused by smoke from fires even though there is a burn ban during this dry season. The sunset was still magnificent!
When the Isaiah 61 girls arrived home from school we had a rushed introduction and they held up signs they had carefully made to welcome us! Before bed, our team shared a bedtime prayer of thanksgiving for all that God has done to take a small step of faith from my parents and all our partners to build this life-changing program that has transformed so many lives. Amazing grace indeed!
February 11:
This morning we met with staff and the Agape girls for some worship and prayer after breakfast. The builder dropped by and we were able to thank him for his attention to detail and magnificent workmanship!
Today was a preparation day for our church service and Celebration of Life for my Dad tomorrow. The ministry centre is spruced up with flowers and a sheltered area with seating for guests. The pieces of the service were rehearsed.
Once the work was done, we pulled out some games to play with the Agape girls. We had a great afternoon laughing and I made up a visual for each of their names so I won’t forget.
I’m looking forward to our learning activity with the Sunday School before church, Steve’s message, and the wonderful worship led by MOGI’s staff and Agape girls.
One of today’s purchases should help our quality of sleep. We found the beds a bit hard, so David and Steve bought mattress toppers to make tonight a good night!
A cool family touch to each room is a photo taken by my brother enlarged and printed on canvas as a gift from the builder! Our time in Fang at the MOGI ministry centre feels like home away from home!
For the full details see:
The story behind MOGI:
February 9, 2023
Today was our first full day in Chiang Mai. We are still resting up from travel and so are enjoying seeing Mom reunite with dear friends that live in the area! This morning we had three special guests join us for breakfast. I was taking pictures of our beautiful surrounding when Pastor Somsock and his wife and Tippewan stepped into the courtyard with Gan! Mom was surprised and thrilled to see them. Mom shared photos and stories with these friends she has made over her seventeen trips to Thailand.
After breakfast and goodbyes, we headed to a favourite destination in the area: The Umbrella Factory. Historically, the umbrellas were made by villagers for ceremonies in the monasteries, but as they grew in popularity, they became a source of income post-harvest season. It is a pleasure to watch this 200-year-old craft still performed by hand. The shop is full of vibrant colours and provided Sylvia with lots of great gift ideas!
We had lunch back at our hotel before heading up to a temple that sits at the top of a mountain overlooking Chiang Mai. The view is incredible, and the flowering trees and plants are matched in beauty by the ornate gilded craftsmanship of the temple and grounds. It is easy to get a feel for the Buddhist roots in Thailand and the striving for peace, serenity, and enlightenment.
We sat by a small lake surrounded by terraced flower gardens for dinner. We soaked in the fragrances and colours of spring after leaving the cool greys and browns of Canadian winter. It was a feast for the senses. It is easy to find gratitude for our days together here!
I am loving the exchanges around the table, in the truck and walking along the way that happens in community. Today David purchased some pads for sitting in the back of the truck. I found it a way more comfortable way to travel! I got some amused looks from local motorists as I faced the oncoming traffic! 
We are so grateful for these days of regaining strength for our time in Fang! We head up to our Mighty Oaks Ministry Centre in Fang tomorrow! We can’t wait to see the land and buildings that have developed from generous donations since the last time I was here in 2015.
February 8, 2023
Our team made it safely to Chiang Mai with only minimal mishaps. Our flight left Toronto an hour late as we boarded around 1:15 am. It was as we sat in the departure lounge that I realized I left my phone at home – so I will have to borrow phones for photos and use my laptop for everything else. It’s crazy how even with extensive planning and lists, life and fatigue can crowd out thoughts of an item I seldom leave home without.
Our two-hour layover in Tai Pei disappeared as travel time also took an extra hour. This was a cause of stress for a bit as we realized how tight time was becoming! It reminded us to pray and trust in God's provision for the many things beyond our control!!
EVA airlines took great care of us to book us a new flight since our connecting plane already left by the time we disembarked. We were so grateful for the staff in Tai Pei who managed all the challenges and needs to get us on a different flight this morning. They held the plane for us as we were processed through. We arrived in Chiang Mai, Thailand at 11:30 am… unfortunately our checked luggage didn’t. The airline assured us that our bags will be here by tomorrow. We will be happy to have them since all our gifts, leadership materials, clothing and personal care items are in those bags!
The highlight of today has been reconnecting with Gan and David, our staff from Fang, Aire (a third-year university student we all love for her exuberance, care and insight), and some YWAM friends from Mom and Dad’s mission training experience who are living in Chiang Mai.
Today is about allowing our bodies to recover from 22 hours of travel and multiple time zone changes. We are glad to adapt to Thai time which is 12 hours ahead of Ontario time. We now know what meals we are eating and when we should be sleeping.
In the evening, we enjoyed being touristy and dining at the Cultural Centre watching traditional Thai dances and after-dinner entertainment. I had a great chance to talk to Air while we sat in the back of the truck together! Her English is terrific and I enjoyed getting to know her better!
Sylvia got to meet two of her sponsor children who are now young women. Jane is in 2nd year university and Pon has has completed university and has her own shoe business! They and their mothers joined us for dinner at the cultural centre and were able to spend time sharing life and stories with Sylvia. Gan sat near them to help with any translation. Both girls are thriving!
We struggled to stay awake until a normal bedtime to help us be fully present for the rest of our time here. 
We are loving our team spirit. We are good at caring for one another and noticing needs. Steve, Gan and David have done a great job of organizing all the details of our days. My desire now is to feel rested enough to be fully present in the opportunities, joys, people and beauty of this amazing experience!
As Andrew has taken on the role of Student Council President at Westdale Secondary, he has learned a lot about leadership. We talk often about our use of influence. I love his vision to create a positive culture where everyone is included. He is an idealist and finds reality sometimes disappointing. But he keeps giving and serving and looking for ways to enhance academics with fun memory-making events.
When I was homeschooling and directing, I found this quote clarifying:
“You are a guardian of the human spirit. You have the power to manipulate and coerce if you want to. You can avoid and ignore if you choose, but you can also ennoble and inspire. You can lift up and appeal to all that is good and honourable and holy. You can remind fallible and finite people around you that they hold their lives and calling as a sacred trust; that their best efforts matter, that their worst failures will one day be redeemed.”
John Ortberg
Let's be the kind of leaders that call out the best in others and remind people that they are full of promise, possibility and purpose!
When I was homeschooling and directing, I found this quote clarifying:
“You are a guardian of the human spirit. You have the power to manipulate and coerce if you want to. You can avoid and ignore if you choose, but you can also ennoble and inspire. You can lift up and appeal to all that is good and honourable and holy. You can remind fallible and finite people around you that they hold their lives and calling as a sacred trust; that their best efforts matter, that their worst failures will one day be redeemed.”
John Ortberg
Let's be the kind of leaders that call out the best in others and remind people that they are full of promise, possibility and purpose!
