School started on Monday for the girls at House of Grace Thailand. Most girls spend their time off from school in their villages at a relative’s approved, safe home. Some do not have this option and remain on campus year-round. Thanks to the generous support of our sponsors and donations from the Empowering Esther team, our girls were blessed to participate in five different Christian summer camps!
Two of the camps, Akha Christian in Thailand (ACT) and Akha Outreach Foundation Youth Camp (AOF), were sleep-over Christian camps emphasizing the Akha culture and heritage. Most of the girls at House of Grace are from the Akha tribe of northern Thailand, which is traditionally Zahv – often described as a mixture of animism and ancestor worship. These girls may be the first Christians in their families. The ACT and AOF camps both encourage the pride of the Akha people while building their relationship with Jesus Christ. These camps both had 200-300 young Akha tribal members in attendance, praise God!
House of Grace also sponsored a camp this year called a Walk with Holiness. There were over 30 teenagers in attendance at the Pimann Inn Hotel in Chiang Rai. The camp lasted for three days, and the goal was for everyone in attendance to choose Holiness – living according to God’s commandments and acting in a way that is pleasing to God.
Five of the older girls attended a camp sponsored by Ezekiel Rain, a non-profit in Chiang Rai whose mission is to fight trafficking and heal trauma by mobilizing communities and strengthening families. Their vision is to overcome the cycle of exploitation and brokenness, replacing it with wholeness and freedom. An alumnae of House of Grace, Chuleegorn, is on staff at Ezekiel Rain. The theme of this camp was healing from the inside out, taking a stand against pornography and trafficking, and growing in relationship with God.
The last camp, X-treme 4, was held at Majeo University in Chiang Mai with over 2,000 youth in attendance. This was a fantastic way to end the summer. The girls had a great time and came back filled with purpose and promise. Our prayer is for the girls at House of Grace to not only be blessed themselves, but to be a blessing to those around them as they become witnesses to the life-changing power of Jesus Christ. These girls are able to pour into their spirits at these camps because of wonderful people like you our sponsors, and our Empowering Esther team members. Thank you for all that you do!
