Summer Service

2012 Thailand Team

---

The Summer Service Team to Thailand left New Wilmington at 4am on June 3rd, heading off to New York, and then out to Thailand. Please keep them in prayer. The team members are Judy Nelson (leader), Emily Wyble, Jen Subic, Sarah Stinson, Jessie Brooks, Ian Moody, Eric Juengel, Tim Kaminske, and Marshall Horsman. Also, pray for Sharon Bryant, PCUSA missionary who has set up everything and will accompany the team for much of the trip.

Following is their itinerary:

Week One: We will be in Bangkok, staying at the Bangkok Christian Guest House - which has a long history of serving mission personnel. We will learn about Thai Customs and Culture and some "Do's and Don'ts" in this part of the world. We will visit the central office of our partner church, the Church of Christ in Thailand, meet the General Secretary (Linda Valentine's counterpart) and be introduced to some of the ministries of the church. We will visit a ministry to street kids and learn about protecting our children. We will travel by van to Nakhon Prathom and assist with an English Camp for five schools based on an ASEAN theme.

Week Two: We will attend worship at Sapan Luang Church, which serves a Thai and Chinese community. We will visit the Grand Palace, Wat Po and Wat Pra Kaew - well-known tourist attractions. We will visit a jeweler and silk merchant to learn about two major exports. We will learn a little of the history of the kingdom of Thailand from a university professor. We will visit a Christian radio station that broadcasts to the good news in many languages and do a little work there. We will visit a Christian prostitution rescue program to learn about their work with female prostitutes and, in the evening, hear from another program that works with male prostitutes. We will travel by train overnight to Nakhon Srithammarat and assist with an ASEAN English Camp for students from two schools.

Week Three: We will attend Bethlehem Church in Nakhon Srithammarat. On Monday, we will visit one of our schools and spend some time in the classrooms. We will visit two ministries of the church. We will travel to Trang on the west coast of Thailand and visit another school and see the beach on the Andaman Sea. Returning to Nakhon Srithammarat, we will spend an entire day at the beach on the Gulf of Siam. This marks the halfway point in our time. We will return to Bangkok and assist with an ASEAN English Camp for six schools.

Week Four: We will worship at Christ Church, an Anglican Church serving ex-pats, and then travel by bus to Chiang Mai, arriving late in the evening. We will visit some handicraft villages to see local handicrafts being made. We will tour Payap University and McGilvary Theological Seminary and have dinner with Bill Yoder, a PCUSA mission co-worker who has lived here for 49 years. We will visit Wat Prathat Doi Suthep on the mountain near Chiang Mai and also visit a local market. We will join a diverse group that gathers for spaghetti at the home of two more PCUSA mission co-workers. We will assist with another ASEAN English Camp for six schools.

Week Five: We will travel north to Fang and worship at First Church. Then, we will stay in homes of Thai Christian families in Fang, sharing in their daily lives for several days. We will travel by river boat from Fang to Chiang Rai where we will assist with another ASEAN English Camp for two schools.

Week Six: We will return to Chiang Mai and worship at Chiang Mai Community Church, an ecumenical church for ex-pats. We will visit the CCT Youth Ministry and McKean Rehabilitation Center - originally an isolated community for leper patients. We will travel to Nan and Prae where we will assist with another ASEAN English Camp for five schools.

Week Seven: We will return to Chiang Mai and attend First Church, the oldest and largest Protestant Christian congregation of our partner church. We will have some time to shop to pick up some things for the folks back home. And, on 17 July, y'all will fly back to Bangkok to catch your flight back to the US (and NWMC)!