By Natasha Palanivel
Over spring break, twelve students made an adventurous and exciting
journey to Phuket, Thailand for their Impact trip.
On Friday
morning (March 29th), twelve students, along with Mr. McClary and
Ms. Keas, enthusiastically boarded the flight to Phuket. None of them knew what
the following week would bring. In the evening, Mr. Dan—a missionary in Phuket
who was in charge of bringing the group around—came over to brief the team on
the culture of Thailand, after which the motley crew headed to their rooms to
rest.
The next day,
Mr. Dan took the team to Patong Beach to see the depravity of the sex industry
in Phuket. As the students walked down Patong Beach, it opened their eyes to
the underlying sin that was going on. After that dark and heavy walk, the rest
of the day was spent resting and bonding as a team.
Sunday finally
rolled around, and the team got a chance to visit a Thai church. The students
enjoyed the time of worship and sat through an entirely Thai speaking service.
After church, the group headed back to prepare for the kids’ camp, which was
the main service project for their Impact trip.
Kids’ camp took
place on both Monday and Tuesday; both days were long and tiring—but also
fulfilling. The students got to interact and play with the kids, as well as
teach them English. In turn, the Thai kids attempted to teach some of the
students certain words in Thai. On Tuesday night, the crew made their way to
the headquarters of an organization called For Freedom International, which helps
to fight the sex industry in Phuket. The students spent time getting to know
the people of FFI through sports and pizza.
On Wednesday,
the students went back to FFI and took a tour of their headquarters. The rest
of the day was spent bonding as a team. At night, the group celebrated Ms. Keas
birthday in a beautiful restaurant overlooking the ocean and the stunning
sunset. It was one last blast before the students made their way back home to
Penang on Thursday.
Over the course
of the week, the students made many memories and grew very close to one
another. The students also had many encounters with God. Many experienced God
through the morning and evening quiet times, and others experienced God through
subtle things throughout the trip. Abby Owen (10) summarized her Impact
experience this way: “Our Impact trip to Phuket was great. We taught and played
with Thai kids through running kids camp along with learning about the sex
trafficking industry from an organization there working to help stop it. This
trip really showed me how similar people are across cultures and gave me an
opportunity to grow closer to God.”
The Impact
program truly is a wonderful way for students to serve, build relationships,
and grow closer to God.
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