Hope 4 Refugees

Som's Story

2010-09-11T17:43:00.001-07:00

I was born in Burma. I have four brothers and four sisters. I was born in the middle of the group. My father is Chinese and my mother is Shan, a people from Burma. When the Chinese were fighting my father’s family fled to Burma. He met my mother when she was 15 years old and my father was 25. They were soon married.

In the north of Burma, many people speak Chinese and Burmese. My older brothers and sisters all knew Chinese, Burmese and Shan. I never learned Shan, only Chinese and Burmese. I grew up in a small village. My father grew rice and corn. We had to move two times that I remember because the Burmese Army would come and want to take the young boys to use as porters. We were always scared when the army came but then they would go away for awhile. Then someone would let us know that the army was coming and we would all run into the forest. That is when we would have to move to another village because we could not go back to our old village.

When I became older about 32 I could not find any work in Burma so I went to Malaysia. I became a waitress. I met a girl and we became very good friends. Her brother Bo was made to work very hard by the Burmese Army in Burma. One day he was able to flee and go to Malaysia. My friend introduced me to her brother. We dated for one year and then we got married. My country is no good and we can’t go back so we decided to resettle. My husband chose America. We have lived in America for two years now. We have a little daughter who will be a year this December. We are glad we came to America. We feel safe here and we have food here. We don’t have to worry all the time like in Burma. The Lord has been good to us.

Mulaw's Story

2010-08-26T14:43:00.000-07:00

The picture on the top is me in America and the one underneath is me in Thailand.

I was born in Burma in a village called Han Tha Ku. We are Kayan people. All my young life we had to move from place to place because of the Burmese army. I had to cook, clean and watch my brothers and sisters. I have four brothers, two sisters and myself. I am the oldest. When I was ten years old I began to work in the garden growing vegetables. When I was 15 years old we didn’t have money so I went to work on a farm. I had to work the land and when the crop of rice came in, the owner paid me with six bags of rice. One bag would last for forty-five days for our family. My father also worked for farmers.

After working for the farm I left home and tried to find work somewhere else. I would go from farm to farm until 1992 when my mother decided to go to the camp. We didn’t have enough food. The army were always coming and burning our crops which left us with nothing to eat. They made my father be a porter. When my family left to go to the camp in Thailand I decided to follow them. When I came to camp someone taught me how to weave. So, I began weaving and
selling my things to help my family.

When I was twenty-two years old I met Lasu and we were married. We have been married for 14 years and we have two sons, ages 6 and 10. After I was married, I no longer gave the money to my mother and siblings instead I had to use all of the money for my family.

I decided we needed to come to America for our children. America is free and in the camp we are not free. Now that we have been in America our children go to school and they are learning a lot. We are very happy about our decision to come to America. I never dreamed I could one day live in America and now I am. I never want to go back!

Lakeside Baptist WMU brings "Good News"

2010-07-08T19:50:00.000-07:00

We were thrilled to have the Lakeside Ladies come to bring the "Good News" club for the children today. They sang, had snacks, made a craft and most importantly learned God's word: "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." Luke 19:10.

Our 3rd Trip to Cactus, Texas

2010-07-06T18:09:00.000-07:00

We went to visit our Karen friends in Cactus this past weekend. We took them clothes, books and DVDs. They were so excited. As we were visiting and watching those that came to sort through the clothes, we saw that this was only enough for a few families. Also, we didn't have any men's clothing this time and we watched as a gentleman tried on a ladies long sleeve blouse. He took it because he needed clothes. Things are more difficult there than they are here in Dallas. The living conditions are not good at all. Yet they don't complain, they are thankful they have a place to live. We can learn from them.

After our Book Fair we had books left over and we took them with us. The children were so excited. They really took time to choose the books they wanted. It was fun to watch them. They don't have many toys to play with so this was a special treat. We are planning to return in four to six weeks and we want to take more clothes, especially men's, toys and other household items to the families.

Hsar's Story

2010-05-22T18:26:00.000-07:00

I grew up in Karen State. I have three brothers and three sisters. I am the second oldest. I remember moving a lot as a child, sometimes three or four time in a year because the Burmese army would burn down our homes and churches. My family didn't have much money. My father grew vegetables and raised chickens and pigs to help support our family. My mother would weave and sell her items to help also. Many times the Burmese soldiers would eat the chickens and the pigs and then they would kill the ones they didn't eat just so we wouldn't have any food. This happened several times. I went to school in the forest starting at age four. But when I got to fourth grade I didn't go for two years because of the Burmese soldiers. They had come to our area and wouldn't leave. We had to keep hiding because we never knew where they were.

When I was thirteen years old my parents sent me to Mae La Camp to live with my grandparents so I could go to school. I liked living in the camp. I felt much safer and I had a school to go to everyday.

My older brother and I came to America together. After we left the camp , the rest of my family left Karen State and went to live in Mae La Camp, the same camp I had just left. My parents didn't have a place to live because of the soldiers so they were living with another family. There was not enough food. So, they decided to go live with my grandparents in the camp.

Since I came to America I have gotten married and I just had a baby boy. My husband and I came from the same camp but we had never met before. We met here in the States. Before I had my son I was working full-time. I loved my job! When my son gets older I plan to go back to work. I'm glad I came to America. I feel safe and I have what I need. I hope to be able to see my parents and siblings again.

Hsa's Story

2010-05-11T16:47:00.000-07:00

I was born in Burma. I went to school in Burma through grade 1. When I was a child, the Burmese military came to my village and two other villages around us and burned them. Then we moved to a big village for one month. My parents didn't like it because it was too big. So, we moved to the forest with some other families. Every month we had to hide from the Burmese military for two (2) years. Then my father heard that if we went to Thailand there were people helping refugees. So, we left Burma in 1987 and moved to Thailand. We lived right on the river for two (2) years but it was too close to the Burmese army. We moved to Mae La Camp in 1989. We lived in the same place all these years. My mother still lives there today. Every three years we would tear down the house and rebuild it in the same place. I went to school in the refugee camp. I went to school and started in grade 1 and finished in grade 10. I met my wife in the camp and got married in 1999.

After I got married I went to Mae Sot, outside of the camp, to find a job. But the Thai police caught me and took all of my money and sent me to Burma. I was scared and alone. I didn't know anyone and I didn't have any money. I had to be careful with what I said and I had to speak in Burmese when my language is Karen. There was a gate to get back across to Thailand. In order to cross you had to have money and I didn't have any. I met a lady and she asked me if I was okay in Burmese. I told her that I was looking for a job and I got lost. She asked me where I was from and where was my family. I told her they were in Burma in a village so she would leave me alone.

I wasn't a Christian, I was still a Buddhist. I didn't know how I was going to get back across to Thailand. I decided to pray to Jesus to help me get back to Thailand. When I woke up early in the morning there wasn't a guard at the gate so I snuck back across to Thailand. I began walking back to Mae La Camp. It took me two (2) days to walk and I had no money or food. I ate fruit from trees, that was my only food. By the time I got back to the camp, my lips and mouth was very broken out from eating so much fruit. I was sick for two weeks. When I got back in June, I really thought about what happened and how Jesus had answered my prayer. On August 15, I decided to accept Christ as my Savior and I was baptized in the church. I wanted to follow Jesus.

After that I began working in the camp with Medical Education, I began educating people about HIV, hygiene, malaria and immunizations. I worked for eight years. My first year I received 500 baht which is $14.25 a month in American dollars. After three years, I made $28.57 a month. I worked forty hours a week. We were then able to buy meat and vegetables for my family and my wife's family. We had two children at the time and I took care of my wife's parents.

I came to the United States in 2007. I have learned a lot of English. I have had three different jobs since I have been here. I was laid off at my first job and the second one was too far away without a car. I have been with the present job for a year and a half. My wife's parents came to America in 2009 and they live with us. I also have been blessed with another baby girl. The only thing I worry about now is losing my job and not being able to support my family. Everything else is good.

Peat's Story

2010-05-04T20:45:00.000-07:00

I was born in Burma. We lived in Karen State. I am the youngest in a family of five (5). My mother and father planted and grew rice. I went to school. Our school was in the forest. We did not have a building. We had 120 children in school with four (4) teachers. I started school at six years old.

Every month we had to give the army $2000 Baht so we could be safe. My parents wanted me to go to school in the camp in Thailand. I went when I was 17 years old. I lived with my aunt. I don't want to live in Burma because we didn't have money, we were very poor. I was always scared. In Mae La Camp I felt safer. I met my husband there and we were married in 2005. We still don't have money in the camp so we only received rice, beans, fish paste, salt, chilies, oil.

In the rainy season we planted long beans so we could make some money. We were still very scared in the camp. Every February and March we didn't sleep at night because we feared the army was coming.

We had a cousin that came to America before us and told us what it is was like to live in Dallas. So we decided to come to Dallas too. My husband's family moved to Nebraska. Now my husband has a job and we are expecting our second daughter. My mother, father, brother, sister and their families still live in Burma. My parents say they are too old to leave.

I'm glad we came to America. What we need we get. I feel safe here.

Aung's Story

2010-04-29T14:39:00.000-07:00

I was a mountain farmer. I grew rice, long beans, sesame, coconut trees and many other fruits. After the Burmese soldiers came to my village, we had to run to the forest. The Burmese army burned my whole village. We had about twenty houses, a small village. My family and I ran into the forest in all directions. We were separated until we could find each other. My friend and I were shot by the soldiers when we went to find food for our families. My friend who was a doctor, not like American doctor but a forest doctor, took out the bullet. I had four children at the time this happened. We had to stay in the forest and we had to move all the time. We built a skinny house, very small. We stayed in the forest for three or four years then we moved to another village. My wife's cousin lived in this village but she told us we had to get out of the village because it's not good, the army treat's us bad. They would take all of the food. We had to run to the forest again. Many people were sick with no medicine and no salt. We couldn't go back to the village because of the landmines. We moved to a different village, Pu Ya Loon, for one year. My wife was pregnant and we had to run to the border in a town called Matterea. We lived there one year and then moved to So Klo Camp in Thailand because the Burmese soldiers came and chased us to Thailand. We lived there many years but the Burmese army would always come across the river in hot weather because the water was low. We were always scared. My grandchild and son-in-law were shot in our house. My grandson was almost two years old when he was shot. Because there were so many problems with the Burmese army we moved to Mae La Camp.

Beginnings

2010-04-13T19:22:00.000-07:00

We both grew up in homes where serving others was a natural part of life. In Jeremiah 29:11 it says that God has a plan for our lives to give us a future and a hope. We have seen the Lord's hand upon our lives that has led us to this point. Beka has been a nurse for fifteen (15) years and is now a Family Nurse Practitioner. I have served as a teacher and then as a minister for twenty (20) years. Before Beka began to work for Dallas County Refugee Clinic, neither one of us knew about refugees. In 2006 the Lord began bringing Karen refugees to our church at Gaston Oaks Baptist. We began to learn the processes of resettlement and how there are still so many needs that are not being met. The Lord began working in our hearts to begin a non-profit that would help empower the people. Because of what they have been through, they are an oppressed people. Work began to attain the 501c3 status and it came to fruition in February, 2009. We both quit our jobs to begin working with the people from Burma full-time. We have been blessed by our friendships and we continue to learn from each other. They have taught us the importance of relationships over everything else which is very different from our American culture. In this blog we want you to meet our friends and hear their stories.