wfn.org | LWI 2009-033 FEATURE: Just When I Needed It Most

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FEATURE: Just When I Needed It Most

Thai Church Scholarships Help Needy Students Realize Their
Dreams 

BANGKOK, Thailand, 18 June 2009 (LWI) - Mai can smile now,
though most of her life has been no smiling matter.

Twenty year-old Sirirat Rueangsri, known affectionately as Mai
by her relatives and friends, lives in a small, congested
two-room wooden house with her mother in Lad Prao, one of the
areas in Bangkok epitomizing the city's economic divide. Her
mother is the sole bread winner in the family. With the meager
wage earned as a domestic worker in other people’s homes, she
could barely pay Mai's tuition fees. "(Life) was indeed terrible
and every moment of it is still etched in my memory which can
never be erased," says Mai. After school she would help her
mother with laundry work to supplement their family income. The
death of Mai’s ailing grandmother left a huge debt which made
life even more difficult for the two women. 

As a single parent facing an increasingly difficult time making
a living, the mother had to take some drastic steps.
Unfortunately, it was Mai who had to face the brunt of her
decisions--she could no longer afford to meet the costs for her
daughter's education. "My life came to a standstill when I was
told that I [would] not be able to continue studies further," she
recalls. She says she felt despondent that she would be compelled
to sacrifice her passion for education. "Pursuing studies in the
field of communication arts is my passion." 

Besides studying, Mai found that just going to school exposed
her to an open, accommodating milieu where she could also make
friends, which was quite different from the situation at home. At
school she was able to live her dream. But that dream seemed
about to suddenly vanish into thin air—a not unusual scenario
for people living in the lowest strata of society the world over.

Mai knew the importance of education and desperately wanted to
study so that she could have a career and break away from the
fetters of poverty. "I did not know what to do, where to go and
whom to ask (for help)," she told this writer.

>Supporting Families

It was at this juncture that the Lutheran Diakonia Department
(LDD) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Thailand (ELCT)
offered her support through its Family Development Ministry
program that helps households improve their living standards. The
LDD staff had known the family through its ministry among elders,
which assisted Mai's grandmother when she was ill. Mai, a
Buddhist, was enlisted in their scholarship program. "Our goal is
to share God's love with people in need," says deaconess Leena
Helle, LDD director. The department helps people who are in dire
need, irrespective of religious belief, social status or gender.

The LDD was established in 1987 as an ELCT department
responsible for the church's diaconal work. The diaconal
ministries include work among children, youth, unmarried pregnant
women, elderly people, families and people living with HIV. 

Mai has been a beneficiary of the scholarship program since she
was in school grade 9 (around 14 years old). She is now a
third-year bachelor's degree student in communication arts at the
Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University in Bangkok. When asked to
describe her current situation, she exclaims with a  smile, "My
life has taken a total transformation." The scholarship came to
her as a boon "just when I needed it most." However, she still
needs to depend on her mother's support because the college fees
exceed the scholarship amount she receives. 

Through the LDD diaconal work, Mai learned about the Lad Prao
Lutheran congregation, an encounter that has completely
transformed her life. She is now a baptized Christian. The
conversion process took almost three years. She is an active
member of the congregation and is a member of the ELCT youth
committee. Her mother was also recently baptized. 

>Optimistic about the Future

Mai is optimistic about her future. "After my studies I will
surely get a respectable job and I need not worry about my daily
bread." Her aim is to become an editor in a leading newspaper
and, more importantly, she wants her mother to quit her job and
stay home. "She has toiled her entire life for my sake and it is
my duty to take care of her when I earn. I am fortunate that I am
able to continue my studies," adds the communication arts'
student.

Still, according to Helle, the ELCT is aware that there are many
other young people in that same area of Thailand who are deprived
of an education. She affirms the LDD’s commitment to continue
seeking support for them, drawing inspiration from Jesus’
words, "as you did it to the least of these who are members of my
family, you did it to me" (Matthew 25:40). (813 words)

Timothy Melvyn, communication officer for the United Evangelical
Lutheran Church in India, wrote this feature during a recent
visit to Bangkok, Thailand.

*This article is in the continuing LWI features' series on the
topic "Give Us Today Our Daily Bread", the theme of the LWF
Eleventh Assembly, which will be held, 20-27 July 2010 in
Stuttgart, Germany. 

Read some highlights about the Eleventh Assembly on the LWF Web
site at: www.lutheranworld.org/Assembly2010.html 

>*        *          *

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the
Lutheran tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund, Sweden, the LWF
currently has 140 member churches in 79 countries all over the
world, with a total membership of 68.5 million. The LWF acts on
behalf of its member churches in areas of common interest such as
ecumenical and interfaith relations, theology, humanitarian
assistance, human rights, communication, and the various aspects
of mission and development work. Its secretariat is located in
Geneva, Switzerland.)

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