Vietnam Evangelical Covenant Church – After celebrating Easter 2023, members of the Community Development Ministry set out again for Mộc Châu. On April 10–11, 2023, the ministry gave gifts to Đông Sang Preschool and the Pha Đón preschool satellite school in Lóng Sập commune, Mộc Châu district, Sơn La province.
See photos: all the photos of the April 2023 Mộc Châu trip on the Community Development Ministry fanpage
A Piggy Bank on Easter Morning
The trip began with a small story. On Easter Sunday morning 2023, a sister in the church gave the ministry a plastic piggy bank holding money she had saved to give to the ministry’s outreach. When counted, it came to 2,023,000 dong. Her simple generosity greatly encouraged the team, reminding everyone of the spirit of willingly giving time, money and relationships to meet the needs of the disadvantaged.
Pha Đón: The Poorest Village in Lóng Sập Commune
Pha Đón is more than 40 km from the center of Mộc Châu district. Where the paved road ends, travelers must cover about 20 km of winding red-dirt road over steep mountainsides to reach the village, while the Laos border is only a few dozen minutes’ walk away. The village has 63 households with more than 300 Hmong people living from hillside farming and small-scale livestock, and is the poorest village in the commune.
Through an open letter from the principal of Lóng Sập Preschool, the ministry learned of the urgent needs of the Pha Đón school and began inviting believers and friends to join in. The total received was 8,250,000 dong.
Gifts for the Preschoolers
With this money, plus additional contributions, the ministry gave:
- Books and storybooks for preschoolers at Đông Sang Preschool and the Pha Đón school (2,478,000 dong);
- 100 packs of 12-color modeling clay (1,370,000 dong);
- 1 infrared stove and 1 electric kettle so the teachers can cook lunch for the children at Pha Đón;
- 3,000,000 dong for the teachers and villagers to install an iron gate at the school to keep livestock out;
- 1 14-kg washing machine (10,990,000 dong) for Lóng Sập Preschool.
Lóng Sập Preschool has 13 sites, most of them satellite schools in mountain villages. Blankets and pillows from the satellite schools are regularly brought to the main campus to be washed, so the large washing machine saves the teachers a great deal of work.
Now Lunch Has Meat
Not long after the trip, the ministry received happy photos from a preschool for Hmong children: the children’s lunches now included meat. The teachers and parent representatives take turns preparing each meal. For the team, it was a very concrete joy after tiring mountain journeys.
“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” (Proverbs 22:6)
Long Roads Don’t Hold Us Back
The schools are far and the roads difficult, sometimes climbing hills, sometimes wading streams. But these difficulties only strengthened the team’s resolve. The ministry thanks God for the generosity of His children and friends, and hopes to keep receiving prayer and partnership to help the community even more.
Let Us Pray Together
- For the preschoolers at Pha Đón and Đông Sang to be healthy, well fed and happy to come to class.
- For highland teachers to have more health and joy in their work.
- For God to bless the sister who gave her piggy bank and every generous heart.
On this trip, the ministry also learned of a 12-member family in Pha Đón whose home it later helped repair. Read more in Community Development and Church News. Contact the church office: 0942 248 688 (Zalo available).
