Update -- December 2006

Dear Friends and Family,

Warm Blankets Orphan Care is living up to its name, with several thousand blankets being manufactured at a test factory operated by Brad Holes , who is investigating the viability of manufacturing ‘teddy bears’ in Cambodia. The project which has the potential to employ thousands of church members is being piloted in our small church building at the training center. We have long since outgrown it, even for children’s church. It is scheduled to become our national church office at the completion of the test. http://www.missionreports.com/factory

I started and ended the month of November in the US . Thank God for faithful staff! The big event in November for us was the ECFC (Eastern Council of Foursquare Churches) bi-annual meeting in Bangkok , Thailand . We took 101 Cambodians via bus, most of who had never been out of Cambodia , let alone spent a night in an ‘upscale hotel’. They’d never seen the small bottles of liquid soap and hand lotion, so we were not too surprised when several of them came down the first morning with rather sweet smelling and glossy hair, they thought it was hair tonic. The trip was a real energizer for the District and Divisional pastors which made up most of the group that attended. Ma Sou, I, and several of our staff, had to arrive a day early to tape a special interview with Dr. Jack Hayford. Anna Blake, Jamie Gonzalez and Emily Plater accompanied the bus filled with happy Cambodian leaders. http://www.missionreports.com/ecfc_thailand2006

The Cambodian pastors had the time of their lives. Not only were they spiritually energized, but they got to see that they were a part of a larger, global, family. They thoroughly enjoyed the culture night, actually joining in with the songs and dances presented by the 23 countries present, to the point of disrupting the entire event. Anna Blake received an invitation to the Marine Corps Ball in Cambodia , so flew back on the last day.

I must have a cynical side, not that I am proud of it, since it doesn’t make the list of, ‘desirable Christian character traits’, but, confession is good for the soul, and, after you read this, you will be assured that mine needs all the help it can get.

Anna Blake is one of our most faithful staff members, hundreds of you have attested to her skill in leading teams that visit Cambodia . Anna has been with us for more than five years and, not to be crude or cruel, she is a very attractive young woman, but has a digestive tract that would give a Billy goat an inferiority complex. In five years I had never seen her succumb to Ho Chi Minh ’s revenge (the common microbial induced malady known as dysentery).

Now, it’s not just that Anna is tough, she flaunts it. I have seen her eat: from plates that were caked with crud, cups that were so greasy you could not see through the glass, and consume with relish, pickled baby ducks with ‘you know what’ still on the shell, rat, cat, dog, fried tarantulas, ice cream made from local ‘ingredients’, food dropped on the road, various and sundry, questionably cleaned, internal organs, dine in restaurants that would land the proprietors 5 year jail sentences in the US, and NEVER get so much as a queasy stomach. http://www.missionreports.com/anna_finally_gets_sick

There is one particular restaurant, located between about 5 church/homes, making it the only convenient choice for visiting teams, which has become a special irritation to me. It is built next to a garbage dump. You sit to eat, and for entertainment watch the rats play. The ceiling still boasts the first cobwebs accumulated sometime prior to my earliest visit there in 1999, caked with years of accumulated dust and smoke. Pustule covered, flea infested, dogs dart between your legs vying for scraps. It’s dark, and smoke filled, as there are few windows and no chimney, and the floor? Well, let’s just let it go as, ‘raunchy’.  

In desperation I have eaten there about 6 times. I always get well cooked food, and at least 4 of those times I have spent the next day making frequent visits to the ‘small room’, hanging on to my ears, for fear I will invert, while I ingest several of our ‘silver bullets’, Bactrim, until cured. On the last trip Bactrim didn’t work, as an amoeba had taken up residence in my intestinal tract, so the ‘Big gun’ Flagyl was put into action.

This will help you understand my sense of ‘gleeful vindication’ as a rather ‘green looking’ Anna came to the office on the morning of Nov. 22^nd announcing that she had a ‘bad case’. Since I’ve been practicing medicine without a license for at least 8 years, I promptly instructed her to take a Bactrim, and if she wasn’t better in 8 hours she would switch to Flagyl and go on an I.V. Our two doctors arrived, knowing Anna’s intestinal fortitude, they countermanded my prescription, and went for the ‘nuclear option’; Bactrim taken in conjunction with Flagyl, accompanied by a liter of Ringer’s lactate as an I.V. Ma Sou came out of her office and rightly rebuked all of us for not praying for Anna.  So, I called the staff, about 20 people gathered around Anna, as I placed my hand on her shoulder. After about 30 seconds of silence Ma Sou piped up, as she glared at me, “Are you going to pray?” I was smiling. I sheepishly responded, “I need to get my heart right”. Fortunately, the Lord intervened by reminding me of the danger in rejoicing over another’s calamity. I sobered up, and prayed an earnest prayer. It must have been a good one, as it worked, because 16 hours later Anna was ravaging a Thanksgiving dinner.  

Now, here is the total irony of this rather long tale of woe. Remember, Anna returning from Bangkok early to attend the Marine Guard Ball?  It was held at the Intercontinental Hotel. Well, the ‘Intercon’ is the tallest, newest, fanciest, cleanest, 5-star hotel in Phnom Penh . If anyone came to Cambodia concerned about the food, and asked me, “Where is it absolutely safe to eat?” I’d send them to the ‘Intercon’. Guess what? All of the guests, under the protection of the US Marines, who ate the ‘shrimp puree’, 61 people in total, one of whom was Anna, came down with salmonella. Divine justice? Naw! God’s above that, but a cynic like me??? Honest, I didn’t poison the food! Well, ok, it did put a smile on my face. Anna, I’m glad you’re felling better. But, really happy to know that you are a member of the human race!

The ground is dry and the dust is flying! We can finally start several building projects including the new Dr. Myron Wentz clinic and the women’s dorm for garment factory workers. http://www.missionreports.com/building_progress_nov06

We are still waiting for water to recede in a few spots, like the location of our new 'Tractor Factory'. http://www.missionreports.com/tractor_factory_training_center/index.htm But, that is because the ‘knot-heads’ doing the fill for the new site, which just happens to be the former location of our pig production at the training center, decided to fill the lagoon (guess what that was full of?) without pumping it first. We figure about two months before it solidifies. Whatever you do, don’t go for a stroll behind the fish pond or you’ll be neck deep in you know what.

A very sincere “Thank you!” to all who prayed for our children at the Pouk Siem Reap church/home! We sent this request; not knowing what the consequences would be:  http://www.missionreports.com/prayer_alerts/puok_healing  Our cook purchased vegetables at the market which had been treated with a chemical to enhance the green color. Several of the children were close to death. No one was ever even questioned over the poisoning, and the chemical was not identified. Nothing was done! Contrast that with the recent spinach scare in the US and the billions of dollars spent, farms bankrupted, people frightened, and you get an idea of the difference between Cambodia and the US .

We had another near disaster with a fire at the Kakaoh Church home. Somehow, the fire started with a kerosene lamp igniting some gasoline fumes from paint brushes being cleaned. The flames traveled to an 8 liter container of gasoline, with an open top, which exploded. The miracle is that it was next to a 20 liter can of gasoline, and it never exploded, even though the fire melted the chair in the room and burned one of the staff members on the foot and leg, she somehow got the flames extinguished, and is expected to make a full recovery. http://www.missionreports.com/cambodia/updates/index.htm

Medical and dental teams continue to be a major source of our impact upon Cambodia . People in the villages need to see hope, and that is exactly what they see when infected teeth are pulled, or filled, and disease treated. One of the major contributions we have made is in the treatment of scabies with our affordable shampoo. People see a church that cares and they want to be part of that. We continue to start new home groups on a continual basis. http://www.missionreports.com/tluk_yule_nov06

We thank the Foursquare Foundation and Resurrection Life Church for their help in November. The new clinic will be a welcome addition to those efforts when it is completed this coming spring. http://www.missionreports.com/rez_dental_06

A typical month, we were blessed with several visitors, John and Bonnie Watson of FMI, Joe Wainer of the Foursquare Foundation, Oystein of Asia Link, in Norway, Dennis Owens and Joel Blankers representing their West Coast Foursquare Churches, Bob and Christal Hollandsworth of Seeds Ministries, Rick Ducholke of Edmonton, Canada assisted with mechanical training, and Connie Cummings with Bill and Laurie Essig, of Northwest Medical Missions, were here. We love to have people come to see what is happening and leave as ambassadors for the work. http://www.missionreports.com/visitors_nov06

All of us very sincerely wish you an extremely Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Please, don’t forget all those who keep our kids fed as you send out those year end gifts. We really can’t do this without you!

Be blessed!

Ted and Sou Olbrich ,

Anna Blake,

Jamie  Gonzalez,

Emily Plater

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