Report from BHW Thailand Partnership Facilitator Following Visit in November

Key People: Prai and Susithon

Recent Events

Team

Prai is back at work four days a week now and seems to be managing the demands of motherhood alongside her responsibilities at Rahab. Some of her tasks have been picked up by Susithon, and as she is now not quite as available to the women when they have a problem it is often Susithon who is the first port of call.

Savi is still working a few days a week alongside her studies, which is quite a commitment for a masters student who lives over an hour away from the office.

There is currently an intern working in the office as well. Her English is good and I expect that she will do some of the team talks for visitors.

In addition there is a man from Madagascar who has been shoulder tapped to work at Rahab by World Outreach. He is currently in a one year Thai language programme in preparation for his joining the team full time next year, and comes to the office once a week or so when his studies allow. His wife and children have also come to Thailand with him.

Moniwan is leading the outreach into the bars once a week, and there are plans to begin to focus more on those girls who have previously made a commitment to Christ. Some of these have returned to the bars to work for various reasons, and dualism is a common problem. The plan is that next year they will begin meeting once a month in a small group bible study to develop an understanding of the gospel and faith. 

Income Generating Activities

The money which was sent for the laundry has been used with the new steam iron allowing them to quickly and properly clean more complicated garments. I must confess to not knowing exactly how the process works but the women in the laundry seem very chuffed by the device.

The laundry has increased its custom steadily, mostly from the surrounding residents, and also offers a modest amount of cleaning products for retail sale.

Income from the laundry now pays for all the staff costs and Prai is optimistic that as their client base expands through word of mouth and local advertising, income in the coming year will also cover the rental costs.

The small Rahab Catering enterprise has been slowly successful with a function being catered for already. The 'catering' aspect involves putting together a small box of food and drink that can be supplied to guests or participants at events and is a common way of providing a small, easy to distribute meal in Thailand. BHW funded the first purchase of branded packaging materials.

Through connections in various churches there is potential for this to expand, and as the various food items and drink is bought from local suppliers (bakeries and the like) as and when required there is practically no overhead involved now that the packaging has been purchased along with the drink sealing machine.

When an order is received they simply move available staff from the office to Susithon's kitchen(!) to package the boxes and drinks, then they go back to their usual routine.

Personal Stories

Kai

I have been working at the Rahab Laundry for over a year and before that I was at the Rahab office doing crochet work. I enjoy working in the laundry, especially working with the different materials and dealing with customers. I also enjoy training the new girls who come from Rahab.

Before I started working in the laundry I was given good training in laundering and business at a laundry run by someone from the church, arranged by Rahab. I plan to stay here for another two or three years before starting my own business.

I want to thank Prai and Susithon for the opportunity to work here. It has helped me think about what can be done in the future and what I am able to do.

Nantana

Before coming here to the laundry I spent a year working at Rahab. I’ve been here at the laundry for nearly that long now as well. I feel good about Rahab, and about myself.

I used to never see the sun as I was out all night and slept during the day. I didn’t care what I wore and used to fight with my parents a lot. When I visited them I would just give them money and run away so that we didn’t argue. Since I came to Rahab and am not working in the bars they are happier. I can stay, eat and talk with them and we don’t argue about my lifestyle.

I had a personal experience with God which changed my life and has been a great blessing. Working here has also helped me to have plans for my future. I hope to move to a smaller town and open my own laundry.

I enjoy training new girls at the laundry. The work can be hard but there are always people to share my problems with.

Partnership's Influence within the Community

Rahab, and Moniwan in particular, continue to have good contacts in the community which allow them to be effective in their ministry. They have many relationships with the girls and the bars in which they work, especially with those who have been to their regular afternoon parties which are proving very popular. These are generally held every two months for a few hours in the afternoon to allow the girls who can't be away from work to attend.

Nearly all the girls at Rahab are regularly attending church and the staff work closely with several local churches.

Plans for the Future

New laundry and catering enterprises aside, at its core Rahab is continuing its strategy of relationship based ministry and outreach. The new outreach to girls who have previously been involved with Rahab is an extension of this.

There are conversations around looking into the idea of starting a cafe and the possibility of launching a secondary laundry, both with a view of providing a more reliable income source to Rahab and to give work and training to the girls coming out of the bars as this is a significant issue for them. It is early days for these so far and the details have not yet been explored.

Current Issues and Challenges

Prai is working around her son and the need to be a present mother. Thus far she seems to be managing well but this will be a developing and changing thing. Prai's reduction in hours has meant extra work for Susithon, especially when girls have problems. She too seems to be managing this well.

The issues that existed between the girls have now largely disappeared.

With Prai not as involved there is a challenge in training staff and developing volunteers. Both the current volunteers have a fair to good command of English (useful with visiting teams and managing overseas enquiries) but their Thai is still coming along. The new volunteer who is in language training will hopefully be able to address this when he completes his language study.

With the developing success of the laundry there is an interest in starting a new one if there is the need. The women who are working there now will move on at some stage (probably to set up another laundry somewhere else) and they will need to be either replaced or supplemented if the business grows. It is difficult to find girls who have a good sense of responsibility and the kind of work ethic required for the laundry as they work longer hours in a more physical role and have more responsibility than those who work in the Rahab office. There is the need to deal with customers and money, as well as getting tasks done on time and to standard while working fairly independently.

Prayer and Praise Points

Prayer

1) There is currently an issue with Moniwan's visa which expires in January (she is Lao). It revolves around a bureaucratic problem with Rahab's name being on the building lease but not being its own registered foundation, rather under another name. As there is a quota for immigrants from Lao this has just become a problem - she has been working with Rahab for several years. Pray that this will be sorted out effectively.
2) For the success of the new bible studies with girls who have previously expressed a commitment. Specifically, that it will combat the spiritual dualism often found in Thailand and that the girls will grow in their understanding.
3) A need for openness from the girls in the bars. God can help where we cannot.

Praise

1) The laundry business is growing well and the women working there have been demonstrating diligence and responsibility. It is hard work compared to the bar!
2) Seeing the change in the hearts and a smile on the faces of the girls who accept Christ
3) Nearly all the girls are going to church regularly
4) New volunteers that are or are preparing to work with Rahab

Comments

Rahab continues its commendable relationship-based work in the difficult circumstances of Patpong. It is great to see them working together as a team and that far from nothing being dropped in Prai's absence they have worked around her childcare needs to expand their ministry. I am particularly encouraged by the new bible study group focused on making the most of the effort that was put into forming relationships with the girls initially and think that this kind of discipleship is very much needed in the Thai context.

The success of the laundry is also good to see, and while it is not yet completely self-sustaining they seem on track for this to be so next year. There are ideas being talked about to reduce costs and make this a reality sooner. I think that while the jewelry and toy making are a useful starting point for girls leaving the bars, the laundry makes for a very practical skill set and development opportunity. It is also one that has a ready market in the closely packed environs of Bangkok where many apartment dwellers do not have the space for a washing machine of their own.

It was interesting to hear several of the women I spoke to talk about how working in the laundry had given them the feeling that they could plan their own futures. This is no small thing, as a Buddhist (and Thai) worldview tends strongly toward the fatalistic. I find it awesome to see this self-determination developing as a result of being given real-world responsibility and work skills.