An Army Without Soldiers (Part 2)
This is the second part of an ongoing series looking at the incredible work being done by the founder of “Spouses of People’s Soldiers.” We are grateful to her for sharing, as well as to the volunteer who has been working with us to tell her story to a wider audience. Her mission is so valuable at this time! Please consider a donation of any amount to allow us to continue supporting her critical work.
Civilians are dying and more blood is being shed everyday. There is a current threat of a war breaking out near her camp, but this doesn’t slow her down, it only makes her moves faster and more strategic.
I knew from the sound of her voice that she was excited to talk, excited to share, and even more so, excited to express hope in the form of progress. It had been exactly a month since our initial conversations from when I first heard her inspiring story. Since helping her husband defect from the militia last year, she has been playing a crucial role in the revolution by encouraging other wives and husbands to follow her lead. She’s been working around the clock, developing her grassroots, heart-led organization, “Wife of People’s Soldiers”.
A lot of great progress has been made over the past month and much is due to the funding that has poured in supporting her mission and organization. More supplies are in place providing the support and security needed to assure a smooth transition for families during these dire times. As more and more families defect and get the support they need to feel stable, the more it encourages other families to take this leap of faith. The most common concern families have when making the decision to defect is a deep worry about leaving everything behind and not being able to survive. Thanks to this heroic woman and so many others supporting this organization, families of defected soldiers can sleep a bit easier knowing they and their children will be supported during this transition. Over the last month, ten new soldiers have defected and their families are now being supported thanks to volunteers and generous donors.
Throughout our conversation, I could hear the aliveness in her voice as she would talk about the many different programs that were in the works and developing. The vocational training programs are beginning to take shape as volunteer teachers are beginning to fill up the Zoom classrooms. Brand new classes on digital marketing and learning how to sell online are about to kick off as well. Cooking, sewing and creating traditional clothing and bags for CDM families and Karen Ethnic groups are finding their place in the in-house training programs. With forward thinking and a strong determination surrounding these programs, different forms of education and trainings will begin to fill the gaps.
I couldn’t help but share this excitement with her as we spoke. It’s quite clear that a lot of focus and effort is put into the programs and for good reason. When the families defect, they have to leave everything behind, EVERYTHING. They must find new ways of supporting their livelihoods, sourcing incomes and the training programs is where they begin. Opportunity comes in the form of education and experience and this is exactly the aim of the program.
Along with the excitement in her voice I could hear something else. I could hear her deep appreciation and gratitude for all of the support she has been receiving. Towards the end of the call I could feel myself holding back some rather strong emotions as she expressed her sincere gratitude for me being there to listen and support her. It wasn’t just me there listening and supporting her, it was all of us….all of us that can only imagine how difficult this is for so many people in Myanmar.
As the program develops, a clearer picture is coming into view as it relates to sustainability and defected families becoming self-sufficient. From where things are at today, families that go through 4-5 months of vocational training should generate an output of being able to survive on their own.
$150 - $200 is the average cost of supporting a family through this 4-5 month training period.
Please consider donating today in support of this amazing program that is not only changing the lives of defected families but the lives of a nation that is deeply suffering.
An automatic, reoccurring monthly donation is ideal for this opportunity of giving back. I can assure you that any amount donated will be used well and sincerely appreciated by so many.
