They’re known as the “trash people.” This group of marginalized families live around the waste disposal center at the outskirts of their city and earn their income by collecting and selling recyclables.
The pandemic has affected these and many others in the Laos, but because of your generosity, Send Relief was able to partner with local churches in providing food and cooking supplies to nearly 350 of these hurting families, most of whom shared that the emergency provisions had come just in time.
These partnerships strengthened and built up the relationship between impoverished neighborhoods and local believers, encouraging many new Christians as they saw the fruit of sharing their faith with others and providing real solutions to tangible needs in their city.
One of the Laotian leaders shared, “This program helped meet the need in the moment. When we were in lockdown, people were not able to get any food, so they are thankful we were able to give them a way to survive this period of time. Now, they have time to think about their plans for the future. One woman broke down in tears when we gave her a bag of rice, showing us that this is the real way to be like Jesus.”
Today, most of these families have found sustainable jobs to provide for their children, and the nationwide lockdown has been lifted. The connections that local believers made with the ostracized community have been deepened, and many are having meaningful gospel conversations. Thank you for caring for those still feeling the devastating effects of the pandemic! Continue praying for ostracized communities who are feeling even more unseen amid recovery efforts.
Published August 11, 2021