The Girls of The River Rescue House

The school year has just finished for kids in Thailand! We are so proud of the way our River Rescue House Kids are improving! Nat  (photo: right) is in the Government High School and Fon (photo: middle) and Ganya (photo: left) in a small Christian Elementary School. It is wonderful to see these girls becoming more confident!. Fon and Ganya in particular are beginning to shine in their English classes!  Fon scored the second highest mark in her class and shows great promise in her ability to catch up with the “lost” time.  Ganya, who was deemed as mentally impaired, is performing far beyond expectations! She is coming out of her shell and is improving daily. Her new glasses are helping significantly and have given her a new confidence in the classroom.  It's fantastic to see these girls blossoming and beginning to do so well at school!  Ganya, Fon and Nat have a future, which is filled with amazing opportunities!


Thank you for your part in giving these children a future!

The Multi-Purpose River Centre

The River Training and Convention Centre is operating in an increasingly productive way! Apart from our already active program, we also have opportunities to host international training! 

On the second week of March a large number of delegates from the surrounding countries  gathered for training  funded by Fida International. This was a forum where delegates received training from experts on community development with focus on its global impact. The delegates also had opportunities to exchange ideas and experiences. Some of the issues explored were relating to environment and human trafficking. The River accommodation facility was booked to capacity and The River Team demonstrated its experience, gained over the past 4 years, in hosting and catering!  Representatives from creative access countries were amongst the delegates, some outside their countries for the very first time! On leaving, all expressed their appreciation for having an opportunity to experience the sights and sounds of another country and to participate in the excellent training! One after another, the participants said that what impacted them the most was “ the HEART of The River Team!” What touched the visitors was the passionate love of these young men and women for their God and how each one so willingly lays down his/her life for the people in the communities!  

This is a “privileged” life - living out the High Calling as ambassadors of the Most High Calling! The world that desperately needs to know Healing love!

“I am special, I am loved and I belong!”

Birthdays are not usually celebrated in the communities of Thailand. A child is often only reminded of how much pain his/her mom endured during childbirth.

The kids, who come to The River Kid's Club, learn to know that they do not have to feel guilty about being born. Instead, they discover that their birth was planned by God and definitely worth celebrating! 

YES! At The River, we celebrate birthdays BIG time and always make them a wonderful surprise event! Birthdays of kids born within any given three months are grouped together and a BIG PARTY is thrown.

The hall is decorated with lots of colourful balloons and streamers. Lots of party food is prepared, gifts are wrapped and fun games and other activities creatively planned. 

As the kids arrive, a surprise party awaits them!

Everyone sings “Happy Birthday” in both English and Thai. The worries of everyday life are momentarily forgotten as the lights are lowered and the candle-lit cake arrives! The birthday girls and boys are cheered on as they blow the candles and cut the cake! Then the joy of receiving a present!

Last Saturday at The River, it happened all over again!

The seed planted in a child's heart:

 "I am loved, I am special 

... I belong!”

For some kids, this is their very first birthday party ever and they will certainly never forget it!

The River Cafe

The River Cafe - the connecting place in the community is now ONE YEAR OLD! 

Since the birth of the vision for a “connecting place” in the market place, much has happened! 


The barren shell of a shophouse has been transformed into a beautiful cafe!  Patience has been learnt through training of staff, working on systems and trialling various recipe options for the menu. Some tears have been shed, but the joy of creating,  getting to know one another, and the passion for reaching people continues to make us determined to press on! Expertly prepared drinks, home-made style cakes and savouries, as well as ice cream sundaes are now served to a growing number of both Thai and Westerners. Our trading times are during office hours, but we have now also started opening on Friday nights.  


The DNA of the cafe is becoming clearer: The River Cafe is unique! Customers are drawn to the warm and relaxed atmosphere created by dedicated men and women, who love God and love people! The delightful mix of both English and Thai languages can be heard, as the regular customers and the new ones enjoy connecting with one another in this new “home away from home”.

The second floor is used for small meetings and language classes.

The above photo of our team members is now featured on our billboard advertising Conversational English Classes.

Future looks very exciting! 


Lots of young people will learn new skills in various areas of hospitality. They are also being trained in character and come to discover that they were placed on this earth to fulfil their destiny in God!


It is absolutely AWESOME to walk with God!


Thank you for your continued support!

WITCHDOCTOR FINDS FREEDOM!

For a witchdoctor, the spirit world is more real that the world he sees with his natural eyes. Every moment of his existence revolves around spirits. He acts as a go-between for the villagers and the spirits. He calls on the spirits for advise and guidance. He seeks for ways to appease the spirits, which very often requires animal sacrifices to be furnished by the troubled souls seeking the witchdoctor's help. The witchdoctor also declares curses on people deemed to deserve suffering - even death.

Nights are difficult for the witchdoctor and his followers. The spirit realm is real and it does not rest. Fear and tormented thoughts are a norm in the villages. They know no other way to live.

The River Team made contact with the Village of White Sand.  The Team is committed to praying for freedom for the people of the mountains, while they also "go out, seeking for the Lost". Because of this commitment,  relationships were formed with the villagers...and then one day.... the witchdoctor's eyes were opened!  February 2012 marked the time when The Good News truly reached the Village of White Sand! The witchdoctor  walked through the “door” to salvation and freedom in Jesus Christ! Eight villagers followed him in making this decision. They all are amazed in experiencing restful sleep for the first time in their lives! Other villages are now in the process of changing their allegiance to the living God!

Keep praying for the Lost to be found!