History : Chapter 4 : So What Do We Do ?

2008 was a terrible year. 8400 Hmong refugeewere earmarked to be deported back to Laos, and the worst part ? We could not get in the camp to even see them through this very painful last lap. Each day, things got worse, refugees got so desperate that they threatened suicide should they be deported. That was really how desperate they were.

We wanted to be there for them in this painful period but it was up to the military who guarded the camp. My staff would ride 20km into the refugee camp every other week to negotiate for entry permits, but each time she came back discouraged and rejected.

There was nothing more we could do physically.

We prayed to the point of tears, our eyes were red and swollen. It is difficult to express in words what it felt like. Family members started to call us to come home, friends told us to quit. Even pastors discouraged us from continuing. Before long, donation streams started drying up, people slowly withdraw their support. Looking at the signs, everything was pointing towards one direction- pack our bags and come back to Singapore.

We struggled with God. What are we supposed to do ? First God calls us up to do this, and now the door is shut, no more money, no more support. What does God want us to do ?

But there was just this faint little voice inside that tells us not to give up.

The finances were drying up and we knew that to keep ourselves afloat we had to do something ! So we did one of the craziest things. We took some money, went to buy 3 used & trashed up PCs & 1 printer and started an internet cafe. That was all we could afford at that time. And that was the birth of RADION's very first business in the village.

Operating an Internet cafe wasn't difficult. It was keeping spirits high that was immensely difficult. We still could not see God's plan, but we just hung there, waiting for God to open the door to the refugee camp, but He opened another door !