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Celebrating Growth in 2023

Writer's picture: Justin Van ZeeJustin Van Zee

“What was a highlight for you in 2023?”


We asked a few of our staff and one of our long-time advisors this question, and their answers reveal the heartbeat of Mission Dove’s work: personal transformation, both for ourselves and for our students.

 

Thank you for being part of this journey with us!


 

Sarady (center, black shirt) with the Emerald Women at a retreat celebrating their journey of growth together

 Sarady, Mission Dove Director

 

One of the highlights for me was to witness the transformation in our women’s program called Emerald Women. I felt blessed and privileged to hear the stories of these women’s journeys. For some, Emerald Women has been a turning point in their lives where they have started their inner healing journey—unpacking their pain and also finding power from within themselves. I have loved seeing the commitment they have to continue to learn and support each other in every way they can.

 

 

Serey (second from the right) with Mission Dove staff and former staff at the retreat in Chiang Mai

Serey, Onyx program leader

 

I had the opportunity to attend a 5-day quiet retreat in Chiang Mai, Thailand, with a few other Dove staff and former staff. During that retreat, I felt that God gave me time to slow down and listen to my body. My experience helped me to reconnect and recharge physically and spiritually. I learned a lot from nature around me, and I felt the presence of God in many places around me, such as in my room and also in the garden labyrinth. I felt God walking alongside me. I also learned from the Bible story during the reflection time as I imagined myself as one of the persons in the story.

 

 


Raeksmey (left) interviews one of the Leadership Club alumni who went on to study psychology

Raeksmey, Youth Learning Center leader

 

One highlight for me was the fellowship event that we held with former Youth Learning Center students. The alumni shared about the impact the center had in their lives, and especially how Leadership Club had shaped them. They had taken what they learned in Leadership Club and were using it in their workplaces, university studies, and in their families. Some had had dreams to serve in the broader society while they had been part of Leadership Club, and I was impressed by the ways they were living out these dreams, even starting new things involving youth and the arts.

 

 


Brian (left) observes as Virak facilitates a reflection exercise with the youth during the retreat

Brian, Mission Dove advisor

 

For me, a highlight from last year was the retreat on our farm in Ratanakiri with Dove’s two leadership clubs, one which meets at Dove’s center and one which meets at the Cambodia Care Center (CCC), which is in a slum community. At the retreat, we processed personal and collective grief together in nature. In 2022, teens from CCC came to the farm for a retreat, and they were almost unmanageable. However, in 2023, they couldn't wait to share, often in tears, and they engaged the topic seriously and deeply. It was amazing to see how one year of being part of Dove’s growth groups matured them!
 

Thank you for being part of each of these stories of growth and transformation! We are grateful for your partnership in 2023, and we look forward to making an even greater impact together in 2024.

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