ARI Family Blog

“Living in an environment where hunger, insecurity, and illiteracy is common has touched my heart to try to respond to our needs. It all started when I visited a family who didn’t have something to eat for lunch. I then began to think of the way forward.” Ray lives and works in a community based on religion and tribal line. The strength of her community is that the people are hard-working and highly religious, with a considerable level of people with Western education. Some of the challenges are religious intolerance, … Read more

“True patience is not merely the capacity to endure a waiting period, but the strength to maintain a positive and optimistic mindset throughout the process.” Kaliyat belongs to a closely-knit community in which farming and animal husbandry are the primary sources of income. Despite their focus on self-improvement and learning, the community faces challenges such as limited equipment access, inadequate development funding, and low literacy rates. It is a diverse community with members from various religious backgrounds, including Christianity, Islam, and local tribes. As a married mother of three, Kaliyat … Read more

“Have faith in your abilities and trust in the unique strengths that reside within you.”   Sangita is a secretary and assistant to the director of Sister Home. She is deeply invested in grassroots leadership. After being inspired by her sending body, she has taken up the issue of patriarchy in her community and joined an empowerment movement that focuses on educating women about leadership and organic farming. Classes must be carefully publicized and scheduled to make them effective since many women have domestic responsibilities, and some are prohibited from attending. … Read more

“My village is in northeast Chin State, in Myanmar… my community’s livelihood is from shifting [slash-and-burn] cultivation in upland. Our strengths are that we are hardworking and help each other. Challenges are poverty, poor health, unemployment, and illiteracy.” Pa Maung’s description of his community is like many stories of village life in Myanmar or many countries – one struggling to make a living from the soil. As a pastor and farmer, Pa Maung understands the problems of his area. Since 2016 he has worked full- time for the CARD as … Read more

“I would like to improve the health systems and agricultural techniques of low-lying rural areas. My definition of “Rural” is an important role and takes place for human beings to survive healthily in the world.” Saw Hser Moo grew up working on his family farm and is now a teacher and farm manager in the Rev. Dr. R.L. Pokey Theological Bible School. “Serving in His ministry, not only to God’s but also in our human society as a holistic mission, is motivating me to work and to serve my community.” … Read more

“My village is in northeast Chin State, in Myanmar… my community’s livelihood is from shifting [slash-and-burn] cultivation in upland. Our strengths are that we are hardworking and help each other. Challenges are poverty, poor health, unemployment, and illiteracy.” Pa Maung’s description of his community is like many stories of village life in Myanmar or many countries – one struggling to make a living from the soil. As a pastor and farmer, Pa Maung understands the problems of his area. Since 2016 he has worked full- time for the CARD as … Read more

“Trust is earned by regularly responding to the community’s needs.” Gu Tar Hu is a Baptist minister and the director of development in the Waing Maw Lisu Baptist Association, which serves the predominantly agricultural and ethnic Lisu community in Kachin State, northern Myanmar. Alongside his religious responsibilities, Gu Tar has led emergency response programs to support those affected by Covid-19 and internal　displacement. Amidst the various challenges that the farmers of Ding Jang Yong Village confront, the lack of cohesive leadership within the community exacerbates conflicts, as an absence of organizational … Read more

“A good leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way. They are kind in their actions, merciful in their decisions, and patient in their approach, always striving to uplift and empower those around them.” – as this quote inspired Fung, and he hopes to be of inspiration at ARI. Fung’s community comprises mostly ordinary farmers who use shifting cultivation and slash-and-burn farming as their primary means of livelihood. Most people in the community are illiterate, with only a few educated individuals. Fung has experience … Read more

“My community has one public school, which is overcrowded. Children walk several hours to get to school. Even though the community hosts the hydroelectric power plant and the water treatment plant for the Monrovia metropolitan area, the community does not have purified water nor electricity services.” Mary is all too familiar with these problems in the White Plains community that survives by subsistence farming. As field supervisor at UMRADP farm, she is responsible for planning and supervising all field activities. Rural and semi-rural communities across Liberia are primarily uneducated and … Read more