Shalom Valley - A Place of Peace for the Children
In Cambodia, too many children living in poverty never have the opportunity to visit the ocean, to play in the sand or to experience God in his beautiful green creation.
The idea of going away on a holiday - let alone a camp that is specifically set up and designed for them - would be far outside the imagination of many of the "little brothers and sisters" in the Alongsiders movement.
Yes, there are resorts and hotels aplenty - good only for those who can afford them. For years, NGO's, churches and schools have longed for a place to hold camps and retreats that would be affordable and suitable for larger groups who need a meeting space. Now, all that is about to change. "Shalom Valley", Kep, Cambodia For the first time in Cambodian history, a purpose-built Christian camp and retreat center will be established to provide space for up to 500 people on 12 acres of beautiful land.
Situated near the coastal resort town of Kep, the land is nestled on the side of Lieu Mountain, just 900 metres from the seaside. It will be called "Shalom Valley". The vision of Shalom Valley is to strengthen Cambodian children, families, churches and society by providing an affordable place for groups to experience a retreat or training.
It will be a place of God's healing, nourishment and rest. This will not only be a hub for the Alongsiders movement to offer training and camps throughout the year. But also for churches, organizations and schools across the country.
This "little brother" came to our Shalom Valley groundbreaking ceremony and saw the ocean for the first time. Shalom Valley is being designed to be environmentally sustainable within local natural resources and to minimize harm to the environment.
For those who come to receive training, Shalom Valley will be full of outdoor learning and experiences that will inspire everyone who visits. For example, we're designing facilities that will strengthen Cambodian youth through sports and outdoor education, including:
- A high quality football and volleyball field
- A natural Swimming Pool
- Zipline
- Climbing wall
- Other fun outdoor activities for team building
- Learning gardens
- Animal care stations
- Meeting spaces for workshops and training sessions
In the years to come, thousands of children, their Alongsiders, their families and churches, will have the opportunity to gather together outside of their everyday lives for training, rest and healing.
Shalom Valley will be a place the people of Cambodia experience new depths of God's love, joy, and most of all peace.
Building is underway and 2018 will see stage 1 of the Shalom Valley dream realized! For more information about Alongsiders and how Tenth Church is engaged in the long-term transformation of Cambodia, check out the following links :
Support the Alongsiders - Tenth dream
Justice Journey to work with Alongsiders
Info - Patrick Elaschuk l Pastor of International Missions at Tenth l patrick@tenth.ca
"Little brothers" enjoying the ocean at the Groundbreaking Ceremony
Article written by Mera Dost