I posted my entry about F. having become a victim of trafficking on November 9 of last year. On November 22, my sister and I received a series of messages from our friend A., the one who first told us about her situation: she was out of the sweatshop, and on her way out of Thailand back to her home country! A. had gone down to Bangkok and found her again, and managed to get her out. She sent us wonderful pictures of F. smiling and happy, hopeful for the first time in months. She still had a stressful road ahead of her at that point: since she was in the country illegally, they had to figure out the best way to get her back out without her ending up in a detention center. But before then, we were able to talk to both F. and A. briefly on the phone, and rejoice with them.
Over the next two days, we followed their progress by phone and email. A. was in contact with anti-trafficking organizations during this whole time. These wonderful people helped them decide which border crossing was best, as well as warning them what to expect from immigration officials. It was not a smooth ride. But finally they made it across, and they were safe in Pakse on the other side of the border by November 24 (coincidentally, Mackenzie's and my birthday!). And within a short time after she arrived back home, F. was enrolled in school again - a different one than she used to attend before all this happened to her, but A. reported that she was excited to go back.
And now? Even though she's a year behind where she should be, because she missed the year-end exams last year, F. is happy and doing well. We have reconnected with her via WhatsApp, as well, and we're looking forward to continuing to encourage her and just talk with her.
Thank you, again, to all of you who prayed for this situation, for F., and for A. If you feel so inclined, you can certainly still pray for F.'s mother's financial situation, as well as the whole family's growth in their faith.
