GOSHEN, Ind. – Three Franconia Conference natives are participating
in the first Goshen (Ind.) College Study-Service Term (SST) unit to
Cambodia this spring. The group includes 24 students.
Krista Ehst, daughter of Tim and Sheryl Ehst of Bally, is majoring in
Bible and religion. She is a 2004 graduate of Christopher Dock
Mennonite High School and attends Perkasie Mennonite Church.
Sheldon Good, son of Don and Diane Good of Telford, is majoring in
communication and business. He is a 2005 graduate of Christopher Dock
Mennonite High School and attends Salford Mennonite Church.
Greg Yoder, son of Jerold and Beth Yoder of Perkasie, is majoring in
music. He is a 2005 graduate of Christopher Dock Mennonite High
School and attends Perkasie Mennonite Church.
The students left for Cambodia on Jan. 10 and will return to the
United States on April 10. They will spend the first six weeks in the
capital, Phnom Penh, studying the national language of Khmer and the
country’s culture at the Royal University of Phnom Penh. Students
will then be placed in service assignments around the country. The
capital is a mix of developed and developing areas, and though the
country has a dollar economy, it is one of the poorest countries in
the region, according to Tom Meyers, director of international
education at Goshen College. Students will live with host families
during the first and second half of the semester, many of whom will
be Buddhist, since 95 percent of the population follows that
religion. Groups from Goshen College will go to Cambodia every three
years.
Keith and Ann Graber Miller, with their children, Niles, Mia and
Simon, are leading the unit to Cambodia. Keith is professor of Bible,
religion and philosophy at Goshen College. They have previously led
SST units in the Dominican Republic, China, Cuba and Costa Rica.
Web updates and photos from the group are available from Goshen
College’s SST Web site at: www.goshen.edu/sst/cambodia07. Letters can
be directed to: Mennonite Central Committee, PO Box 481, #20 Street
475, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Since the first SST units went to Costa Rica, Jamaica and Guadeloupe
in 1968 and began one of the country’s pioneer international
education programs, more than 6,500 students and 230 faculty leaders
have traveled to 20 countries; the college currently organizes SST
units to study and serve in China, Dominican Republic, Germany,
Cambodia, Ethiopia, Senegal, Perú and Jamaica. The program’s uncommon
combination of cultural education and service-learning remains a core
part of the general education program, and has earned citations for
excellence from U.S.News & World Report, Peterson’s Study Abroad and
Smart Parents Guide to College, the John Templeton Foundation and
American Council on Education.
The opinions expressed in articles posted on Mosaic’s website are those of the author and may not reflect the official policy of Mosaic Conference. Mosaic is a large conference, crossing ethnicities, geographies, generations, theologies, and politics. Each person can only speak for themselves; no one can represent “the conference.” May God give us the grace to hear what the Spirit is speaking to us through people with whom we disagree and the humility and courage to love one another even when those disagreements can’t be bridged.