The Clouser family is moving! We are relocating to Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Yes, after 24 (Stephani), 9 (Ken), 8 (Zoey and Jayden) years of living in China, we will move to Chiang Mai, a city we have visited many times.
Recap of the last 4 years:
In August, 2018, we returned to China after being in Fort Wayne, IN, for two years. After the girls enjoyed being in a school classroom, Stephani found she loved teaching middle school, and there was an opportunity for Ken to teach the Bible, we joined a company called Leadership Development International working at Chengdu International School in Chengdu, China. Jayden was in grade 4 when we started and is finishing up grade 7 in a few weeks. Zoey came as a 6th grader and is almost finished with her first year of high school. Stephani has remained in middle school throughout the four years, teaching ELL and leading the ELL teachers at our K-12 school (we provide English Language support for kids in grades K through 10). Ken started out teaching Religious Studies to all of our middle schoolers: grades 6-8. After our first year, he was hired to be the school Team Director, sharing leadership with our Head of School. Ken has been in charge of the member care (spiritual and emotional health) for all of our staff and cultural training and housing for foreign staff and families.
One year ago, Ken finished a year-long fellowship with The Colson Center, called the Colson Fellowship. He read numerous books and spent hours once a month, meeting with his cohort to discuss the books, hear presentations from each other, and also get to meet guest speakers. The focus of his learning was on Christian worldview and each person was challenged to live out their calling in a way that is shaped by the gospel. Each of the people in Ken’s cohort were living in China, Korea, and Singapore.
Last Fall, Ken and I started sensing that God had something different in mind for us, that we should be ready for some change. Several years ago, China changed its laws for non-profit companies and made it nearly impossible to open one. So, our current country of service is not an option. For months, we knew were going to move to another Asian country, but we didn’t know which one. We were really conflicted in March when we announced to staff that we were leaving because we had no idea where we were going.
After looking for teaching jobs in numerous places, Stephani found a job at Grace International School in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Zoey and Jayden will study there and Stephani will teach 6th grade. GIS is an MK school, which means that tuition is kept low for the missionary families whose children study there. It also means that Stephani will not be paid a salary, but need to raise support.
Ken is looking for jobs now that we have a location nailed down. For the first year, he will be building relationships in the community, looking for discipleship opportunities, connecting with area churches, and possibly leading a Colson Fellowship cohort.
Currently, we are talking to two sending agencies that could help us. For these four years, supporters and churches have sent financial help to LDi Foundation. They will continue to assist us with this for the next three to six months. Our needs were quite small since both of us were earning salaries. Now, we will need at least four times as much to cover housing, transportation, food, insurance, etc. If Ken gets a paid position, we would still need to raise twice as much as we currently receive.
We are not our usual peaceful selves these days. There is a lot to stress about, though we are trying our best not to be anxious about anything. One thing that concerns us is that we have never lived around COVID. It’s never been a possibility and so the normal daily protections that we have acquired as habits seem almost silly. Now, they’ll be crucial. We are also concerned about how our two dogs will handle the travel to Thailand, since they’ll need to go there after us, rather than with us.
Our Prayer requests:
• The girls’ new passports would get to us quickly so that we can buy tickets
• We would find a home and vehicle quickly
• Ken would be offered a paid position
• Support raising would go smoothly
If you would like to join our support team, there are two ways that you can give.
1. If you don’t need the receipt for tax purposes, you can support us on PayPal. Please select “Friends & Family” so that we avoid PayPal’s fees:
Ken & Stephani’s PayPal Me Link
2. If you need the receipt for tax purposes, you may send us support using the link directly below. Please designate Campaign: C038.
Lastly, check out our new website: https://c2newsletter.wpcomstaging.com/
We’ll be consistently posting our updates there and you are also invited to leave your comments or messages.
Blessings,
Stephani, Ken, Zoey, & Jayden