Abba House in Chiang Mai, Thailand

Abba House Foundation is home to boys, aged 8 to 22, who have been trafficked in downtown Chiang Mai, Thailand. Left homeless and hungry, they are forced to sell their bodies for a bowl of rice. At times they are beaten up and tortured; some have HIV, few can even read or write.

Abba House teaches these young men life skills such as construction, motorcycle repair, and jewelry making for half the day. The rest of the day they have Bible School education, Music and English.

Abba House Foundationhas found that some of these street boys and men have recently been released from various prisons, finding themselves deserted. They walk five miles to the tourist scenes to try and find work but find HIV instead. Abba House has recently built a half-way house called the Freedom Christian Center, to offer shelter, life skills, a 2 year program of Christian life foundations and then job placement.

Abba House Foundation also reaches out to girls, ages 8 to 22, who are at risk of being lured into the sex industry of Asia. Some are orphaned, others are daughters of working prostitutes, most have been raped, abandoned and are unwanted. Once at risk of falling into a life of forced prostitution, they are now safe in the care of Abba House. These children are given renewed hope, their lives forever changed through love, respect and education. They go to several different school systems in Chiang Mai depending on their needs.

It is hard to even begin to imagine the horrors that these young boys and girls have had to endure. We were thrilled to learn about Abba House, because while so many ministries we have found are reaching out to help the women in Thailand, no one is tackling the tough job of working with male survivors. We are truly honored to sell the beautiful jewelry the boys are making, and to share the story of Abba House.