Active local woman becomes YAGM

Group 236

Service is not new to Rachel Carle. She used her voice to highlight a youth perspective on the Metro D.C. Synod Council (2010-2012), and now she’s taken an opportunity to grow in faith and work hand-in-hand with brothers and sisters in Cambodia through the ELCA’s Young Adults in Global Mission (YAGM) program.

1609carleyagmCarle’s Cambodia journey is seeded by her interests and beliefs. “I grew up in King of Kings Lutheran Church in Fairfax, Virginia and as a part of the Metro D.C. Synod. This May I graduated from the University of Virginia with a Bachelor of Arts in Global Development Studies, and I have accepted the opportunity to serve in Cambodia from August 2016 through July 2017.” Her service there is anticipated to be with Life with Dignity (LWD), an autonomous Cambodian NGO localized from the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) to contribute to poverty alleviation in Cambodia through empowerment, strengthening of civil society, leadership and governance.

The total cost for one young adult in the YAGM program is $13,000. The ELCA contributes $9,000 in support per volunteer, but each young adult also needs to raise funds to support their year of service. Donations are accepted from: http://support.elca.org/goto/rachel .

This website also facilitates your sign-up for Carle’s newsletter. “I’ve decided not to tweet or blog in order to stay focused on relationship-building in Cambodia,” expressed Carle. “Just the monthly newsletter!”

Peer into ELCA YAGM resources for additional insights.

  • YAGMs in Cambodia have a Facebook presence – www.facebook.com/yagmcambodia – in addition to the general YAGM page – www.facebook.com/ELCAYAGM/ .
  • On Twitter, follow YAGM with https://twitter.com/ELCAYAGM .
  • Although the hashtag has varied users, #CamFam does help group YAGM Cambodia posts. “We are going to continue with the #, and we are confident that our consistent use will make its intention clear and will be a good way to track our group (of these amazing folks, I can’t help but say!),” specifies Jen, co-country coordinator.

See a description of the YAGM presence in Cambodia with this video published in May 2016.

And let’s keep Carle and her colleagues in prayer. “I’m so grateful to the synod for helping me get to this point,” says Carle, “and I’m excited for the year to come.”