IMPACT STORY - Featured in Word of Life Magazine Summer 2025Huong: Three Days to Reach Camp
This piece centers on Huong, a 17-year-old in Vietnam whose determination to attend camp gives readers a personal way into the wider work of Word of Life. The accompanying samples show how the same story can serve as an email, a sponsor update, and a short social post.
Featured Story
Three Days to Reach Camp
How one teenager’s determination became part of a larger story of faith in Vietnam.
For three days, 17-year-old Huong gathered snails from a mountain stream in Vietnam. Each day, she carried them back down the mountain to sell. She earned $1.20 per kilogram, working toward one goal: getting to camp.
A local volunteer had told Huong about a Word of Life camp, and she was eager to attend. Missionaries Tuan and Rose were able to offer her a full scholarship. But one expense remained: transportation.
Huong set out to earn the fare herself. After three days of gathering and selling snails, she had enough to make the trip.
On the first night of camp, she accepted Christ.
An opportunity to hear—and respond
For Tuan and Rose, reaching young people in Vietnam meant creating opportunities for them to hear the good news of Jesus. Through gospel skits, English camps, and youth camp, they introduced students to the gospel and invited them to respond.
Huong’s story was one of several accounts of young people responding to that invitation. A student who described himself as an atheist still asked for prayer. Another camper, also 17, returned with a growing desire to serve Christ.
“At my first WOL camp, I asked the Lord to forgive my sins and give me eternal life,” she shared. “At this second camp, I want to give my life to serve Him. I want to be a missionary someday.”
Reaching their generation
Tuan found encouragement in the words of Word of Life founder Jack Wyrtzen: “It is the responsibility of every generation to reach their generation for Christ.”
For Tuan and Rose, that responsibility took shape in local ministry: organizing events, welcoming young people, and making camp accessible through opportunities such as Huong’s scholarship.
Her journey began with an invitation from a volunteer. A scholarship helped open the way, and Huong worked for three days to cover the remaining distance. On the first night, the young woman who had been so eager to reach camp responded to the message she heard there.
Supporter Email
Subject: Three days of work. One trip to camp.
Alternate subject: How Huong found her way to camp
Preview text: A scholarship covered camp. Huong worked for three days to earn the transportation fare.
Dear friend,
Huong had a place at camp. She still needed a way to get there.
After hearing about a Word of Life camp from a local volunteer, the 17-year-old in Vietnam was eager to attend. Missionaries Tuan and Rose offered her a full scholarship, but she needed to cover her transportation.
For three days, Huong gathered snails from a mountain stream and carried them down to sell. At $1.20 per kilogram, she earned enough to make the trip.
On the first night of camp, she accepted Christ.
Her story offers a personal glimpse of the ministry Tuan and Rose described in Vietnam: inviting young people to hear the gospel through skits, English camps, and youth camp.
Another 17-year-old camper, returning for a second time, shared a new hope for her future: “I want to be a missionary someday.”
We invite you to read Huong’s story and pray for the young people it introduces. Pray that those who have trusted Christ will grow in their faith, and that the team will have wisdom as they serve their communities.
[Button: Read Huong’s story]
Thank you for taking time to learn about this ministry and bring these young people before the Lord.
With gratitude,
[Approved sender name]
[Approved ministry or team name]
A Place at Camp. A Step of Faith.
Dear [Partner name],
Thank you for your partnership. We want to share a story from Vietnam that offers a glimpse of what an opportunity to attend camp can mean to a young person.
When 17-year-old Huong heard about a Word of Life camp, she wanted to go. Missionaries Tuan and Rose offered her a full scholarship, but she still needed money for transportation.
Huong spent three days gathering snails from a mountain stream and selling them for $1.20 per kilogram. She earned enough for the trip—and on the first night of camp, she accepted Christ.
Her story brings together several parts of this ministry: a local volunteer’s invitation, a scholarship, and a young person’s determination to attend. It also gives us a specific reason to pray.
Please join us in praying for Huong to grow in her faith, for other young people hearing the gospel, and for Tuan and Rose as they serve in Vietnam.
Thank you for staying connected to this work and to the people at its heart.
With gratitude,
[Approved sender name]
[Approved ministry or team name]
Sponsor Update
Short Social
A scholarship gave Huong a place at camp. She spent three days gathering and selling snails to earn the transportation fare.
On the first night, the 17-year-old accepted Christ.
Read her story from Vietnam and join us in praying for the young people and ministry leaders it introduces.
[Story link]