I meet people like Mrs. Somphos very often. Mrs. Somphos is one of the HIV-positive residents living in a small village in the Kampong Chhnang province. She had three daughters, but the oldest child died when she was nine months old. The remaining two girls are named Satiya and Shivay. Five-year-old Satiya is HIV-positive and one-year-old Shivay has not yet been tested. The staff and I met Mrs. Somphos and her family in 2006 when her husband was very sick, and no one in the village was willing to help them.

This is her story: I give thanks to Samaritan’s Purse staff who came to visit my family and me. Before I met them, my life was miserable, and no one wanted to visit us. Everyone was afraid of my family. They wouldn’t let us use the well for water, and they wouldn’t even sell anything to me at the market. My family felt very bad.

My pastor and church members did not welcome us when we went to church. My husband and I were very discouraged and stopped going to church. We were very sad because everyone ignored us—our family, friends, community, and church members. We lived a hopeless life, and we gave up on the Lord. Our faith was very weak. We did not believe God any more because we were sick, and God did not help us.

Then in 2006, a Samaritan’s Purse team came to my village and conducted training at my church. After the training, they accompanied the pastor and church members to my home. They visited us once a week and helped us with our physical needs.

Before my church met with Samaritan’s Purse, they discriminated against my family. They said we were bad people. They were afraid we would bring the disease to their family. They did not understand how HIV is transmitted.

But after they were trained by Samaritan’s Purse, their attitude changed a lot. They were not afraid to come and visit my family as well as other HIV-positive people in our community. The pastor and church members are always helping us now. My husband and I have renewed our faith in the Lord, and we go to church again. We go to church every Sunday, and the church members welcome us.