They say a picture is worth a thousand words. If that is true then Kirsten Belloni has millions of words to her credit. As a teacher and professional photographer, Mrs. Belloni has captured countless breathtaking images over the years of almost anything you can imagine. As the yearbook teacher at Grace Christian School for a decade, it was my privilege to publish her photos year after year as she captured the memories of our outgoing seniors with the skills of a master. However, during the 2013-2014 school year, God had a much different plan for the Belloni family that would give Kirsten an entirely new realm of memories to capture. That realm in one word was: Cambodia.
Grace Christian School conducts an annual mission trip to Cambodia each summer, and Kirsten remembers the seed for her participation being planted when former superintendent, Nate Davis, went and came back and shared his experience. The next year Mr. Davis asked who would be willing to go on a missionary trip to Cambodia the following summer. As Kirsten related with a laugh, “Mr. Davis asked, ‘So are you still interested in going?’ and I said, ‘Yeah, yeah, we’re still interested,’ and he said, ‘Great! You’re going!’” Ultimately, it felt like Cambodia chose them and not the other way around.
The first trip lasted for two weeks, and then the next year, for their second go around, the Bellonis received a challenge from long term Cambodian missionary Mark Bouman. He said simply, “You know, you could do more here.” So answering that challenge, the Bellonis decided to stay an additional two weeks after the school team left and do some professional development with the Cambodian teachers. Kirsten recalls, “I remember standing at the airport watching the team leave and thinking, ‘I don’t want to stay here by myself!’” Needless to say, staying behind in an unfamiliar culture for any length of time would have been daunting for anyone, but the Lord wasn’t done stretching the Bellonis yet.
The wedding plans of the Bellonis’ son Wayland and soon to be daughter-in-law Brandy, prevented them for returning for the regular school trip the following summer, so they decided to plan their own two week trip. However, soon that trip stretched to a few more weeks – the summer – and finally the conclusion came, “Why don’t we just stay for the whole year!” This decision came with some sacrifices; their house had to be sold, along with many possessions. They also conducted a support letter writing campaign. It wasn’t hard to begin to see Christ’s faithfulness as everything came together, and as Kirsten explained perhaps the biggest blessing came in seeing her husband’s heart grow toward Cambodia. Though he had always considered Alaska his mission field, God opened his heart to the peoples of Cambodia. That in and of itself was a tremendous affirmation that they were standing solidly in His will.
After a summer in the American South with friends, Mr. and Mrs. Belloni finally made it to Cambodia in October 2013. They would be working with two specific organizations – Asian Hope and the local Assemblies of God Church in Phnom Penh, the Cambodian capital. Both organizations have school projects, and the Assemblies of God has an orphanage. The Bellonis would spend the majority of their time traveling and serving with these various projects. While in the capital, they worked primarily with the Logos School, and most of their work focused on professional development – especially biblical integration, an essential component in any Christian school.
Now, you simply cannot call something a Belloni experience if there is not a camera involved somewhere, so I had to ask, “How did you come to know and appreciate the Cambodian culture through the lens of your camera?” One of the key things that God already knew about Kirsten was how much her camera helps open her up to people. As she relates, “I tend to be shy toward people…but when I have a camera in my hand, and I want a picture of something, I’m much more forward.” The Bellonis began simply by taking pictures of the people in their neighborhood and then God gave them the idea to print the pictures and take them back to the people they had photographed. The message was clear – “I saw you. I noticed you. I care about you. I think you’re valuable and beautiful.” This turned into the perfect opportunity to build relationships and to share the love of Christ.
Christ is so amazingly faithful, but naturally the Bellonis encountered challenges along the way. As Kirsten explained, possibly the greatest challenge was not being able to immediately have whatever they wanted. The American mindset of if I don’t have it, I’ll run to the store and get it, simply didn’t translate into Cambodian life. No mail, limited grocery options, and other Third World limitations took some definite getting used to. And, of course, of equal difficulty was being on the literal other side of the world from family. Kirsten lost her mother unexpectedly only five days before they left for Cambodia, and that combined with the prolonged separation from other family made for some very tough times while in the field.
Even so, the best and greatest family anyone could ask for, Christ, was right by their sides the entire time, and the Bellonis had the chance to see him Glorified in amazing ways! Many of the relationships they formed seemed predestined by Christ – including one with Ryan, a music teacher, with a direct connection to Nate Davis back in Alaska. It was also encouraging to see the Cambodians’ hearts for teaching, and how much they wanted to do it for Him. It is the Bellonis’ hope that Christ will continue to be glorified in the relationships they formed while in Cambodia and continue to develop even now with the help of technology. My final question for the Bellonis was, “What advice would you give to someone considering service in the foreign mission field?” Kirsten, of course, said, “Just do it.” But then her daughter, Heaven, broke in with perhaps the most profound advice I have ever heard, “People say I don’t have time or can’t afford it, but you can’t put a price on eternal life! Even if one person finds the Lord, that’s worth every penny you spend.” Who could possibly argue with that?
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Copyright © 2015 David Scott Fields II. All Rights Reserved.
