About 4,000 Christian evangelicals from 100 countries descended on Pattaya for music and social work under restrictions against trying to convert local Buddhists.
The Sept. 2-8 Youth With a Mission Together convention was based at the Ambassador City Hotel in Najomtien, supported by the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau, local Rotary clubs and Pattaya Sports Club.
The highlight of the confab was the Sept. 5 Christian music concert at Bali Hai Pier. Roads around the venue were closed from 1 p.m. until midnight.
The youths also spread out in the community with events at Central Festival Pattaya Beach and Pattaya School No. 5.
At the school they were joined by Vutikorn Kamolchote, president of the Rotary Club of Jomtien, which sponsored a donation of 100 textbooks to students in grades 4-6.
The youths also taught English and organized games.
The evangelical group got support from the TCEB and Pattaya City Hall, which provided the venue and security, on condition that, during the entire week, the missionaries didn’t distribute literature aimed at converting Thai Buddhists to Christianity.
The youths also had to sit for a lesson from the Evangelical Fellowship of Thailand on local customs, respect for religion and taboo behavior.
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