Naw Gay’s Story

5 June

 Naw Gay is a 26-year-old community healthcare worker who served in the conflict zones of Burma. On March 8, she was hiding in a trench with two friends during an airstrike near active fighting in Northern Karen State. A firebomb struck their position. Her two friends were killed. Naw Gay survived—but with devastating injuries.

She suffered severe burns to her face, head, arms, and legs. It took five days—and the coordination of several organizations—to get her from the jungle to a hospital in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Over the next ten weeks, she underwent multiple surgeries and skin grafts. Some of those grafts failed. She still cannot close her eyelids or her mouth which will have serious implications until addressed. She still cannot eat or walk on her own. The hospital in Chiang Mai has done all it can. She has been transferred to Mae Sariang and our team is visiting her every day. Her care now requires advanced reconstructive surgery and long-term rehabilitation.

This morning, June 5, a team of plastic surgeons in Singapore reviewed her case. They are willing to take her on, and are working to minimize their own fees as much as possible. One of the doctors believes they can help her get immigration clearance to enter Singapore on humanitarian grounds. But getting her there—and covering even the reduced costs—is still a significant challenge. The estimated cost is $50,000 USD. We are also pursuing secondary options here in Thailand, in case we’re unable to get her to Singapore.

Naw Gay is one of us—a healthcare worker injured while serving others in Burma. If someone asked me, “Who is your neighbor—the one you’re called to love as yourself?” I would have to include Naw Gay. She has walked our same path. Her need is undeniable.

In seconds, her life was shattered by fire. Though she cannot speak because of the tracheostomy, her clear, quiet eyes—peering out from behind a thick mask of bandages—communicate well enough: “Help me live.” With a gentle nod, she agreed to let us share her story and the photos that accompany it.

We’ll be reaching out to everyone we can—friends, organizations, anyone who might help us stand with Naw Gay in this struggle.

How do you define a neighbor? If I’ve read Jesus right… when love demands a response—that’s when a neighbor is born.

Luke 10:25-37

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?” He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live. …. A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers …. ”

Dr. Mitch Ryan

Dr. Mitch has spent most of his professional medical career working internationally alongside his wife Caryl, a licensed nurse. Together they have launched initiatives focused on providing excellent and innovative healthcare in regions of the world where quality medical care is limited. From 1995 - 2005, they founded and operated the Gilgit Eye Hospital in Northern Pakistan. From 2005 - 2025, they supported a medic training program for the Karen people in Myanmar and in 2015 established the Earth Mission Physician Associate training program in Myanmar in order to increase the number of competent healthcare providers in the area.

Dr. Mitch enjoys working with a team of professionals dedicated to serving people and teaching others how to do the same. He has a bachelor’s degree in Biology from Wheaton College and received his MD from Wayne State School of Medicine. He completed his residency in Family Medicine In Bristol TN. In 2023, he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Ulster University. Dr. Mitch maintains active U.S. medical licenses in Arkansas and Oklahoma.

Ultimately, Dr. Mitch is driven by his faith in Jesus Christ, in the spirit of Isaiah 58:6: “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?” To be a Christian is to be the hands and feet of Jesus. To love is to sacrifice.

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