A Snapshot of AIM’s new Field Media Director, Andy Blalock.
“Where are all the girls?” Andy Blalock was playing with street orphans in Kampala, Uganda, on a short-term trip in 2008 when he realized there were only boys. Asking around he discovered an unthinkable reality.
“Orphaned street girls were being trafficked and exploited for sex. A deep sense of injustice was my first response. My second was that there had to be someone doing something to help these girls.”
Up to this point, Andy had traveled all over the world for humanitarian aid and mission trips. Raised in a Christian family in northern California, he had a deep personal understanding of Christ being the savior and healer of the world. This led him to pursue photography, videography and design at UC Davis, starting a career as a videographer.
“I wanted a skill that could build the Kingdom of God and tell the untold stories.”
Andy was using this skill on a short-term trip to Cambodia in 2011 when he was, again, confronted with the reality of child sex trafficking.
“The second morning I was there, I saw a four year old girl walk by with makeup and jewelry on — a strong sign that she had been exploited the night before. Her size and age hit me. I had glimpsed the severity of the problem but this was the first time the realness of it changed me. I wanted to tell HER story.”
Andy has joined Agape International Missions volunteer staff in Cambodia as our Field Media Director. In his first few months working for AIM, he has created short videos telling the story of Agape Training Center, equipped our team with gorgeous photos, and created the video that helped AIM raise the $44,000 needed for an open-heart surgery for one of our rescued girls and her teacher.
“There’s a place for everyone to make a tremendous difference in the war on sex trafficking,” says Andy. “I took the young ladies at the neighboring massage parlor to their first movie in a theater and it was in 3-D! They had so much fun laughing and jumping out of the way of the 3-D effects. But what truly has been impacting them is having a man who loves them like Jesus does just spending time with them. Men and women, rich and poor, whatever your education or skill, everyone can give something important.”
When asked whether serving with AIM was worth it he replies, “It’s easy to fall in love with Cambodia when God’s doing so much. There’s so much joy breaking through the darkness.”
If you would like to donate to Andy Blalock as a volunteer missionary with AIM, send a check to his home church with his name in the memo line: Good Shepherd Lutheran Church 1180 Lynwood Dr Novato, CA 94947