Free The Oppressed
Free The Oppressed
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About this organization
Mission
Free the Oppressed (FTO) supports the work of the Free Burma Rangers (FBR), which is a multi-ethnic humanitarian service movement working to bring help, hope and love to people in the conflict zones of Burma, Iraq, and Sudan. Working in conjunction with local ethnic pro-democracy groups, FBR trains, supplies, and later coordinates with what become highly mobile multipurpose relief teams. After training these teams provide critical emergency medical care, shelter, food, clothing and human rights documentation in their home regions.
About
Burma Ministries - We have 92 FBR teams in Burma and performed 57 missions in 2018, treating more than 59,000 patients with medicine, and resulted in over 35 web reports about the situation in Burma. We performed Good Life Club (GLC) programs all over Burma, sharing the gospel by sharing the message that "Good life comes from God." To tell them the gospel story through GLC bracelets, to pray with them, and to remind them they are not forgotten by God or by the international community can bring healing. As the Burma Army continues its attacks in the ethnic areas of Burma, the Good Life Club (GLC) is now more important than ever. Burma has been divided for more than 70 years and, while the government has attempted to broker peace with the ethnic groups, the predatory attacks of the military at the same time belie the sincerity of these peacemaking overtures. The focus of the GLC is to show God's love to the children in conflict areas. Through spiritual dramas, songs, games, and other activities, GLC counselors spend time with the children and show them that, even though their lives don't always feel very stable, they are not alone. Inspired by John 10:10, where Jesus promises abundant life, the GLC believes that promise is true even for these children and strives to share this life with children everywhere they go. In February 2018 we went to Kachin State, Burma, where we, together with an FBR Kachin team, completed a mission to internally displaced people (IDPs) hiding in high, cold mountains. The people had fled their villages and, for safety, established their camps in these remote areas. We drove far over broken roads to reach these families, many of whom lacked warm clothes; we saw many red-cheeked children, barefoot, cold, with running noses. When we gathered them for a program in a big field close to one of the schools, they all crowded together, shivering. Their faces looked serious and suspicious. We thought, "Children are not supposed to worry about anything, but these children are worried that they will freeze or starve, and they might not even trust us." In Matthew 11:29-30, Jesus says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." This might be easier said than done, especially as an IDP, when there are so many things to worry about. But Jesus promises to carry our burdens and take our worries and we believe He speaks to the children as well. They shouldn't have to worry about things like clothing, food, or the Burma Army. This is one of the reasons we do GLC: to show them love, joy and to give them an opportunity to just be children. We also conducted our annual Ethnic Unity, Leadership and Relief Team Training and celebrated our 21st anniversary of FBR's existence. On 27 December 2018, 137 new rangers comprising 28 teams, and 40 advanced rangers, stood at attention on the drill field of FBR's Tah U Wah Training Camp in Karen State, to be honored for completing the Free Burma Ranger Servant Leadership and Relief Team Training. This was the end of more than two months of training that had begun on this same field with opening ceremonies on 15 October 2018. This year, students came from nine different organizations and five different ethnic groups. Arakan, Kachin, Karen, Karenni and Shan organizations all sent men and women to be trained. There are three requirements for FBR team members: 1) They must be literate in at least one language, to be able to send out reports. 2) They must have the physical and moral courage to be able to do physically hard and dangerous missions, and cannot run away from the enemy if the villagers they are helping cannot run. 3) They must do this work for love; they are not paid by FBR. On arriving at camp, many students find themselves next to others who they, either because of ethnicity or organization, would normally be in conflict with. But the training forces them to work together and the spirit of love that the teaching is founded on often breaks down these conflicts. One Shan ranger, after finishing the 'ranger run,' in which the whole camp of some 180 people together run up and over the mountain, help each other ford the river and return to the field for pushups, exclaimed, "I feel like I've gained a new family! So many new brothers and sisters!" Just before graduation ceremonies, five rangers were baptized. Four were new graduates and one was one of the founding members of FBR. The teams are then divided into five groups to complete follow-on relief missions, together with their instructors. They will have an opportunity to practice their new skills on a real mission but with instructors and experienced rangers available for further coaching and feedback. Once finished with the mission, they will return to their home areas, ready to conduct missions there. They will have learned and practiced many new skills to be able to help their people in many kinds of crises, as well as having gained new relationships across ethnic lines. Both these skills and relationships will be of vital importance as Burma and her people move into an uncertain future. The greatest benefit students walk away with is a strengthened heart that knows what it is to be loved. New FBR teams are routinely field-tested on various skills throughout the course of the training. During training exercises, they visit a series of stations that are scattered in the jungle surrounding the training camp. The exercise must be completed without food or sleep and not using trails. Besides being an opportunity to practice specific skills, it is designed to push the rangers beyond what they think they can do, and teach them to never surrender. They are encouraged to pray, and ask God's help as they go. At this year's training, five rangers asked to be baptized as they came to the end of training. In 2018, the Jungle School of Medicine-Kawthoolei (JSMK) trained 19 medics, four interns, and five second-year students. By combining training and patient care, the Jungle School of Medicine Kawthoolei (JSMK) is able to serve the needs of sick Karen patients both now and in the future. Over its nine years, JSMK has trained 150 medics. Students train for 15 months, including initial FBR team and leadership training, two month-long missions, and 11 months of on-campus classes and clinical rotations. If they pass their foundations examination, they carry on for the remainder of training, which combines patient care and didactic activities in the classroom. The JSMK campus provided healthcare for 13 villages within a day's walk from the clinic. JSMK cared for 229 inpatients and 1826 outpatients. This year 19 patients were referred to a more advanced medical care and 22 patients came back for follow-up care. One such patient, Naw Moo Nay Dah, came to JSMK in June. She was 2 months old, small, weak, and croupy. Born with a cleft palate, she had difficulty nursing and so was malnourished with a compromised immune system. She was referred out to a neighboring country, where we partnered with another organization that focuses on cleft-palate patients to have the necessary surgery. Surgery was successfully performed three months after her initial JSMK visit. The JSMK team provides vaccinations to seven surrounding villages. Every vaccination visit also includes deworming, vitamin supplementation, water and toilet infrastructure development and maintenance, and village health education. We also partnered with others to build two playgrounds and a school near JSMK. At our Cross Border Clinic we examined over 400 patients and provided or promised over 200 glasses, 15 hearing aids were dispensed, and 80 surgical cases were performed including four glaucoma, three removal of blind painful eyes, four strabismus, and the rest advanced cataracts 20/100 or worse. In 2018, JSMK made several improvements: the size of the in-patient ward was doubled from 6 to 12 beds; a brick-maker was purchased and construction of a new, brick lab building begun; the solar power system was finished, and the bridge, which was washed out in extreme flooding, was replaced. Despite its remote, off-grid location, JSMK offers a variety of ancillary and diagnostic services, including: Ultrasonography, X- rays, Simple laboratory testing (hematocrit, urinalysis, pregnancy testing, blood typing and crossmatching, sedimentation rate and rapid diagnostic testing for malaria, HIV, Hepatitis B), Microscopy for malaria, tuberculosis, white cell count, and gram stain, and EKG.
Interesting data from their 2020 990 filing
The non-profit's aim, as indicated in the filing, is “To support, encourage, and facilitate the loving and saving gospel of jesus christ while working and helping people of different religions and creeds; (continued in notes)”.
When referring to its functions, they were specified as: “To support, encourage, and facilitate the loving and saving gospel of jesus christ while working and helping people of different religions and creeds; (continued in notes)”.
- The non-profit has reported their operating state as CO, as required by law.
- As stated in the filing, the non-profit's address in 2020 was PO Box 60972, Colorado Springs, CO, 80906.
- The non-profit's form reports a total of 1 employees as of 2020.
- Does not operate a hospital.
- Does not operate a school.
- Does not collect art.
- Does not provide credit counseling.
- Has foreign activities.
- Is not a donor-advised fund.
- Is not a private foundation.
- Expenses are greater than $1,000,000.
- Revenue is greater than $1,000,000.
- Revenue less expenses is $280,964.
- The CEO's salary policy within the organization is established through a review process by an impartial entity.
- The organization has a written policy that describes how long it will retain documents.
- The organization has a foreign financial account.
- The organization has 8 independent voting members.
- The organization was formed in 2015.
- The organization has a written policy that addresses conflicts of interest.
- The organization is required to file Schedule B.
- The organization is required to file Schedule J.
- The organization is required to file Schedule O.
- The organization pays $115,384 in salary, compensation, and benefits to its employees.
- The organization pays $22,762 in fundraising expenses.
- The organization provides Form 990 to its governing body.
- The organization has minutes of its meetings.
- The organization has a written whistleblower policy.
- The organization's financial statements were reviewed by an accountant.