Greg and Jane Drebes, who started Refuge for the Poor (Refuge), moved to Cambodia in 2006 to serve as missionaries. While in Phnom Penh learning the language, God grew their love and compassion for the poor and allowed them to help many Cambodians to hear the good news and become followers of Jesus.

Since 2006, God has used the Drebeses to build and run multiple ministries in Phnom Penh, all of which focused on discipling Cambodians to love and follow Jesus Christ. Those ministries include: 

• A university student dormitory

• Raising up pastors and planting a church

• Establishing two factory worker housing locations (connected with one of the churches) that provided low-income rental rooms for the poor

• Purchase and reconstruct the MOTHER’S HOME, a building to house and minister to single factory worker mothers and their children

• Created a child sponsorship program that has provided intentional discipleship and supplied the education and physical needs of approximately 200 vulnerable children, teens, and college age students from across Cambodia.

In 2018, the Drebeses established Refuge for the Poor as a 501(c)(3) in the United States with the vision of seeing godly Christian leaders emerge who are dedicated to evangelizing and discipling their families and communities across Cambodia and beyond.

Through generous partners, Refuge purchased land and built the Refuge Center which opened its doors to vulnerable students in 2019. 

Currently, approximately 75 children, teens, and young adults are supported by the ministry, but God is opening doors for Refuge to expand with a second building on the property that will include staff housing, a dorm for college age boys, and space for the local church. Read more about what God is doing here.

Greg and Jane’s love and compassion in the name of Jesus has helped to open many Cambodian hearts to hear the Good News and become followers of Jesus. Their discipleship strategy is life-on-life with an emphasis on encouraging these new followers of Jesus to pass on what they have learned to others. The beautiful, caring community that grows from these leaders and their disciples truly reminds one of the early church!