Ruthie and I are members in the Evangelical Covenant Church and have worked in rural agriculture and community development in Laos and Thailand for more than 20 Years. For 3 + years we served as as "Asia Regional Coordinators". Then, from the start of 2013 we lived and worked in Vientiane. Since Oct. 2021 when we returned to the States, after 18 years in Laos and 10 years in Thailand, we are living in Atlanta, GA, and make regular trips to visit churches and friends in Thailand and Laos.
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Background
1992. We found ourselves in a small town in northwest Laos, the first “good Americans” (said the local Communist authorities) to live and work there since the early 1960’s. For six years we contended with muddy tracks masquerading as roads and communication in Lao with tribal minorities who barely spoke it--a project to facilitate progress towards more sustainable agriculture and livelihoods. The government's objective was to stop “slash-and-burn agriculture”. Ours was to express God's love through practical development.
While we obeyed the government's warnings against being involved in "religious activity", we did not hold back from speaking about God's love to those God brought across our path. We enlisted churches back home to pray. We narrowed the geographical focus of our development work so we could spend more time with people and less time traveling. After six years we ready to try something new. Much good community development work was accomplished, along with some failures. We made plans to return to Laos as a business because we felt that was what was needed to bring sustainable development over the long term. We applied to the Lao government to establish Friend of the Upland Farmer Co.
FUF Co. became a reality in 1999. We worked for 8 more years in the same area of northwest Laos. By the end of that time, FUF Co. had reached many of its goals: it was profitable for the last 4 years and had brought market-oriented agriculture to 1,500+ families in 50 villages of 3 different districts. By promoting many new crops--cardamom, corn, and soybean--it provided sustainable incomes for many villages.
But from 2005 on FUF Co. was in trouble with Laos’ security apparatus. From no known believers in 1991, the Luang Namtha church had grown to more than 900, leading authorities to attribute much of this to the presence of foreigners such as the Duttons. This mirrored the growth of the church throughout Laos—now numbering more than 50,000 believers. Operating freely in the capital of Vientiane, the Lao Evangelical Church is heavily suppressed in outlying provinces. At the end of 2007 the government withdrew FUF’s license to invest and we were given a few months to wind up and sell the company assets. After more than 16 years in Laos, we made plans to re-join the Covenant team in Thailand.
In Thailand once again, we asked for permission to establish another agricultural business that would be a platform for agricultural development, training, and discipleship. Since 2009 we have built “Mekong Valley Foods Co.” and have made trips into Laos. The assets of FUF have morphed into two agricultural companies owned by Lao who are carrying on the agricultural work. Funds realized from the sale were re-invested in Thailand.
In June 2010 when Ruthie & I agreed to be the Covenant’s Regional Coordinators for Asia. With a capable Thai and expatriate team managing MVF Co., we feel released to bring encouragement to workers in Covenant-related ministries throughout Asia: India, Bangladesh, China, Thailand, Laos, Japan, Taiwan, and the Philippines.
After 3 years as RC's for the Covenant, we made the move back to Laos in early 2013. Living in Vientiane, we worked on two projects: Building a tilapia hatchery outside of Vientiane and building an organic silk and soybean project in a new area of Laos.
Oct. 29, 2014 we returned to Laos after 4 months in the U.S. With a visa issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we assumed we would be allowed entry into the country to continue our work. But I was refused at the border. As of Dec. 1, 2014 we shifted focus to Roi Et province in northeast (Issaan) Thailand. Since Oct. 2021 when we returned to the States, after 18 years in Laos and 10 years in Thailand, we have lived in Atlanta, GA, where we can visit our grandchildren, and make regular trips to visit churches and friends in Thailand and Laos.
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I, Peter, was born to missionary parents (Vietnam) and experienced early the benefits of a loving home with parents dedicated to serving Christ. After a pilgrimage in which I alternately embraced and rejected Christ’s claims on my life, I finally committed to following Christ after college. Ruthie says, "Even though I grew up in a missionary home in Pakistan, I couldn't envision myself as a fervent evangelist like my father. But eventually, God matured and expanded my idea of what it meant to serve him and I said ‘yes’ to Him.”
Education:
Peter: BA from Cal State University, Northridge (History, 1979) and his MA from Fuller Seminary (Inter-Cultural Studies, 1988).
Ruth: BA from UCLA (English Literature, 1981). Certificated in Spiritual Direction @ North Park Seminary, completed July, 2013. Peter and Ruthie both completed orientation classes at North Park Seminary IN Chicago, IL (1988).
We are members of Pasadena Covenant Church in Pasadena, California. Our children are married and living in Colorado and California.
Birthdays:
Peter--July 28, 1955
Ruth—January 29, 1959
Anniversary: August 25, 1979
Peter--July 28, 1955
Ruth—January 29, 1959
Anniversary: August 25, 1979
