FBR REPORT: Lahu Relief Team Leader, Kyar Shell, Dies During a Humanitarian Relief Mission in Shan State, Burma.
Shan State, Burma
10 July, 2012

Lahu team leader Kyar Shell with his wife and son

 

On 3 July 2012, Kyar Shell, FBR Lahu relief team leader, died of liver failure
while on a mission helping his people. He leaves behind his wife and young son.
He is loved and will be missed by his family, his team and the people he died
serving.

Kyar Shell was a dedicated leader of one the Lahu FBR relief teams. He joined
FBR in 2004 and served with great dedication until he passed away. Kyar Shell
was a pioneering Lahu team leader leading the first Lahu team in a very challenging
and dangerous area of Shan State. His efforts resulted in saved lives and needed
relief for thousands of Lahu and Shan people. He was a calm, humble man with
keen insight and compassion. He was a man of action who took great risks to
help people in need and never sought fame or glory. He was a servant of man
and God and we learned much of humility, patience and perseverance from him.

Kyar Shell with IDPs while on a relief mission

One time an inter-ethnic dispute broke out and he was falsely blamed. Instead
of fighting for his rights, he calmly explained the situation, respectfully
listened to his adversary and apologized for the way the misunderstanding occurred.
He apologized because he knew that even though he was not guilty, the perception
was that he was and that emotions were too high then for a self-defense. He
was the kind of person who kept the bigger picture in mind and was willing to
be wronged in order to keep the mission going. He knew that his real judge is
God and that in time the truth would be borne out. In this case, his humility
and lack of defensiveness caused his adversaries to calm down and eventually
see the truth and then apologize to him.

With his ability to see many points of view, his thinking the best of others,
his humility, and his perseverance in his main mission, he is an example that
has inspired us all. We thank God for him and look forward to seeing him in
Heaven. We pray for his wife, son and family and are sad that we do not have
him here with us. We know that he is irreplaceable, and we will do our best
to help his family in this time. We will try to serve as he did, with love,
humility and steady persistence.

Thank you and may God bless you,

David Eubank and the Free Burma Rangers

 

Kyar Shell giving medicine to IDPs while on a mission