Thursday, February 3, 2011 Posted in Updates
By the picture you can tell we’re in the mountain village with our new friend, Dr. Tom. He has volunteered to help in the villages of Planters. Our neighbor lady to our children’s club meeting place had dental issues that required extraction. So in the middle of the street, outside of the club and beside the gristmill we set up our clinic and proceeded to see another 38 patients. In a rather public viewing, Dr. Tom got his tooth, the crowd was pleased, and she went away with less pain than she had before.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 Posted in Updates
The photo for the dentist clinic needs to be corrected. This is the photo for that post.
Monday, January 31, 2011 Posted in Updates
Today was the first time we have had the privilege of holding a dental clinic in the village. Dr. Tom Johnston from Woodstock, VT. is doing dentistry for the people of Vlashi. In a span of 4 hours he saw 30 patients for preliminary exams. Appointments for follow-up work were set up for the remainder of his time here.
Saturday, January 29, 2011 Posted in Updates
Shpresa has started a village wide Ladies Night for every Wednesday evening. Since I knew we would be here in Albania this week, I asked Shpresa if I could share a lesson with the ladies. I used the text of I Peter chapter 1 to tell the women that God had chosen them to inherit His offer of salvation and blessings which includes the living hope that we have through Jesus Christ. Just as I was beginning the lesson, the lights went out. This isn’t something completely foreign in a village of Albania. It was just that I mentally hadn’t prepared for this situation and what my plan would be. A quick prayer of “help” was said and the evening progressed by the flickering light of the candles. The message of salvation never goes unchallenged in a world filled with darkness. The message couldn’t have been more clearly presented that evening, and with or without electricity, the Spirit will use that message to reach the chosen.
Saturday, January 8, 2011 Posted in Updates
Here are some photos of the Christmas program for the children in Vlashi. Many thanks to Arjan, Mersin, Genti, Shpresa and Mandi for their help in presenting the Christmas story with the villagers.
Sunday, December 12, 2010 Posted in Updates
It is so much fun to work with the ladies in the village that are making greeting cards to bring in a little more income for their families. For the past several weeks they were working hard on making Christmas cards. If anyone is interested in buying any of these cards, just respond to this notice and I will send them to you ASAP. They sell for $1.50 apiece.
Sunday, December 12, 2010 Posted in Updates
We have finished up our time for now in Albania. It is always mixed emotions for us to pack up the suitcases for the return trip to Illinois. We were able to get most of the “to do list” completed. The trip home never gets any shorter. It was late Thursday (or better yet, early Friday morning) when we arrived in Green Valley. It was a big contrast from the balmy 65 degree temps we had in Tirana to the snow we came home to in Peoria. Right now, we will be going back towards the end of January. We have several guests coming and have some exciting things planned for January and February.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010 Posted in Updates
Road Runner
Or I should say, “Slider”. The path from the club to the village school is a 45 degree walkway for cows and shepherds that winds between mountain bushes. One of the many perils of not being a shepherd or a said beast with four legs is being an American with only two legs because without a doubt the American will fall and…enough said. I’ve included pictures of the children’s descent from school to our kid’s club meeting and then another picture of the aftermath of my descent with gravity. Other than the mud, I had to succumb to the jesting and laughter of the men at the bottom of the hill. The men were gracious enough to clean my stains from both mud and pride (much like the new TSA clearance rules for traveling). In this case it pays to be a cow.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010 Posted in Updates
Not always does modern technology smile friendly on “the older techie”s of this world. In fact, we were held hostage by the internet earlier during our stay in Albania. But thankfully, after much effort and attempts, we have been able to access the “outer world” and even to have a business conference call yesterday. We are making plans for hosting an event which will be over Valentine’s weekend for Albanian pastors. We are very excited and are looking forward to stepping out of our usual role. The photo shows David, Genti and Shpresa talking to Len and Lynne Benson along with David Lind, the pastor of Calvary Bible Church of Rutland, VT.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010 Posted in Updates
This photo goes along with the post of “Rainy Days”. Pictured with David and Sarah are Tom Guengerich and Anne Schneider from Manito, Illinois.
by sarah
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