Love and Kisses

A family wedding brought us back to the States for a visit. The above picture is Steve with his brother Dave. It is nice to be with family again. Jetlag slowed us down some, yet we were able to stay awake for all the wedding events. Aleen (Steve’s niece) was a beautiful bride and the wedding was fabulous.

It is amazing how quickly one forgets driving directions and standard routines, such as the questions at the supermarket check out. “Do you want paper or plastic?” “Do you need ice or stamps today?” “Ok, just slide your card through.” Hummm, what was our pin code again? We survived; however, our brains had much slower processing speed.

Arizona weather is wonderful, and we are looking forward to our visit next week to California. We will visit Joni and Friends International Disability Center as well as participate in a conference.

Right now we are staying with Kristi’s brother and able to see our dog Lucy who lives with him.

Bob, Buziaş, and Blessing

Bob standing on the drivers side of his British Landrover

Bob Sumner is a British man with a long history in Romania. We met him through our involvement with a ministry situated just north of Timisoara called River of Life. There situated in a small village called Cornesti, is a storage building for medical equipment donated from England to Romania. He has repeated bringing a trailer full of medical equipment to Romania each year ministering to those in need. We are now partnering with Bob and River of Life bringing blessings to those in need of the loving hand of Christ.

The equipment and trailer Bob brought

Last week Kristi and I had the opportunity to travel along with Bob and two others from England to Buziaş, another village east of Timişoara. There we met Alena, a Romanian woman that has developed a lasting friendship with Bob.

Our Visit with Alena

Alena suffers from paralysis after a tragic car accident. Prior to this visit she asked if it would be possible to be transported to her mother's gravesite. With the help of ramps that Bob supplied and the use our minivan together we were able to transport her.

Watch the video of getting Alena into our van.

Spending time with Bob and his friend here in Romania has been a blessing to us and one in which we have been personally touched to see God’s provisions.

Imagine

Imagine what it would be like to have been born with a disability, have an accident, or condition that is serious enough to cause difficulties moving without help. Now imagine that you have no wheelchair, walker or adaptive equipment to help. You are constantly dependant on another person’s help. All around the world there are people who live their lives only within their homes. To go outside would involve someone carrying them.

A few weeks ago we met Ivan and his wife. A Christian doctor suggested we meet them to see if we could help get them a wheelchair. Over the phone and in person, Ivan’s wife was full of life and greeted us with a huge smile. She led us up the bloc apartment building, into their apartment, and into a living room where Ivan was laying on a sleeper sofa. He also greeted us with a smile and a healthy hand shake. Romanians are well known for their warm hospitality and this family, even with Ivan’s illness, exemplified this as well. After measuring and speaking with them, Steve was able to explain and show some exercises to help strengthen his body.

We returned a few days later to deliver a wheelchair and a bedside commode. After transferring Ivan into the wheelchair he demonstrated his ability to use it well, and then he high tailed it through the hall and into his kitchen, where he looked out the window to the scene below.

His wife offered us all coffee and fruit and we talked about the last time he was able to be in that room of their apartment. It had been six months since his return from the hospital and that whole time he had spent his time confined to the one room, the living room.
What a joy and a blessing to meet this couple and to be apart of God’s plan.

GEM Annual Conference 2007

Worship at Conference

Every year the missionaries with Greater Europe Mission gather for an annual conference. Last week we participated in this year’s conference in Sopron, Hungary.

Steve and I were refreshed and encouraged by other Missionaries throughout Europe. The guest speaker was Kalevi Lehtinen who was born in Finland. He has worked with Campus Crusade for Christ, and has headed up evangelistic outreaches in several European countries.

This conference held two celebrations. The first occurred on Monday evening. It was for our current president, Ted Noble and his wife Lynn. This was a wonderful banquet celebrating not only his leadership, but also gave recognition to past leaders. Ted announced at last year’s conference that he felt the Lord leading him on toward something new. He asked for prayer in the search for the following president.

The second celebration was on Tuesday evening with the Installation Service for Henry Deneen, who will begin leadership on September 1st. It was a graceful change of leadership with a sense of peace, unity, and joy among all who attended.

The highlight of the week for Steve was when the Romanian team (that’s us) sang a Romanian hymn. There were eleven of us singing in four part harmony. This was a first for Steve, not only singing in harmony, following a line of music, BUT also singing in front of an audience of approximately 300 people.

Check out some of the pictures we took. A few pictures where from an afternoon outing to a Palace.

Wheels For the World - Continued.

Ligia, pictured above received her first wheelchair. The request for the wheelchair was made months ago from Ligia’s mother, Neli. She had talked with a member of a small village church which Steve and I visited at Easter. During that visit, Steve measured Ligia for a chair. We prayed that within the shipment of wheelchairs coming for the July Wheels for the World Distribution there would be something perfect for her.

Answering this prayer, God provided just the wheelchair for Ligia. At Cluj, Jenny Lotter, our friend and colleague, spotted a chair that would fit her.

On August 1, Steve, Jenny, and Kristi delivered the chair above.

Over 100 Wheelchairs Given!

Last week in Craiova, Romania, Joni & Friends – Wheels for the World had a team to distribute wheelchairs to those who needed them. Everyday around 20 individuals were given a chair that was fitted to their specific needs, sizes and shapes.

What a blessing to get a glance into the lives of those who came. Many times they were individuals with years of hurt and suffering behind them. Each person dealt with their own disability; amputation of legs, stroke, MS, CP as well as other types of disabilities.

God showed Himself as a true provider for those in need.

One lovely woman named Gina (pictured above) had been injured in the earthquake of 1979, and arrived with her teenage son who helped her move. She received a special chair for those with paralysis.

Anka, Cornelia, Alin, Ana Maria, Alex where there along with other children throughout the week. These children sat for the first time in their wheelchairs eyes twinkling and smiling with a smile that warms the heart.


This picture to the right is of Bianca with her twin sister and the therapists who helped fit her wheelchair. She stated, “This is the kind of wheelchair I have always wanted.” The therapists and mechanics (Steve & Alex) adjusted and also prepared a table to fit on her chair. The team was blessed to hear later in the week from her mother saying that Bianca was doing things she was never able to do before, such as hold crayons and color in a position comfortable to do so.


Adrian who had had one leg already amputated registered for a wheelchair two weeks prior to the distribution; however, in the intervening two weeks, his condition worsened, and he was faced with the amputation of his other leg. With clearance from his doctor, he was transported from the hospital to be fit with a wheelchair.




The man pictured below was a veteran in WWII , was not able to move around because of his illness. Now he sits crying with joy as he receives his new wheelchair and renewed independence.

The last patient fitted with a wheelchair had a doctorate in chemical engineering that traveled the world during the Communist years. He could have even moved to the United States in the 1960’s, but he chose to remain with his homeland despite the hardships.



God showed himself to be the best physician for those who came.

Celebrating One Year!

Kristi and Steve on a mountain top in Switzerland.

Now after one full year in Romania, life is beginning to be more at ease. As missionaries with Greater Europe Mission we participated in a conference specifically designed for first term missionaries. It was held in Saas Grund, Switzerland in June. What a beautiful and relaxing location to gather new GEM missionaries to debrief on the highs and lows of moving to another country. Those who attended were from Bulgaria, France, Portugal, Germany, Holland, Austria, Malta, and Romania.

Every morning we were involved in sessions dealing with culture, language, and family issues. Then each afternoon was free to take nature walks, read, or naps. The temperatures were cooler for long sleeves and a light jacket. It was refreshing, and we returned to Romania with renewed energy to face another year of expectant possibility.
Check out some of our photos.

This past weekend two of our pastors from Highlands Church in Scottsdale, AZ. came to Timisoara for a short visit. It was exciting for us to share with them our local church we attend, some city sites, our home, and neighborhood.

Steve, Pastor Les and Pastor Tyler while having some coffee and ice cream at a cafe in Union Square.