TRIP MEETING

We have fifteen people interested in going on our trip in June and we'll meet again on January 10th. I believe that we may even have more interested. Brian Van Eps is going to try to recruit more high school and middle school students.

So, we look forward to another good sized group to minister to orphans at the Pokrov Children's Home.

We should have fun with music, games, sports, and bible lessons. We'll be encouraging kids by showing them love and letting them know that they are someone.

Russia meeting to recruit travelers

Covenant Presbyterian Church in Colorado Springs is having a meeting this Sunday at 12:15 to give potential travelers the information they need to move forward with fundraising, scheduling, and applications for passports.

The trip will take place on or about June 3rd through the 13th in 2010.

Also, Children's HopeChest has just released a new web site called HopeChest Partners. Check it out by clicking the picture on the right.

Needless to say our trip didn't happen in November

Our November trip didn't happen, but we still plan to go in early June. Our initial interest suggests that we could have as many as 20 people going.

Also, look at www.hopechest.org for an opportunity to spread the word about Children's Hopechest.

Looks like a trip in November

I plan to take a trip in November. Because this isn't our regular trip, I planned to take a small team of about five people.

For a number of reasons, we only ended up with two. So, BJ and I will likely head off to Vladimir and Pokrov in late October through early November.

Stay tuned for more information.

Friday Evening from Pokrov

We leave the orphanage in a half hour.

The day has been good with team members following up on relationships and having conversations with kids. I prayed with Karina and Galya today. They are sisters. Karina left the orphanage last year. Galya will leave in the fall.

Crafts were great.

We had chess and checkers tournament today. The Russians swept the checkers tournament. Dani tied a Russian teenager for the chess championship.

Our lesson went well, with many teenagers in attendance and the full message ended with a call to action. "What will you do?"

We leave with happiness for the way the week went, but with sadness as we will miss the kids. Karina just came by to say good-bye to me as she returns to her dorm. I am sad to see her go, but she is doing well in school. She said that the first three months in the dorm were hard, but she has adjusted. These are truly friends.

Blessings to all of you.

Thursday Morning Update from Pokrov

The past few days have seen some interesting relationships develop. We've had a lot of fun, provided meaningful lessons, and met some great kids.

Ilya has been at the orphanage for less than a month. What a friendly young boy. Don had a good conversation with him and was sad to see Ilya leave this morning for camp.

Kate developed a relationship with Misha. He left for camp this morning also.

I've been able to talk with Klara and Galya a little about where they are going next year.

One highlight is that we were able to participate in the graduation ceremony for those leaving the orphanage. There were representatives there from a major telecommunications company in Moscow. We presented each gradute with a duffle bag to use when they leave the orphanage in the fall.

We've played frisbee, marbles, soccer and a number of Russian games.

Our lessons have stimulated a number of conversations about God and what it means to know Him. We are excited to see what will happen today and tomorrow.

Continue to pray for us. Today we'll visit the lake for a picnic after our lesson.

Monday In Pokrov

We had a good flight. Everything went smoothly and most of us were able to sleep on the plane.

Sunday afternoon we drove to Pokrov and unpacked, met our translators and had a wonderful dinner. The surprise treat was that a professional choir was eating in the restaurant as well. They sang three songs while we were finishing dinner. They were amazing.

Today is almost over. Many of the kids were in Moscow for a Russian holiday. I visited Nadya's grave, which was a very emotional experience for me. Nadya committed suicide in November, and I had become very close to her over the past four and a half years. As I knelt by her grave and looked into her eyes (in the photograph on the grave), I remembered the good times and smiled, but also cried as I knew that it was really true. I would not see her again.

We played some games arranged by the orphanage's sports teacher. The Russians beat us in almost every game.

We played ultimate frisbee and even got some of the girls to play with us.

We also managed to get in our program of a Bible lesson and some Russian praise songs. All of the kids who were here at the orphanage participated. I have to go now as the bus just pulled up. I'll try to update you tomorrow.

It's really happening, we leave in the morning.

Russia Trip Prayers

As you have an opportunity to be in prayer during this next week, I would ask that you might include some or all of this list for myself and our team. Blessings and many thanks!

Please pray that:

All team members arrive on time and safely to the airport tomorrow morning.

All items of necessity will be remembered and packed.

All of our checked luggage goes safely through with the Vacation Bible School materials, crafts, games, t-shirts, musical instruments, etc.

Flights will be on time, weather will be good for travel, and that the team will be safe both going and coming home.

All team members will get good rest on the flight from Atlanta to Moscow.

There will be no turbulence on any part of the flight both going and coming home. (For those of us who are not fond of bouncing around in the air!) :o)

Those meeting us in Moscow will have safe travel, arrive on time, and be well rested. (our Russian team members and Jeff Kintner, our associate pastor joining us from 2 weeks in Afghanistan)

We will travel safely from Moscow to Pokrov in the Vladimir Region.

The children at the orphanage will be excited and their hearts and minds would be prepared for our visit.

The children will have a desire to participate in activities with our team, particularly the VBS lessons each day.

Both children and team members will form fast friendships/relationships with one another.

Our team would be respectful in speech and action toward the adult Russian staff who will be working with us and that good relationships would be fostered here as well.

God would work through each of us, according to our gifts, to reach out in love to hurting children.

Each team member would reverently submit to God’s indwelling Holy Spirit that we might each be used during the week as God desires.

God would be always at the center of every thought, word, and action during our week.

Fundraising for Russia

Only two weeks left for fundraising and I still need about $2,400.

I believe that there are others on the team who still need funds as well.

You can send checks t0:

Covenant Presbyterian Church
2801 Parliament Drive
Colorado Springs, CO 80920

Specify that it is for the Russia Trip.

We have added a trip to a space museum for some of the older kids. That's pretty cool.

I've also thought of a daily even called "An Hour with ___________." I don't know how that will go over, but I thought that if we have a session with a couple of our American travelers, it might encourage kids to come and ask questions and hear about our stories.

More to come. We have 13 people that are excited to go to Pokrov, Russia.

The Secret Past Lives of Russian Orphans

When we go to Russia, one of the biggest elephants in the room is the past lives of the kids. Normally they do not talk about their life prior to coming to the orphanage. Even if they were put in the orphanage at age 12 or 13, they do not talk about their prior lives.

I've been told that often their lives at home were so bad that it's hard for them to think about the future. If someone talks to them about a future with a family and a job, they begin to think of their dysfunctional, often abusive, lives with their parents. They picture themselves poor and perhaps abusive themselves. They picture their neglected children or being beaten or mistreated by a spouse. It's tough. It's tough for them. It's tough for us as we try to break through with hope. There are kids who have left the orphanage and been successful.

Children's Hopechest's ministry has had great results with these kids. If kids continue in programs after they leave the orphanage, they have a very good chance of success, but they can't see it now. They can't see it at age 12 or 15 or 17 or even past that. They need a hand. They need support. That's what we try to give--a hand, and our hearts.

Donations Still Needed

Many on our team still need donations for their trip costs. If you can donate, please sends checks to:

Covenant Presbyterian Church
2845 Parliament Drive
Colorado Springs, CO 80920

Do not put a person's name on the check. If you want to designate a specific person, write it on a separate piece of paper or a post-it note.

Thanks.

We leave on May 30 for Pokrov!

Pokrov, Russia

Pokrov is a small town about an hour and a half to three hours North East of Moscow, depending on traffic. It's about an hour from Vladimir and the famous Golden Ring.

The town is about 16,000 people. It's on the highway to Vladimir, and large enough that there is a traffic light, but only one that I can remember. Shopping options are slim, but the orphanage houses about 65 kids right now. A number of kids who have left the orphanage live in the area. Some attend a college down the street. Most move to Vladimir to attend technical schools there.

We try and Children's HopeChest tried to keep in touch with them when they leave.

There is a ministry center in Vladimir where orphans can hang out when they aren't in classes.

We often visit the ministry center when we are in Russia.

We'll likely not go to Vladimir this trip, but will spend our whole time in Pokrov.

Is there a Secret Reason for Traveling to Russia?

I don't think it's a secret, but the need for love in the life of orphans is so great, that it motivates some of us to return again and again. As I study my Russian language, it isn't just a labor of love for the language. It's a labor of love to communicate my compassion for the kids.

The kids are so starved for someone who really cares about them that they keep in touch with their American friends, sometimes for years, after they leave the orphanage.

So, the secret is out. Love is what makes us go round the world.

Another trip planned for June 2009

Again we look to take 14 people to Pokrov, Russia. More to come, but we'll leave on May 30th and return on June 7th.

I will get a picture of the team up shortly.

On a sad note, one of the kids that left the orphanage for college in September committed suicide in November. It was very sad news for all of us. She was not able to participate in Children's HopeChest programs at college because we do not do ministry in the region where she went to college. We do not know why she committed suicide.