September is almost here!

Summer has gone fast.   That is an indication of being too busy.   I had many things to accomplish but not much has gotten done.   Traveling to give supporters some report about our work, after two years of staying home due to Covid, has taken up some of our time.   As the mission work increases, so does our work to keep it going.   We care for over 300 girls from the age of 8 to 20 to provide an education and a better life.   

Ron is planning the next trip to Thailand for November.    Workers in Laos have located a building/house in Udon, Thailand that can be renovated to become a safe house.    We will travel there and get the work underway.   Ron does not know the extent of the work that needs to be done nor the time it will take.  After one night in Bangkok, we will probably go to Udon first to get that work underway.   Depending on the scope of the work and the timing, we will surely visit the safe house Ron established on his last trip in Chiang Mai, Thailand.   

We will visit with Phet and Hong, our workers in Laos this time.   Ron was not able to go into Laos last year as the border was still closed to outsiders due to Covid.    Udon is across the border from Laos so Hong may be over this safe house to be sure things are running well there after we leave.

We plan to go to the Philippines to see Ronald and Gigi.   This may be the last stop we make before returning back to Georgia in the spring.   We certainly look forward to our visit there.   Their family has grown from about 6 kids to 28 since our visit to see them in March 2020.   After two years of homeschooling, the public schools have opened in the Philippines, but the schedule is different for various grades and that is creating transportation problems getting children back and forth when they have children from kindergarten to high school.   The children will face many difficulties and challenges as many of them have not been in public school at all.   This will increase the challenges the workers at CEA face also.    

Thanks again for keeping up with us.   More updates to follow soon. 

  

Home Again!

We arrived at home last night from our three-week trip.   The last two days were mostly driving.   We left Greenville, TX before 8 a.m. on Monday and arrived in Many, LA in time to have lunch with supporters. We drove on and reached our Super 8 hotel in Meridian, MS about 9 p.m.   We slept a little late but were on the road by 9 a.m. Tuesday morning.    I started out driving but within an hour, we were in a dead stop on the interstate with cars and big trucks backed up for miles ahead.   We were just inside the Alabama line when we came to a complete stop.   Ron tried to call to find out the expected time of delay but had to leave a message.  I texted Leigh Ann (our daughter) and she did some searching and said it was a car on fire at the next exit and it would be an extensive delay.    After a while, cars began turning around and going backward down the grassy media.   The man in the car next to us in the other lane came over and said they heard it would be a 4-6 hour wait.   We had been parked for more than an hour already.   He said he would back in front of us and turn around and we could follow him back to the exit.   We did this and found that cars located a spot a short distance away where they could go across and get back on I-20 heading back toward Meridian.   We followed and got off at the next exit and went across to a highway paralleling the interstate.     When we got much further ahead, we got back on only to see smoke and lights ahead.  This must have been a 2nd accident because it was a trailer truck on fire and nearly consumed with the fire.   Its load of steel or something like that was on the right side of the road behind the overturned truck on fire.    The left lane was open and we safely got past it.  It was disturbing to think the driver may have died in this accident as the truck turned over on the driver's side.   It seems to happen when trucks are overloaded or their load shifts from not being secured properly.

With a couple of stops to change drivers, get gas and a quick sandwich and drink at Buc-ee's, we drove the full day to reach home about 7:30 p.m.

We drove almost 3,000 miles in three weeks, visiting about 13 congregations or individual supporters.  Our visits were enjoyable.   

The only other accident we saw was in Springfield, MO a couple of weeks ago.  On the other side of the interstate, a camper was overturned.   It was pulled apart from the SUV which was also overturned.   I think it had just happened as there was no one in sight and traffic was still approaching.   No other vehicle was involved so the camper must not have been secured properly or it fishtailed and caused the overturned situation.

We feel tired today, but we have much computer work to catch up.   I am taking breaks to unpack, wash clothing and get things back in order at home.   Maybe by the weekend, we will be able to rest a little more.

We are thankful for a safe and healthy trip.    We appreciate your interest in us and our work and we especially covet your prayers for our health and safety.    

Traveling!

We left North GA on Tuesday, July 28.   We are on another trip to visit with supporters and congregations supporting our work.    When we got back from Asia in June 2020, Covid was spreading fast, and we could not continue our travels to report on the Asian work.   This summer is our first attempt to visit supporters.   Since we gave up the RV traveling two years ago, we are traveling by car.   We are staying in the homes of some supporters but Super 8 has become our home away from home for the past two weeks.

We traveled to Mayfield, KY and stayed two nights with our friend, John Richardson.   We traveled on to visit with elders in Paragould, AR.    We visited with a deacon overseeing missions at the church in Mountain Home, AR on July 30.    We drove south to visit with a long-time friend and supporter in Mountain View, AR.   

Our next stop was Springfield, MO.   We visited the Conway, MO church of Christ on Sunday, July 31st.   We went to Watermill church of Christ on Sunday night, July 31st.     

Ron had no other appointments set for the next seven days so he worked out a trip to Dallas.   We drove from Springfield to Oklahoma City, OK.   The trip the next day was directly south to Denton, TX, north of Dallas.   Along the way, we stopped and had lunch with friends in Sanger, TX and reported to the Sherman Drive church of Christ in Denton, TX on Wednesday night (August 3).   The past two days we have been very busy, meeting with Dr. John Bailey, who supports our work and with Greg Smith, supporter and director of Dr. Bailey's foundation.   The last appointment we had this afternoon was with Judy Yang, our accountant who lives in Flower Mound, TX.    She was one of the Chinese girls that lived with us in Sharpsburg, GA and worked with us from about 2007-2014 and the China Mission work.      She is married and has a precious little boy, Isaac, who will be four in November.   We have not seen Judy in about 8 years.   She has not changed but the time that passed has surely aged Ron and me.

We have been blessed with good health and safe travels so far.     We are sleeping well after spending a full day either traveling or visiting with people.    We have a few hours to work in the hotel, but we have very little free time with the tight schedule.   Since we arrived in TX, the heat is the most unbearable part of the trip.   It is 102-104 every day and does not cool down below 95 until after midnight.   They have not had any rain in more than 30 days.   The grass and shrubs are turning brown, and some trees are dying.   Wildfires are popping up in some areas.    The forecast has no rain in sight for another week or two.

Tomorrow (Saturday, July 6) we will drive from Denton to Greenville, TX.   We will stay two nights in the home of a friend and supporter.    We will visit the Creekside church of Christ in Greenville Sunday morning and have lunch with a group of friends there.   Sunday night, Ron will give a report to a small congregation a few miles south of Greenville (Weiland church of Christ).  

Monday, August 8, we will drive south to Many, LA to visit with supporters at the Toledo Bend church of Christ.   That will be our last visit on this trip.   We will return to North GA, passing through LA, MS, AL and on to Woodstock.   I have not checked the mileage but that is probably a two-day trip.    Ron is doing most of the driving but trying to limit the driving time to about 5-6 hours a day.  We have covered a lot of miles, but the trips have not been extremely difficult.    

I learned how to handle detailed navigation when we had the RV.  I watch the road atlas and the GPS and keep Ron well advised about the distance between turns/exits.    I assist in every way I can to keep us safe on the road.   A congresswoman died this week in Indiana when a car crossed the media and crashed head-on with her vehicle, killing the driver and everyone in her car.    I used to read or crochet when we traveled.   I think having four eyes watching for unsafe drivers passing on the wrong side, crossing the media or an accident ahead, gives us a little more peace of mind that we will have a safe trip.  Having asked for safe trips in our prayers is an even greater way to lessen anxiety.

As far as I know, once we arrive home, we will not leave again until the end of September.    That is not very far off.   Ron will have a physical at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL on September 29th.     He is on schedule to speak at the Brown church of Christ in Waxahachie, TX (south of Dallas) on October 2nd so we will drive from Jacksonville back to north TX after his check-up.   I will post again concerning his health and our trip as we head west again.

Thank you for keeping in touch with us.   We especially need and appreciate your prayers.