From Plumbing to Evangelism

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  Half torn apart

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  Getting there

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  Cue needy kitty

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  One of Anzhelika’s art classes (aftermath)

Happy (almost) Summer!!

Something that we did not anticipate when heading out to the Navajo Nation was becoming DIY experts! You figure some unskilled, on-the-fly, handyman work might be needed, not unlike your average homeowner, but we’ve learned complex plumbing, basic electric, tile and more! Someone on campus recently told Sharon that “God gives us the skills that we need, we just need to use them.”

Because of this, we felt confident to jump into a major project here at the mission. One of the houses on site had become as nearly unlivable in the kitchen. Two of our young teachers moved into it last summer, for want of anything else on site, and occasionally we would hear about how they were coping with the different issues (mold and mildew, rot, leaks, broken flooring that had become extremely sharp and hazardous). Most of the problems seemed centered in the kitchen. Sharon got approval from the director to tear apart the kitchen. Both of the young ladies are away for a portion of summer break, visiting their families, so what better time to gut their kitchen than now? The kitchen has been pulled apart down to the subfloor (and in same cases, below it), cabinets are out, sheetrock is pulled back to rid of the mold (from a major leak at some point not long before they had moved in). Steve has refitted much of the plumbing to the kitchen and installed new shutoffs at the pipes and the propane line. The house is among the older on campus and so has seen many residents and many repairs. Today, we got the new cabinets in, leveled, mounted, calked and ready for countertop (and something for it is backordered, so that part is on hold). Tomorrow Sharon will level and prep the floor around the cabinets for new flooring.

Somewhere in and around all of this it occurred to us, the aforementioned, we didn’t expect this. Much of our work here (from prepping snacks for the teens to sorting checks and handling mission finances) are supportive roles. We knew our jobs are to help other people do their jobs. This newfound DIY skillset is no exception.

The two teachers in particular are among our paid school staff (our staff and teachers are half supported missionaries, and half paid positions…. very low paying positions). They are fresh out of school and this is their first and second year teaching, respectively. Anzhelika is our pre-k AND art teacher, Liliya is our second grade teacher. They are amazing young ladies who enjoy working at our school, but our tiny mission school is the job for them. Their mission, and the reason they are here, is to partner with the Russian Baptist church not far from here and do mission out in some of the far reaches of the Reservation. Everything from street corner preaching, to dinner with elderly people in a dirt floor hogan with no electric. These gals are amazing and we are so blessed to know them and to be able to fix up the kitchen and dining room (where one gives art classes and the other teaches Russian language in addition to everything else). What a delightful duo of young ladies. Pray no injuries occur during the remaining renovations. Pray Sharon’s cat allergies stay away – so far so good – the kitty who occupies that house looooves keeping her company. Pray for Liliya and Anzhelika to be able to use the renovated space to God’s glory as they continue ministering on the Reservation and with our school kids and pray for their safe trip back here over the next few weeks. Please also pray for their friend Joy, who stays with them frequently and has had a hard year. This, her first, teaching in the middle of the pandemic and with a rough group of kids. Joy teaches at a public school up north, but spends the weekends with the ladies and is involved in ministry with them. Incidentally, Joy grew up an hour from me, so we share a connection to Pennsylvania.
— Having issues cropping these pics, more below —

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Now, for the fun stuff. We thought, after 10,608 hours we could leave Covid out of our newsletters, but alas…

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Sharon, Millie Anne and Sara Everett at the April Sharathon

We had two confirmed cases in office, active illness, with symptoms. Within days, several more on staff developed an array of symptoms from sinus pressure to fever and delirium. No one in our house is ill, but we are under full quarantine (until Saturday presuming no one comes down with any symptoms). The contact tracers (because they stalked us) said anyone vaccinated can be free to continue normal activities provided they were a facemask for the chances of asymptomatic transmission. One such lady – our first grade teacher, Sara- went and got us all the essentials at the grocery store!! Absolutely sweet. She’s also peeked in and checked on Sharon while she’s working on the house renovation (on campus and isolated from others). The Everetts are great friends and we are blessed to know them. Pray for healing on campus, especially for the woman who is experiencing more severe symptoms than the rest of us. Pray our immediately family continues to be symptom free and can return to life on Saturday. Pray, too, for the Everetts. Roger and Sara, that they remain healthy as they shop for and run errands for those of us fully locked down. They are a huge blessing.

Celebrate Recovery attendance has leveled off at seven attendees, but they are faithfully coming, reaching out to Steve and the other leaders and are growing both in their faith and their recovery.
We had a very special gift donated to Celebrate Recovery last month, and Steve was able to use much of it to help get a CR group on the Zuni Reservation (an hour and a half south of us) back on it’s feet after the severe impact of our lengthy Covid lockdowns and the direct lockdown on the Zuni Rez…. no one on or off Rez, road blocks for a good chunk of the year. The Zuni Reservation lifted these restrictions in April. This special gift helped restock Recovery Bibles, sobriety and recovery chips, and other resources that the group needed to fully restart.

Due to the high level of exposure and last minute notification on campus, CR was cancelled last week (for the first time since New Mexico’s original lockdown eased last summer. Tomorrow night’s meeting will still be absent Steve, but one of our other leaders who hasn’t been exposed to anyone on campus has offered to lead it, but quarantine should be lifted before next week, bringing us back to our newish normal. Praise, thank God with us for the CR gift, for other special gifts recently that have been used in powerful ways, for the ability to equip the Zuni CR group and for continued work with our Celebrate Recovery friends. Pray specifically this week for JJ, JH, and also for Darlene J. who is leading tomorrow night.

Family Things:
We had visitors last month!! Grandma and Grandpa visited from PA and we had a grand time! The kids were super happy to see their grandparents in their own house (we stayed with them last fall when we were back east… I think the kids like especially to be able to have them, to show them around and involve them in their lives). We took a road trip around the immediate area, pointing some sights out, unfortunately all of the Tribal parks are still closed, but we had a good time driving nonetheless. Complete with some special coffees for the trip.

Croquet form… how do you play?

Next week, Adam gets to go to Summer Camp! This is a camp not far from the mission with who’s lea are well-acquainted, Adam, on the other hand, doesn’t know a soul. So pray please that we are clear of any covid symptoms before our quarantine lets up and that he has a wonderful experience filled with fun, new friends and spiritual growth.

Millie Anne is stuck home! Mommy plans to try and get her to the movie theater down town as her own special treat. Rumor has it there is a horsey movie that has a little girl 😉 Keep her little heart in prayer too, she easily feels left out when big brother gets to do cool things.

Summer is kicking up, the mission has a team arriving next week to work on the radio station building, Sharon will be finishing up the girls’ house over the next two weeks, Steve is looking at the next classes he can take for chaplaincy and planning more radio programs for Celebrate Recovery, next month Sharon will be logging time in Hilltop’s library, creating new entries for some several hundred books that were donated for the school. The kids are back to school (we school year round with several long breaks, they just had four weeks off) and we are about to study SPACE – we are all obsessed with the Mars missions. In the near future, Steve is hoping the jail will reopen and allow services back in so that can be resumed, and Sharon is talking with school administration about volunteering some hours during the school year in the library, as we do not have a dedicated librarian at this time. Please pray for all of this as summer and fall is definitely our “busy season”.

Love in Christ,

Steve and Sharon

Spring is Here!

Spring is always a wonderful time of year! Everything has been cold and quiet and suddenly, the world defrosts, the sun perks everything and everyone right up! It’s no different here on the Navajo Nation.
The outlook on Covid has improved slightly, despite reopenings and reclosures around spikes and variants. Things are steadily improving and with it, restrictions are easing.

Church

We were able to have church for the first time in over a year on Easter Sunday. Because of the lockdowns and curfews on the Reservation, we have been barred from Sundays until now. (We have been able to meet in homes and hold Bible Studies somewhat, but this has not been an effective way to gather in the health climate and with those restrictions).

Our first Sunday back we were “packed” at about 40 people. We were able to distance, keeping family groups together, sing, offer nursery services AND share communion through the very convenient individual communion packets (like they serve at revivals, camps and festivals with the wafer on top of the little cup!) It was wonderful to connect with the community again in this way after a full year. Steve has taken on much of the sanitizing and logistics of holding services according to both Navajo and New Mexico regulations. This is nothing he hasn’t already been doing for Celebrate Recovery, so it’s something we are able to accomplish with extra time given to it. In addition to this, Sharon is maintaining strict cleaning and sanitizing protocols in the nursery for any infants and toddlers to be able to play safely. We are hoping children’s church will be able to start up soon as well. Pray for these endeavors as we help-as members- to get out local church back to our available pre-pandemic services and resources.

Sharathon

It has been a year and a half since we have been able to hold our Radio Sharathon fundraiser. Annually and sometimes more, it has always lifted a huge part of our financial burden as far as radio services and staying on the air goes. With four functioning stations (currently broadcasting identically across the reservation on AM and FM) it takes work and money to keep our signal live. We’ve had to cancel Sharathon repeatedly since Covid began and on Saturday we pulled off a big, drive-thru/outdoor event! Most of the staff was able to help as well as retired and former staff and local community friends. It was a great time and a sorely missed staple event of the Mission. Sharon organized food for the staff throughout the day (this year, regulations prevent us from feeding the local public except for water and sealed chip bags, which were well enjoyed by all. Staff was well-fed from 8am through 6:30pm!!!). Steve processed donations throughout the day (as is a normal part of his job) and we raised over 8,000 with additional money pledged. Much of these donations come in from immediately local community members who have long-loved our station and are able to give back and help us keep it on the air – not unlike supporting your local Christian radio such as is done with K-Love.
We had 150 or more cars drive thru and many stayed parked, listening to the radio from their vehicles, watching the live music and cheering, honking and praising together. As a high risk community, we have taken special care to continue to be present for those needing it most without bringing undue risk and impact to their health. It was an encouragement to see so many familiar and new faces come through, honk and wave. Praise that we’ve brought in close to this year’s goal, which will offset a huge chunk of operating costs and help toward equipping the new station building which is ever closer to being completed. As a side note: Sharathon takes a lot out of us, it is a big undertaking, even for a single day event…. we might take a day or two off 😉
Bunch-a photos follow… cause, ya know, it was exciting

Library Plans

 Sharon is getting the opportunity to help through the summer at the Hilltop Christian School Library - as most of the teachers are off for the summer updating supporters, seeing family and otherwise taking a break from school and mission life. The work involves getting a handle on a year of low staff, no steady library staff, donations of books and supplies that haven't been sorted or shelved and other maintenance tasks. The kids will often be with her through this project and they can watch movies, have snacks, do crafts and even help out with odd jobs around her work. She's excited to be able to have an impact with the school through this flexible and quiet summer opportunity. And of course, we absolutely love our school, and so the participation in making the library a great resource again for the next school year is something we love. Pray as she works through this that things are smooth, interruptions are minimal, and the rather large job can be completed before staff is back on campus to prep for the school year (from the last week of May through the first of August). 

Visitors

We had special visitors today: Joel Miller, the missions pastor at LifeHouse Church in DE came up with his friend Jeremy from the Phoenix area (the Miller family is visiting them in AZ from DE). Steve gave them a tour of the campus, some general life updates and we enjoyed lunch together. Pray for the Miller family as they spend time in the Valley and when they and their sweet kids travel home and for Jeremy and his family.

Thank you for all of the prayers and support! Happy spring, Blessings and love in Christ
Steve and Sharon

2021

January is already over, taking with it the last remnants of red, green and tinsel.

Good afternoon, friends!
I’m writing this from a very touchy wordpress app – looks like it underwent some changes, so this may not even post!

Health Update:
Our immediate family has been well, no one has fallen ill despite repeat exposure to positive cases in the last year – can you believe we are at a year now?
The families on campus and affiliated with Across Nations that had contracted Covid are doing well, and those who had been very sick and hospitalized are all cleared, clean bill of health, off-oxygen and all!! So praise God for that!
Many families have lost loved ones here, many pastors have lost the fight with this new illness and passed on, their families are coping, but your prayers would be very welcome as they navigate life in the aftermath of sudden illness and loss.

Weather
We have found ourselves under several different snowstorms in the last few weeks – it makes for dicey driving as many of you know. It also makes for some quiet days on campus. Some couldn’t make it to the office from around town, school was closed for only one storm, so Sharon and Adam took the opportunity to help clear out sidewalks, steps, ramps, and paths around and between the school buildings. The sun was shining and the wind was minimal, so it was a good time and made for some quick work. And, of course, we played in it!

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Regularly Scheduled Programming
January – I think in all our worlds- proves to be relatively quiet.
Last year at this time, Sharon and Adam were tagging along with the radio team to high school basketball games (basketball=life around here…. basketball and rodeo) , making connections, visiting the concession stands 😉 Youth Group was in full swing, community events were unfolding-remember the Valentine’s Weekend radio fundraiser? \/

THAT was a full year ago!!!
Steve’s regular work continues in the office to which he is a great asset in the financial department. He and his direct supervisor -respectively – take care of everything from incoming missionary support to staff pay to outgoing radio construction progress! Often, we (the generic we) do not like discussing money and we don’t make a very heavy point of this regular weekly work in our newsletters, but it’s a fact of life 😉 and a big part of why Steve was brought on. Stewardship of mission finances, progressive work toward future goals, school resources, and individual support are in the hands of these two. Steve and Sue work very well together, and we’re happy to be in this role.
Celebrate Recovery continues, and continues to average between 10-20 participants and leaders depending on the week. Our gathering limits under safe social distancing for the state of New Mexico is at roughly 80 people in the church building, so we have more than enough room to grow into.
We have said before, due to the nature of anonymity that comes with sobriety and recovery programs, there isn’t much by way of update – or photos- that can be made public. Give Steve a call and he would be happy to talk more about CR, the work here, the volunteers, donations and help that come in regularly, and the slow, but steady impact this growing ministry has in the community.
Sharon continues on in volunteering wherever she can in the absence of youth group. Several radio volunteers have been through the mission in the last two months, and she has prepped housing and minor comforts for them. This is a passion of hers, pray it can be grown some with the resources we have on hand.
We were also able to host a dinner evening for Tim and Renee Zook, a couple from Indiana. Tim is, missionally, a radio consultant and engineer and he spent a great deal of time working on our radio with another gentleman, not only getting some bugs worked out, but constructing a new FM tower on the other side of the Reservation where we have an AM station and getting that on the air. Currently our four radio stations run the same programming. They have in the past and will again in the future, run several different programs, styles and languages respectively, with FM focusing more on the younger generation and AM featuring more talk, sermons and Navajo language programs. We enjoyed the company of Tim and Renee and learned more about their ministry as they work with other groups around the country. They’ve been here three times since we have moved to the mission.
Steve’s grandpa from just north of us, surprised us with a wood delivery donated personally and dropped off! The outreach has been steadily growing, with families able to call in and request assistance via wood for heat. (this is also an area of ministry Adam can be involved in. Wood hauling is a lot of work, but what seven year old boy doesn’t want to throw logs around??)

Over Christmas week (it’s been a bit??) we had some “events” to write cards out, pack boxes and spend time pouring into pastors and other church leaders on the Reservation and in the area. This was a great mini outreach in the absence of anything else we could do in the community over the holidays (considering lockdowns and stay at home orders that persist to varying degrees).

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Family Update
Not a whole ton going on personally. We’re still catching up, cleaning up, and winding down from holidays and travel. We spent a good deal of the late fall and early winter visiting and updating family and friends after being on mission for a year and a half – fast coming on two years since we left home. It’s been a ride and we love taking you along for it! We are grateful for all of the love, support, prayers and encouragement from all of you.

Sharon uses every real and imagined opportunity to crochet something. Sometimes they are straight gifts – this year she made 55 hats for Hilltop kids -cause we so love our school!! For the last two years, friends and family wanted things they saw and she used the chance to fundraise for our cousin and his wife who are adopting. They’ve close raised all of the money and are in waiting now – matched and ready. This year, any crochet requests will go to fundraising for Hilltop Christian School. She does some volunteering, has gotten to know a few of the kids, is close with most of the teachers and we just love to love on them all. This will be a great outlet for the yarn (and if you feel so inclined to send some, she never turns yarn donations down 😉 ). We’re not fond of “selling and making money” off her hobby, but fundraising for our wonderful school – absolutely!!

Check out Sharon’s experimental Instagram page…. we are hoping to use it for steadier mission photos…. take you along in real time…. in addition to the monthly and/or bi-monthly updates here on the blog.
http://www.instagram.com/mausmission

Prayer Requests:
Praise: all those who have been ill are recovered!!! And those most at risk are already receiving vaccines to mitigate further impact to their health.
Praise: Safety for all over the last few snow storms and sub zero nights. Everyone has done well, with minimal problems. At some point, we slid off the road, but our principal: Bill Naas, was able to save Steve 😉 – on campus, no huge risk to anyone
Please pray for continued health for our school kids and teachers. We have a few high risk individuals working in the school. Sanitizing is in high gear, masks are worn throughout – lots of breaks for the kiddos outside to get some fresh air.
Pray for continued finances as God wills for the radio station. Some of our supporters have blessed the radio with new constructions funds – this is exciting to see others take further interest beyond what we do directly. How cool? PRay the physical help comes in this spring as we get teams to help us finish off. So far – cargo containers are on, build out inside is complete, roof structure is in place and everything is tarped off pending the next leg of construction. As our existing building deteriorates at an alarming pace, we are all very excited to be moving forward on our site plan.
Pray for Jasper (vehicle), Juan (unspoken), Nanette (healing after a dog-related injury), High Life teens K, K, T, J, and N – the only one we have heard from is N. Pray they are all safe and well and we are able to connect in some way with them.
High Life leaders Seth and Sarah as they plan future events that fit within the regulations, and for Tawny who is planning to leave and pursue her future in the next year.
Leaders Wade and Amanda, new-ish parents! as they figure out what their future with the youth group looks like.
Finally, Millie Anne – who has some struggles, she’s speaker much clearer and is trying hard to focus on her school lessons. We feel confident even with the special educational needs she may have, that we can continue to homeschool her, but please pray for patience and understanding all around and that we can continue to learn about her needs to be able to raise and teach her in the best ways possible.

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Year in Pictures

Enjoy a bunch of highlights from before the lockdowns, and some of our favorite moments from during the worst of Covid 2020 (These may not load well on the phones… )

Basketball

In a wild finish, Window Rock got a pair of free throws from junior Cauy Silversmith with 7.2 seconds to net the two-point win.

– Quentin Jodie . Navajo Times . 2/1/2020

High Life

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  Leader Buddy and two of our teens – Game Night! Jan/Feb 2020

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  Kicking the hacky sack around

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  Photography with leader Wade

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  Our top youth leader Seth in a heated battle with one of our young men

Encounter Work Teams

Of the 16 scheduled work teams, three of ours were able to make it. Plus two unofficial groups to help with special projects. Still, it was wonderful to have Oak Grove Classical Academy, Youth Works mission group, men from Three Springs in PA for the roof work, ladies from Mosaic in Arkansas to help refit and outfit our 5th/6th grade classroom, and a team from Desert Springs ABQ bringing huge trunkful-s of wood.

Ambassador’s Choir Radio Fundraiser

The Ambassador’s Choir was commissioned by KHAC – our primary radio station- some amount of years ago. In February, they put on a two day fundraising dinner and concert event. Sharon spent time helping the Choir out, running errands, prepping meals, and handling tickets. What a blast that was! We had planned for the Choir to hold at least one more event, but the lockdowns initiated in March made it impossible. We are looking forward to future events with them.

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  Principal and 7th Gr. Teacher Bill & Laura Naas

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  Nearly all the ladies jumped in to get as much Fry Bread made as possible

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  Georgia, turning out Fry Bread

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  2nd Gr. Teacher Liliya Rubanenko

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  Choir Director and KHAC dj JR Redhouse

What Else..?

Oh yeah, we (us along with the other mission staff) built a swingset, recorded on endless radio, packed thousands of boxes of food, participated in more chaplaincy training classes, made up a bunch of gifts for our school kids and whatever else we could dream up during closures and pandemic-related chaos.

Family Stuff

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  We got a puppy!

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  “That is NOT a baby!” – Third grader to his teacher

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  We turned SEVEN

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  Broken bones

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  Roof Repair! Thank you Roy

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  Bon Fires

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  Adam Evan

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  Millie Anne

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  She turned FIVE

Thanks for coming
along this year!
Love in Christ,
Steve and Sharon

Focus

Good Evening, Friends!

We are well here in Window Rock! The weather has been ridiculous, from snow in early October, to picnicking in the backyard and back again (over and over and over…) Living at such a high altitude definitely has it’s weather disadvantages, but it sure is pretty! The photo here shows from our deck looking over the campus toward the left down the road and Window Rock and St. Michaels off to the right beyond the haze of falling snow.

We have continued on much the same as the rest of you, finding out new normal in the craziness of the world we live in. For the most part we have been able to continue our ministry work-although abbreviated and under the stay at home orders in effect both in New Mexico and on the Reservation. Very little has changed in our restrictions since May, but a few notable changes has brought some semblance of life back to the local community- with restaurants now able to operate if they pass special classes and participate in a steady contact tracing information gathering. Tribal residents have been given the go ahead to function on the weekends so long as they stay local to their communities and restrict activities to those essential to life (gathering wood, grocery purchases, laundry and such). School is still restricted to online only throughout the Reservation and New Mexico. Our school, Hilltop Christian, is opened and functioning! Pray no illness interferes with our students and teachers as they progress through the year! Sharon is still hoping to be able to work with the students as a school volunteer with special events and activities-but so far none are permitted. The students appreciated the gifts we gave and that will have to suffice for the time being.

Celebrate Recovery attendance has fluctuated with the weather and restrictions, but they are steadily expanding in reach. Steve is meeting with one attendee regularly outside of the meeting times to study Bible, recovery issues and general encouragement. Radio recordings continue with live Saturday CR sessions every few weeks, Celebrate Recovery guests from elsewhere in the region have been present on air and Steve involves whoever is available in this arm of the CR ministry. Pray that gathering and occupancy restrictions ease as the ministry grows.

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  ABQ Wood Delivery!

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  ABQ Navajo Tacos

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  MK Night

We don’t have a ton of recent pictures in the absence of proper events and youth group, but here are a few highlights from this last month.
Across Nations has a supporting ministry in Albuquerque who provides firewood regularly to a local church here. We have recently taken over that ministry (Steve and another missionary on site are tasked with organizing and delivering wood to those in the community unable to do so themselves). In early October, 8 truck-fulls were delivered and Sharon along with other staff on campus helped to unload the truck and host the guys from Albuquerque with a round of Navajo Tacos. Some of the ladies here make the absolute best fry bread and beans. In a regular year easily 20 of these events take place to help our visiting teams connect with the community and culture, but this is only the third this calendar year due to restrictions and safety considerations. Millie Anne also got involved and was sure to eat her fair share of tomatoes!
The immediate neighbor to us on campus (Brent and Dawn Moyer) hosted a Mission Kid night to help encourage and connect with the kids on campus, especially in these times. They had an ice cream social, played games and built a timeline of their lives bringing them to Western Indian/Across Nations. Brent spent time explaining to the kids on their different levels what it means to be a third culture kid living neither in their native culture nor quite in the one they’ve moved to. The kids had a good time, and though ours are young, the focus, encouragement and spiritual connections to those around them was enriching for our whole family. The Moyer’s hope to have a feature mini event for the mission kids each month for the foreseeable future. We are blessed to know this great family who work so hard in the community and still pour into the kids right here.
We have had a high rotation of contractors and volunteers through early and mid October. So, Sharon was able to work extensively on the guest house in a form of hospitality ministry. Everyone was comfortable, warm and caffeinated, her minimum goals!
We also took a quick break in October and visited with cousins in California, took an impromptu jump into the Pacific and ate out (like for real!)

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March was the last time we were in church (with the exception of a July weekend at Mesa Baptist Church). It’s been frustrating at best to be so disconnected from the community and when we are with any of them, there is a decided lack of fellowship and worship with the pandemic threat still ahead, and precious little room for real solid fellowship. Our state mandates say even if we do gather there isn’t to be congregational singing etc. and so we are reaching a worn out point that not as much of the country is seeing.
We press on. We have held Bible Study gatherings on some Sundays, but generally, no one wants to risk gathering, and no one wants to risk church services. There are some churches holding a variety of drive in services, but these tend to be at a time we cannot attend (Thursdays due to Celebrate Recovery is one example).

Many churches in the area also fall away from doctrine (like any area) so it makes visiting one just for the sake of being in the building difficult or interesting. So, we continue on, but are pushing (yes) our church leadership to allow Wednesday services assuming we are able to follow state mandates for distancing, masks and sanitizing. We are ready and prepared to do this (along with another couple on campus willing to help kick services back off), please pray God softens the hearts and gives peace to the elders and church leadership regarding decisions with services.

Road Trip

We are headed out on Wednesday in a thought through and prayed over trip east. We have no real idea how Covid restrictions will impact our travels, but after a year and a half on the field, and in some cases 3 years of support from churches and individuals, we thought this might be worth an attempt. We would love to connect with some of you as we come through. We will be in Delaware on November 21 & 22, and in Pennsylvania through the 30th. We expect many of you have concerns about where we are coming from and our exposure level.
First, we spend much of our time in the same circle on campus here and within Celebrate Recovery. The news describes our region as absolutely terrible per capita, but we aren’t any worse off for cases than most of the country. Our local health advisors have declared the build of our cases to certain areas and events that we are nowhere near. We carry on as normal as far as shopping, gas, errands, etc. Our state is strict, we wear masks, use sanitizer at all the stores and so on. There has been no illness among any of our staff in recent weeks, and nothing substantial since spring.
Second, we are traveling via Oklahoma City and Indianapolis through to Delaware and finally to Pennsylvania. We will be staying in hotels and stopping at gas stations and assorted McDonald’s drive thrus.
Finally, only you can decide if you want to see us and catch up/visit. We can’t decide your risk factor and cannot allay those concerns. We are more than happy to wear masks and meet you somewhere if you just want to say hi. Please reach out and let us know. (As a personal note, Millie Anne, though five, cannot be expected to wear a mask. we have difficulties getting her to understand why, behavioral problems when we try, and we won’t force it on her. If this makes anyone uncomfortable-specifically in the churches we visit, please let us know before we see you).

Officially we will be connecting with Pastor Joel Miller from LifeHouse on November 21st, attending Summit Bridge EFC on the 22nd, and Blooming Grove Baptist Church on the 29th. We are looking forward to seeing some family, connecting with old friends and seeing everyone we can.

Blessings and Love in Christ
Steve and Sharon