Category Archives: Teams

Greetings, from Russia at 10:48 pm, as we finish packing all the presents for the kids. Today was amazing in the transit center! It started off with a mimed skit called “King of Hearts” showing the masks each of us wear and the ability Jesus has to take away those masks. A lot of the kids enjoyed the skit as they could identify themselves with those characters. In the teenage boys group, Randall gave his personal testimony. They all shared about their home life and talked about the future, making meaningful connections within the group. Amongst the teenage girls, a … Continue reading →

Saint Isaac’s Cathedral is tall. And when I say tall, I mean, 261 stairs tall. What a lovely view of the entire city greeted us when we finally reached the top! In the cathedral itself, we were met with the same impressive architecture that greeted Russian monarchy for centuries. A Russian Orthodox service that was going on in part of the cathedral reminded all of us how shallow religion can be when it is ritually driven and not faith driven. After Saint Isaac’s, we had lunch at Pizza Hut. Russian pizza is extremely different from American pizza and, let me … Continue reading →

Update by 2 team members! 🙂 Today we took the metro to the Hermitage Museum. The metro was extremely crowded and we literally could not move inside. One of the team members made a new friend on the metro. The Hermitage was amazing and we even got to see The Prodigal Son (Mrs. Warren was sitting on the floor staring at it forever). As most of you already know, we got to go on Facebook and/or email; which made everyone very excited!! All of the children at the transit center were very thrilled to see all of us return again … Continue reading →

Day 2 with the kids! Fred:  God has blessed, is blessing.  High points mentioned in our evening devotions as a team, have included working/playing with the orphans, and some of the sights we have seen along the way.  King’s kids (and adults) and SunErgos kids are starting to connect, starting to communicate even without a translator, starting to want more time together to just talk; the initial reserve and awkwardness is melting (unlike the weather outside!) to smiles more and more.  What a blessing to give hope and hugs and laughter—to show each one is valued; and what a blessing … Continue reading →

Dear family and friends, We met the kids! What a joy and an experience! Quinn, Danny, Kierney, Lina, Katya: The younger children surprised us; they abound in energy, and their moods change upon a whim. They are far less trusting, as they did not warm up to us nearly as quickly as we thought they would. Our crafts and games were fun to some, but others were unsure. The good news is that each child found his or her place in one of the choices we planned. Two of these little guys have been in the center for over two … Continue reading →