Category Archives: Vanguard

Vanguard: Saying goodbye

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What an amazing journey it has been! For the entire team, the past three days have been a time full of both joy and sadness; laughter and tears. In only two weeks, the young souls at the TB center have openly embraced us as family and our time with them has been precious. On Wednesday morning, the team and the kids took a walk through the Kremlin (the Novgorod Kremlin, Dad), where we took a team picture in front of the memorial. We then proceeded through the other end, where a ferry awaited in the river on the outskirts. Upon … Continue reading →

Vanguard: The joy on their faces is all the thanks we need!

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After a long but exciting first week with the children at the center, it was break time. Sunday we had the wonderful opportunity to tour the Kremlin, and hit the mall, due to some curious ladies, and some men on the team as well. Majority of us were shocked to find that by the end of the weekend, we were almost as exhausted as when it started on Friday night, but we were more then prepared for the upcoming week filled with outings, lessons, crafts, skits, and the closing ceremonies. Monday was the start of our second week here with … Continue reading →

Vanguard: Getting ready for the second week of camp.

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One week of ministry has ended with immense enthusiasm, while another waits. The first week at the TB Center encompassed the establishment of our Olympics theme, which involved having the children make Olympic rings, which were then hung up around the activities room. We also built up joy and excitement among them through a number of outside games, including relays and some of their own games graciously taught to us. Accompanying the Olympic theme came Biblical lessons dealing with the Creation account and the story of King David. Because of the limited attention span of the younger kids (which encompass … Continue reading →

Vanguard: The hugs and the laughter!

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On Sunday night the team was welcomed to the rustic town of Novgorod with a hearty Russian-style dinner. Helpings of sour cream and laughter were generously passed around the table as we planned and prayed for the week ahead. Despite our worries about difficulties with the language barrier and managing the attention spans of so many little ones, it has been a week filled with blessings and growth-inspiring challenges. As a team, we have fallen in love with the communal lifestyle of this beautiful culture. We take turns in pairs doing chores in the church, taking walks through the quaint … Continue reading →

Vanguard: On our way to Novgorod!

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Prevyet! (Hello in Russian) We are currently on our way to Novgorod to start our work with children at the TB Children’s Center. The last two days have been full of many useful training sessions and some amazing sightseeing in Saint Petersburg. We are all very happy to be here, we have no problem being the loudest people on the streets. We have learned a lot of valuable lessons during our stay so far; we learned how to travel on the city’s metro system, we learned how to cross streets without getting hit by traffic, and we learned a lot … Continue reading →