Greetings from Alaska,
We are enjoying our second winter at Kako and now we're looking forward to Spring. There is still plenty of snow, but the temperatures are warmer, which we are enjoying.
In February we had a Leadership Training and several men from local villages came to spend a few days studying God's Word together. Gary led them through the book of Ephesians and taught them how to do and inductive Bible Study. The Holy Spirit did the work of applying the truths as the men learned and shared.
After several months of delays, we were finally able to begin our
Kids Club at the public gym in Russian Mission. Beginning on Feb. 28 , seven boys showed up for our after-school program. They were excited about the games and told their friends. The next Thursday, 20 boys and girls showed up. They told their friends and the next week, 30 kids came. It has been exciting to watch it grow week by week.
The first week the weather wasn't good for flying, so we drove to Russian Mission on our snow
machine, traveling on the frozen Yukon. That was a major event for Margo because she had never done it before and had developed a fear of traveling by snow machine. God helped her to overcome her fears and she actually enjoyed the scenery. It takes about 40 minutes one way and half of the trip is on the river. Since then, our new pilot and his wife, Mike and Cayla Boettcher, have 
flown down to help out with Kids Club and Margo has hitched a ride with them. Gary and Henry continue to take the snow machine route, pulling the game equipment on a sled.
We are enjoying our second winter at Kako and now we're looking forward to Spring. There is still plenty of snow, but the temperatures are warmer, which we are enjoying.
In February we had a Leadership Training and several men from local villages came to spend a few days studying God's Word together. Gary led them through the book of Ephesians and taught them how to do and inductive Bible Study. The Holy Spirit did the work of applying the truths as the men learned and shared.After several months of delays, we were finally able to begin our
Kids Club at the public gym in Russian Mission. Beginning on Feb. 28 , seven boys showed up for our after-school program. They were excited about the games and told their friends. The next Thursday, 20 boys and girls showed up. They told their friends and the next week, 30 kids came. It has been exciting to watch it grow week by week.The first week the weather wasn't good for flying, so we drove to Russian Mission on our snow
machine, traveling on the frozen Yukon. That was a major event for Margo because she had never done it before and had developed a fear of traveling by snow machine. God helped her to overcome her fears and she actually enjoyed the scenery. It takes about 40 minutes one way and half of the trip is on the river. Since then, our new pilot and his wife, Mike and Cayla Boettcher, have 
flown down to help out with Kids Club and Margo has hitched a ride with them. Gary and Henry continue to take the snow machine route, pulling the game equipment on a sled. Our goal for the Kids Club is to provide wholesome activities and build relationships with the kids. We have had kids from 4 years old to 19 attend and we welcome them all. Using AWANA games, provided by Islands Community Church, has been a great way to include large numbers of kids of varying ages and
skill levels. Eskimo kids love to sing and we have begun singing silly, camp-like songs with them as well as some visualized songs that were donated by Margo's childhood pastor and his wife, Paul and Beverly Richins.Gary has been busy scheduling upcoming Kako events and communicating with all the participants. March 21-23 is our Spring Teachers' Retreat and Easter. That same week we are hosting a Teen Snow Camp with a Youth Group from Colorado as well as local teens from Russian Mission and Marshall. We are looking forward to ministry with each of these groups. In
May we will have a week long conference called, Hearts Toward Wellness, which helps hurting people learn to deal with the pain of their past with God's help. Family Camp is Memorial Day Weekend and we traditionally have around 90 people attend. Fortunately, our cook, Becky Noll, will be returning the first part of May to stay through the Summer Camping season. As a matter of fact, Becky has been accepted to be full-time with Kako and will be returning to her home church in Iowa, to begin raising support at the end of the summer.Volunteer work teams, camp counselors, musicians, kitchen helpers and pilots have signed on for the Camping Season. God fills the slots almost before we can identify the needs. There is still room for you!
A new Play and Pack portable crib has been donated to Kako by a friend in Friday Harbor and we appreciate it so much. It will be especially useful during our family camp. This same friend has sent boxes of beautiful children's clothing, which we have shared with our missionary families. Recently we took a bunch of them to Russian Mission and displayed them on a table at the Town Council office. The secretary there put out an announcement on the VHF and within an hour, all the clothes were gone. We never know which door of ministry God will open next!
I must tell you, we are missing our boys and their families terribly. We appreciate your prayers and thank God for the peace He brings. We knew this would be the hardest part. It has helped that Margo has been extremely busy with the bookkeeping, in Vera's absence, in addition to her homeschooling responsibilities, the last two months. We all look forward to Dave and Vera's return March 10.
Thanks so much for your prayers,support and encouraging words. We love hearing from you.
Love,
Gary and Margo
I tried to comment before, but it didn't work, so I'm trying again.
ReplyDeleteGreat job on your postings with pictures!! We love seeing what you're doing.