MAJOR NEWS!
Sorry for the long period of silence! We have lots of updates to share, so here goes:
- Sonia's move to Brandon was very brief. Initially it looked liked Sonia would be given full-time work at Michael's, but it turned out to be only her jewellery classes (once a week) plus a few additional hours. Thankfully Sonia was offered a full-time job at Portage MCC Thrift Store, so she happily accepted and moved back to Portage. Sonia is working at MCC every Tuesday through Saturday, and has been busing to and from Brandon to teach Monday classes at Michael's. So far the arrangement has worked well, with Sonia enjoying her work at MCC (and the treasure discovery that goes with it!). Sonia hopes to continue part-time with Michael's during the upcoming school year.
- Maya recently graduated from the "ABC" program (sort of like kindergarten) at Lighthouse Christian School in Southport (south of Portage la Prairie). She thoroughly enjoyed her two months of classes there, and is looking forward to being in school full-time in September when her Auntie Kim will be the Junior Learning Centre Supervisor! Another major happening in Maya's life was receiving eyeglasses for the first time. She will need to wear them in an attempt to correct an astigmatism in her right eye.
- Deena has also been the recipient of something new: a puffer. Because Deena continues to have problems breathing normally, the doctor put her on a trial puffer to see if it will help (he suspects allergies are the cause of her woes). On the odd time that she has managed to inhale the mist she seems to breathe better, but getting her to inhale at the right time has proven a challenge!
- Lena continues to work at the Graphic Bible translation project. Unfortunately she hasn't had a lot of quiet time to work on it (it's hard to find a quiet place in a mobile home!). Otherwise Lena has been busy caring for the girls, volunteering at Portage MCC and continuing with the acclimatization process!
- Kevin has a new job! Starting September 1st I will begin as the Vice-Principal/Senior Learning Centre Supervisor at Lighthouse Christian School. It took a lot of prayer (and overcoming some initial shock) to come to the point of accepting the job. I am looking forward to this new ministry opportunity!
More news:
- July road trip: From July 9 to 13 Lena & I will be meeting in Abbotsford, British Columbia to wrap up our current ministry with MBMSI. We plan to depart on or around July 4 and drive to Abbotsford on the Trans-Canada, with stops along the way in yet-to-be-determined southern locales (travel accommodation recommendations welcome!). We will head back east sometime around the 16th with possible stops along the Yellowhead in Edmonton and Saskatoon.
- Our new home: It has been mostly decided: Lord willing we will purchase a house in Portage la Prairie, hopefully very soon. We are seriously looking a property this coming weekend, and hope to be able to make the owner an offer then. Please pray with us as we prepare to take this major step.
So what have we been doing for the past two months, you ask? Besides the very needed time of adjustment and rest, we have been busy visiting government offices, filling out forms and getting doctor, dentist and optometrist visits out of the way. Our family put a lot of hours in volunteering at Portage MCC during this time and we have also spent time meeting with supporters and preparing for what comes next. One major "next" will be reporting to our supporting churches. Most of these visits will likely take place in autumn.
As we indicated in our previous newsletter (a month ago!), we were seriously considering a transition to a salaried job, rather than a support-based one. While we have been blessed beyond words by all the support and encouragement we have received over the years, we feel confident that now is the time to move on to a different type of ministry. We'll have more details about the changes ahead in the next Hamm's Headings, due out shortly!
Thank you for your continued prayers, and please feel free to contact us about any questions you may have!
— Kevin, Lena, Sonia, Maya & Deena
HEADING WEST
We are in need of the following for our trip west in July:
- Places to stay along the way (actual offers and helpful suggestions). We plan to take the Trans-Canada (highway #1) to Calgary, then a yet-to-be-determined route to Abbotsford, and finally return to Portage la Prairie via the Yellowhead.
- Names (& addresses!) of people to visit! We would love to see as many of our supporters, friends and family as possible during our trip. Some visits may be short, but we'd be happy to meet anytime and anywhere!
- Things to see and do! Got any great suggestions for family fun in western Canada? We're all ears! Since this will be Maya & Deena's first trip west, we want to make it as memorable as possible.
BLESSINGS
We thank God that Sonia is gainfully employed in such a great place! The Portage MCC Thrift Store has been a tremendous blessing to us over the years, and we are pleased that Sonia has the opportunity to serve there this summer.
We are also thankful that I was able to find a new ministry opportunity, especially one that will allow me to spend lots of time with family.
PETITIONS
As we prepare for our western Canadian "tour" we ask for your prayers. Please pray that we will be able to prepare everything before we have to depart and that we find a home before we leave.
Please continue to pray for a buyer for our home. We are not desperate, but selling it sooner rather than later would ease matters for us significantly.
Please remember Nina in your prayers. Lena's mom is doing well, but has understandably been experiencing some loneliness. Pray that she will be able to enjoy the "white nights" (these extremely long days are truly the best time to be in St. Petersburg) and continue to be in good health.
DID YOU KNOW...
...that we are still in need of donations? Even with our end date set with MBMSI, we still need to pay our ministry bills. With almost a year of living on 75% salary we have not been able to pay for all the immigration and moving bills. We continue to rely on your assistance: those of you who support us monthly will find that your automatic withdrawals will cease in August, but to those of you who give one-time or occasional gifts, we ask that you consider giving in July or August rather than at year-end, if possible. We would be very thankful for any and all help to end our service with MBMSI well.
ESSENTIAL INFO
Kevin & Lena Hamm are missionaries with Mennonite Brethren Mission and Service International, assisting Christian Camping International/Russia.
A printable version of this newsletter in Adobe Acrobat format is always available for download.
Visit www.krhamm.com/pray for links to print versions, archives and more.
For more on our ministry, please visit www.krhamm.com.
You can help! Please visit www.krhamm.com/support for ways you can help our family & ministry.
Thousands of our recent photos can be viewed at Flickr.com.
(Sonia's pictures too!)
