Christmas Party - Global Action, Kerch

We had a busy week planning and preparing for yesterday's (Saturday) Global Action New Years/Christmas party (here the mention of the holidays are inverted since the they occur in the opposite order) for all the individuals in Kerch that are a part of our ministry in the area.  This involved both employees and volunteers and was a lovely affair.  I was asked to help with decorations, an area in which I am desperately under utilized.  I think my true calling is in determining what gives a room just the right ambiance....of course I'm joking - I have serious difficulties in matching my own clothes, let alone the decor of a Christmas gala...

It was good to celebrate with some of the summer volunteers that I hadn't seen since arriving.  The evening was basically a chance for the top folks with Global Action - of which I was included as the representative for Global Action, USA - had a chance to sincerely thank everyone that participated in the ministry.  There was also singing and a very official-sounding distribution of Christmas gifts.  All-in-all, a nice evening and a good way to jump into our week-long holiday.  Here's some pics...

As I mentioned, we had some Christmas songs as well as worship.

Last night was the first time I had a chance to meet Jenya the translator's (L) wife (R), whose name eludes me at the moment.  Jenya is actually much more than a translator here at the Hope Center but I refer to him as such to distinguish him from...

My other buddy, Jenya the security guard.  He also does much more than security, including AIDS awareness presentations at high schools.  I think that very nicely sums up how the staff here really works as a team.

Jenya's a big fan of Campbell and really helped us last night with child care.

The evening concluded with a small fireworks show which I am convinced was just a series of dynamite explosions. 

Christmas by Ourselves

As I know many of you have learned, Ukrainians traditionally celebrate Christmas on January 7th (a hold-over from the old Eastern Orthodox calender) so we were kind of alone in our excitement for the coming of the 25th.  The upside to this is that with a solid minority of Ukrainians moving their festivities into December and the traditional (though infrequently celebrated) Eastern Orthodox New Year on January 14th, we get a full three straight weeks of holiday cheer!  Though I worked around camp all day on the 24th and 25th, we still managed a little time Christmas morning for Campbell to open presents. 

Campbell tends to get up a bit earlier than I'd like to and Christmas morning was no exception.

Not only was he up, we was a bit energetic.

We got a little lazy with the wrapping...this is the bag his gifts came in.

And what did he get?  An $8 piece of Chinese junk police station play set to go with his cars and a Russian version of the movie Cars, or "Мачки."  Fortunately it turned out to have an English language setting - our own little Christmas miracle.

Humanitarian Trucks

We mentioned in an earlier post that we played a part in the distribution of humanitarian aid in the Kerch area.  I think it is fitting to take a step back in the process if not chronologically.  We received another truck of aid items last Thursday and on Friday morning the customs agent had arrived, allowing us to actually open the trailer.  This particular shipment came from Sweden like the rest and contained clothes, toys and more medical equipment (beds, walkers, wheelchairs, motorized scooters, etc).  Below are some pics that Sarah took as we transfered everything from the truck to the storage building (at the Hope Center) where it was then sealed until customs returns to "unseal" it for us to distribute.

The banana boxes we are unloading above contain clothes and probably numbered in the thousands.  I know it looks like I'm trying to start an imaginary lawnmower, but I really did contribute to the process.  Most of the labor for the day was provided by IVA (vocational school) students.

It's tough to see but the two guys in the truck are Igor or "Hurcules" (L) and Dima (R), two former IVA students who now work and live at the camp with us.  The third person is a current student.

This is a shot of the building in which our materials will be sealed by customs and our electrician/engineer Yuri (known as Yura to distinguish him from Yuri the guard).

Of course Campbell had to get geared up and come out to see what all the excitement was about.  This is his common outfit for leaving the house and we still get castigated for not keeping him bundled enough (those are snow pants BTW).  I think their main issue is with the lack of a scarf, of which we have exactly zero.

Update and Merry Christmas from Captain Mark

Here's another email update from Captain Mark complete with pictures of the Holidays in Bagdad.  I know that we are all very proud of him and his efforts in Iraq but per Mark's request, for reasons of security, please do not include his last name in your comments.  Since the vast majority of the people who will read this know Marky personally, we can stick with "Captain Mark."

Merry Christmas Friends and Family -

 

First, thank you for your support, e-mails, letters, care packages, and, most importantly, prayers.  Spirits here are high; support from home is what makes it so. 

 

Folks are probably wondering what Christmas is like here.  The Embassy has done a good job of making the holidays feel festive: decorations are up, and a small ceremony was held last week with Santa Clause, a few Iraqi children, and a choir of employees from Uganda singing Christmas songs.  Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice visited this week; we had a reunion of folks from our shared alma mater, DU.  On Christmas Day, we'll have a Christmas meal here in the Green Zone and a few hours off to enjoy it.  The real sacrifice is made by the guys at the patrol bases out in the provinces; they don't have many of these comforts.   

 

Work continues to be exceedingly rewarding.  Responsibility for Iraq is divided into regions: North, Central, West, Baghdad, etc.  I'm the prosecutor for cases originating in the area just North of Baghdad extending up to Turkey, so most of my interaction is with the Army units currently controlling this area.  As you've probably read, this is an extremely busy region.  The surge pushed most insurgents out of Baghdad/Falluja/etc. and into rural areas in this part of the country.  The Army units there are doing a fantastic job of hunting down and rounding up the core individuals behind the violence.  My recent cases have run the gamut: IED makers and operators, snipers, propaganda distributors, direct attackers, etc.  The units in these areas and I work closely together to share intelligence, track down remaining suspects, gather the appropriate evidence, and make sure wrongdoers are punished.  These guys in these units are the real heroes.

 

Lastly, as I hear of the snow in Colorado, I miss home and wish I could be there for Christmas day with the kids.  But I am well here: I've got some good friends, all my needs are met, and I have plenty of work to keep me busy. 

 

May God bless you and your families this Christmas season.  I've attached a few photos. 

 

Mark

 

The Long Awaited Sequel...

As promised, here is the sequel to the apartment tour.  I noticed that my commentary was pretty bad on the last one so I decided to edit it out of this one and do a voiceover during post-production.  Please let me know what you think.

For those of you who have been considering coming to visit us at the Hope Center, please understand that during the summer, the camp is not in such disarray.  We take advantage of the fall and winter to tear into things and repair them in time for the kids' arrival in June.  The vocational school students are an integral part of this process and it gives them an opportunity to utilize the materials and tools here to take an idea from their head (or the head of their instructor) and see it to fruition.  

I suppose a programs update is also called for...

Today I attended the 2 levels of English classes to further understand the way that Jenya conducts them.  We also had an opportunity to join Anya, a local teacher and camp translator/head mistress/music leader extraordinaire, on her weekly trip to a nearby orphanage.  We played games and talked with the kids as best as we could.  This was the first time that we have both gone on a project and left Campbell with Tanya and it was a great time of ministry for the two of us.  By all accounts it went well for the boy as well.  I will leave the details for Sarah to hopefully explain in her next post.

Driving is become second nature now (almost as it is in the US), though I still have to focus on their strange right-of-way ideas.  My familiarity with Kerch and it's outlying villages is rapidly improving and I can only hope that my Russian will follow suit soon.

Please pray for us to continue learning the language and that we will keep finding many areas where we can jump in to help.  I had a great meeting with Andrey (camp director) yesterday to discuss my position and involvement here.  I feel that within the next few week I will be hitting my stride.

I just noticed that this post shows that it was written by Sarah and I don't know how to change it.  It is in fact Matty.