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Email Updates, Archive — 2008, 2007, 2006

2008 Email Updates

December, 2008

Time has flown by and we are well into December and I don't think I sent out a message in November.

Simphiwe is still with us. She came at the end of October and we thought she would be here until school closed on December 5. By then we had realized that she was not going to go back to her father or her step-grandmother and there didn't seem to be anywhere else for her to go. We had a lot of trouble trying to get the Department of Social Welfare to get back to us to make other arrangements for her.

We had arranged to go to the National Youth Seminar in Bloemfontein from December 9 to 14, so we contacted her father and asked if she could go with us. We felt that it would be beneficial to her and would give Social Welfare more time to find a place of safety or foster home for her. Now nearly two weeks later, we have made very little progress in finding a permanent solution for her.

The trip to Bloemfontein was Simphiwe's first long trip and she seemed to enjoy it. We took two other young people from KwaZulu Natal - a minister's daughter and a student who is attending South African Bible Institute. The National Youth Seminar was very good and we were encouraged by the lessons and the fellowship. We returned home last Sunday night, December 14.

This week has been an amazing week. The plan was for Dawn and JP to move from Oribi Bible Camp to their new home in Port Shepstone on Tuesday as it was a public holiday and their friends would be available to help with the move. Early in the morning Dawn phoned to say she thought she might be in labor. We assumed that she was just stressed about the move, as she was only due in early January. However, about an hour later, Diane phoned to say that JP was taking her to the hospital. Dina started work in the maternity ward of the hospital on December 1, so they had phoned her and she suggested that they come in and she would monitor Dawn and see what was happening.

We got ready and stopped by the hospital on our way to help with the move. Dina told me that Dawn was definitely in labor and that she didn't expect it to be long. I decided to stay there and Michael went to help with the move. One hour and twelve minutes after Dawn checked into the hospital, Chayah (pronounced Shay-a) Mackaylee Ferreira arrived - with Aunty Dina assisting the doctor. She weighed 3.49 kilograms (about 7 pounds 10 ounces) and was 52 centimeters (about 20 1/2 inches) long. She has a lot of reddish blond hair and is, of course, absolutely adorable. Dawn and Chayah came home on Wednesday at about noon - to a new house with furniture in place and clothes in the closets! The friends just went ahead and moved them and got things in place as best they could.

On Wednesday I went to Diane's house. She is in the process of packing up all of her belongings as she is also moving. She will move into a house at St. Michaels-on-Sea, which is about 15 miles from us, on December 29. She decided she wanted to be out of the house before Christmas, because the house has too many memories. She wants to get everything packed and then she will come to us for a few days. I spent Wednesday afternoon until this evening (Friday) with her. She and I packed a lot of boxes and now she is finishing up the final sorting and packing. She has friends who will stay with her so she won't be alone at night.

Tomorrow we will take Simphiwe to stay over with Sean, Dina and the girls. Michael and I will go to Eshowe for our monthly visit. This time the churches will be together for their Christmas celebration.

Next week we will be getting ready for Christmas. Dina has to work on Christmas Day so we will gather the rest of the family for a more informal time. Our family Christmas celebration will be on Friday at our house. We are looking forward to hosting it this year.

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas. May you enjoy the celebration and remember the Reason for the Season! Happy 2009!

Caryl and Michael

October, 2008

I just looked back to see when I last sent an up-date and it looks like it has been over a month. Where does time go?

We attended the annual conference of the churches in South Africa in September. It was a long journey. We drove there on Tuesday and drove home on Saturday and Sunday. Michael taught a class and we attended the worship sessions.

Monday through Friday of the next week, Michael and I were involved in a Scripture Union Life Skills course for about 250 grade 9 pupils at Port Shepstone High School. We served as facilitators for small groups for about two and a half hours each day. One day I also presented when Diane had to be away and one day we filled in for facilitators who couldn't be there for their session. By the end of the week we were exhausted, but it was a good week. In many schools Life Skills based on Christian values have been stopped, but the principal came in one day to say thank you to the facilitators and to assure us that he really appreciates what we are doing, adding that he hopes the program can continue long into the future.

We have made two trips to Eshowe since we last wrote. The first one was for the teaching weekend. Two of the three churches met and it went well. Cold weather and rain caused a bit of problem for us as the road was treacherous on Saturday night when we went out. It dried a bit on Sunday so was better. The second time we went we met with the church that refused to come to the teaching. There are still some serious rifts between the leaders and each one blames the other two for all the problems!! Michael keeps trying to get them to meet together so they can resolve the problems and will continue to do so. Pray for wisdom and patience for him.

Our lives have been turned upside down this week. When we went to the high school for the regular Tuesday morning devotions Simphiwe, one of the grade 9 girls that we have know since grade 7, told us that she had moved in with one of the teachers. Her mother died several years ago and her father remarried. He lives about four hours away from here, but they sent her to live with her step-grandmother. It has not been a happy situation. Recently a neighbor girl has been bullying her at school. We also know the "bully", who is an orphan and has some serious issues in her life.

Thursday morning when we woke up we heard someone calling from the gate. It was Simphiwe. At first she wouldn't even talk to us, but eventually we learned that she had run away from the teacher's house the previous day. She had walked about 25 miles that day and found our house late at night. We were not at home so a neighbor took her in for the night and then she came to our house in the morning. When she arrived, we contacted the school and they were glad to learn that she was safe.

We spent the rest of the day trying to find out what to do. Late in the afternoon we learned that we had to get permission from the police to keep her at our house, so they came to see us and agreed that she could stay here. This morning the police came to take her to school and then to Child Welfare. Her father and step-mother drove down today and met us at the police station late this afternoon to discuss the future. The result is that for the next 5 or 6 weeks we will be fostering her. That way she will be able to finish the school year here. She says that she will never go back to her father, but we will meet with him and the social worker to make a decision about that after she finishes exams. Pray for us. It has been a long time since we had a teen-ager in our home - and we have never had such a troubled teen-ager. We need to be wise in how we handle her from the beginning.

Caryl and Michael

September, 2008

We have had a frustrating couple of weeks. Two weeks ago today we had no running water at our house. When we called to find out what the problem was, we were told that because of a power outage they were having trouble with some pumps that supply water to the reservoir. We assumed that they would quickly take care of the problem and we would have water soon. Well, that was not to be. When we called a couple of days later they said they had a major problem with pumps and they had no idea when it would be repaired. They sent a water tanker around the neighborhood and we could fill any containers we had. Later they put up a large tank about two blocks from our house and we could go there and get water. One day we realized the tank was gone and assumed the water corporation had removed it for some reason. A couple of days later we saw them erecting another tank - and learned that the first tank had been stolen! (Only in Africa!!) Over the past two weeks we have had water three times - all from about midnight until early in the morning. Finally, late yesterday afternoon the water came back on and so far we still have water. I still hold my breath when I turn on the faucet until I see water actually come out.

We learned how dependent we are on running water. I don't think any of us realize how much water we use until we don't have it. Washing dishes in a small basin and trying to clean vegetables with as little water as possible was a real challenge. Life just takes longer when one has to carry all the water in and to heat water for washing dishes and bathing. We took laundry to Dina one day, and managed to get several loads done at home early one morning when we happened to have running water.

I spent a few days at Oribi Bible Camp recently. Mpume, Busi and I cooked for 70 people at a camp sponsored by Scripture Union. It is tiring and I put in long days when I do this, but I really enjoy it. Unfortunately, I had to leave early on the last day as I had a sore on my leg and had been advised to see a doctor urgently. I went to see a clinic nurse twice thinking it was a spider bite, but it was getting worse instead of better. We still don't know what caused it, but probably it was an insect bite that got infected. After well over $100 worth of medicine, I am on the mend.

Tomorrow (Saturday, September 20) we will be going to Eshowe for our monthly trip. We expected all three congregations to meet together. They asked for special lessons for the men (taught by Michael) and for the women (taught by me.) Today we learned that one group does not want to participate as they were not included in the planning of the meetings. Tonight we are getting rain which we desperately need. However, the roads to the place where we are going are not good at any time and worse when it rains. Pray for safety for us as we travel and pray for Michael and me as we teach. Pray that those who come will be blessed by the teaching and fellowship.

Please pray for the annual Church of Christ Mission conference which will be held in Graaff Reinet from September 29 until October 5. There will be meetings, preaching, teaching and fellowship. Pray for those involved in leading the conference. There are some tough issues that need to be dealt with, especially financial matters. The situation is complicated by the fact that there seem to be some who do not want to deal with these issues. We will only be there from Wednesday because Michael has another meeting on Monday and it will take us all day Tuesday to drive there.

Caryl and Michael

August, 2008

Schools have reopened for the third term so we go out on Tuesdays so Michael can lead the morning devotions at the high school. Over the past couple of weeks we have discovered that two girls (sisters) that we have met at the schools are facing a very bad home situation. Their parents have both passed away and they were living with an aunt and uncle. They left the house because they say their aunt and uncle collect a government grant to care for them, but don't use it to help them. They don't even provide necessary clothes. Michael has spoken to the primary school principal and she said that these girls are only two of many in the community facing the same problems. We are not sure how to deal with the problem, but are happy that the girls feel comfortable coming to share their problems with us. Pray that we will be wise in dealing with this situation.

Steve and Brenda Caulley came here on Thursday night before the missionary retreat. Michael and Steve went to teach at one of the churches about three hours south of Port Shepstone. They left on Friday morning and returned on Sunday encouraged by the great interest shown in the classes they taught. There was also evidence of a spiritual revival among church elders. Brenda stayed with me while they were away.

This past week was our annual missionary retreat. Early this year a missionary contacted us and asked about the retreat and asked if we knew we were supposed to organize it. We weren't at the last retreat, so we didn't know! However, we managed to organize a speaker and we enjoyed the week. We stayed at a retreat center near Port Shepstone from Monday evening until Friday morning. There were only 11 of us this year, but we had a Bible Study, preaching, singing, and fellowship. One afternoon we took everyone on an outing to Oribi Gorge Nature Reserve, Oribi Bible Camp and the Oribi Gorge Hotel for tea.

Continue to pray for our family. Diane went away for a few days. She decided that she should go while she was still on compassionate leave in July. She went to Johannesburg to visit Mac's cousin and a couple who had been involved with Mac in music. Then she went to Cape Town to visit her cousin and some friends there. She is making some adjustments in her life, but she says she still cries a lot. She started back at work on Monday.

JP was ill for a couple of weeks. He apparently got a virus and it affected his liver and spleen. He is on the mend now. Dawn is doing well. She really enjoys her teaching this year.

Dina and Sean are very concerned about the girls' education. They have seen some problems and are hoping to move the girls to a better school as soon as possible. There are three options, an expensive private school, a public school that has written their names on a waiting list, and a Christian school that might be able to accept the children next year, but where transport to and from school are a challenge to be overcome. We are praying for wisdom to find the best solution.

Caryl and Michael

July, 2008

We really enjoyed the visit of the American team. They were only here for parts of two days, so it wasn't really long enough to do all we wanted to do. They had a picnic on the beach on Saturday after they arrived and then Michael and Sean took them to see the Oribi Gorge nature reserve. On Sunday we visited an African church service and enjoyed a meal provided by the church ladies.

Our plans for the rest of the month of June didn't quite work out as we had planned. We were on the way to Eshowe when we got called back to the hospital on June 7 as Mac's condition had deteriorated. After he passed away on June 9 we spent a lot of time with Diane, helping her to arrange the memorial service and taking care of business. Dawn and JP have moved from their apartment to Diane's house. They will stay with her until she decides what to do.

Mac's passing changed some of our plans and we did not go to Kimberley for the South African Bible Institute Board of Governors meeting and the Annual General Meeting. In the end the AGM was held and three new board members were elected. One is a former student and teacher, one is a former student, and one is a previous board member. The new board met that same day to discuss some of the urgent issues.

At the end of June we went to Eshowe. Michael met with the three elders on Saturday afternoon and had a very profitable meeting. On Sunday Michael preached for the congregation at Mvuzane and we had a good service.

This past week was KwaZuluNatal youth camp. It was held at a primary school near Port Shepstone. We went to do teaching on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Michael also went on Thursday and then today he met with the KwaZuluNatal ministers. Since it is close to home, we have been able to come home and sleep here instead of on the floor of the school building!

Next week Michael will travel back to Eshowe for another meeting with the elders there. I will be cooking for a Scripture Union camp for high school students at the Oribi Bible Camp.

The schools are on winter break for two weeks. Then we will resume our work with the schools in the Umzumbe area.

Continue to pray for Diane. She has had to make a lot of adjustments. Pray for our travels and activities.

Thank you to all who sent messages of condolence. We really appreciate them. As the cards and messages arrive, we realize how many people have been impacted by what we have gone through. We are blessed to have Christian family around the world who have upheld us in prayer during this time. Thank you.

Caryl and Michael

June, 2008

At 3 p.m. today (June 9) our precious son-in-law, Mac, went to be with the Lord. He was in hospital for 5 weeks, home for 2 weeks and then back in hospital for 2 1/2 weeks. His breathing got progressively more difficult and today was very hard. He ate his oatmeal this morning - and complained to Diane that she hadn't put enough sugar on it. (He loved his sugar!) As the day went on he became more and more uncomfortable and we just couldn't do anything to make it better. Now he is with the Lord he loved and served.

Pray for Diane, for Mac's mom and dad, for his brother who is traveling from England tomorrow and for our family. Praise the Lord for his life and his faithful witness even while in hospital. After he was gone all of the nursing staff, cleaning staff and hospital workers came to offer their love and sympathy to Diane. He had an amazing impact on their lives!

Michael and Caryl

May, 2008

It has been a hectic month. Mac was in hospital for 5 weeks. He was able to come home for 2 weeks, but has had to go back to hospital. He is not doing very well right now. His lungs have become hard as a result of the cancer and he has a lot of trouble breathing. He is on oxygen all the time and has regular doses of morphine. He is in a private room at the hospital and they have allowed Diane to stay with him. At night she pushes two armchairs together and sleeps there. We know that only a miracle from God will restore his health. Pray for Diane and Mac. It has been a rough year. He was diagnosed with cancer on June 11 last year.

We have spent much of the past month preparing for our annual grade 7 Life Skills camp. We charge the students a nominal fee, but for those who cannot afford that we provide work days for them to earn their way to camp. We had 61 of the 64 grade 7 students from Magog Primary School attend the camp this year. 30 of them worked for their camp fee. We have them wash windows, pull weeds, cut grass and do some repairs on the gravel road. They actually seemed to enjoy the work!

The camp began right after school on Friday and the children left at 6:30 on Monday morning in time to be back at school again. It was a great success. Michael helped with presenting the materials, led the hike in the gorge, and preached for the Sunday service. I, with the help of three ladies, did the cooking. We made 8 meals for 85 people. It kept us busy most of each day.

The month ahead will be full of travel. We will be hosting a team from the US this weekend. They are working at an orphanage in Pietermaritzburg, but will come here to visit and attend an African service. The next weekend we will make our monthly trip to Eshowe. The next weekend we will go to Kimberley for the South African Bible Institute Board of Governors meeting and the Annual General Meeting. Then we will be able to stay home for one or two weekends before the annual youth camp in July.

Pray for us as we travel and especially for the family as we deal with Mac's health issues.

Caryl and Michael

April 2008

I think I am way behind in writing to you. We have not had an internet connection at home for the past month, so I have not kept up very well!

When we got back from Cape Town we had a huge mess to clean up. We had a very bad storm and lightning hit our house. It damaged or destroyed the telephone, TV, HiFi, video recorder, printer, and modem. It also tripped the earth leakage system so our electricity was off for several days. When my neighbor phoned me to say their electricity was back on but our lights weren’t coming on as they should, I arranged for friends who had keys to go and check. Indeed the electricity was still off and our refrigerator and freezer had completely thawed. They cleaned up the water in the kitchen and turned the electricity on. When we got home we had to clean the refrigerator and freezer and destroy meat that had thawed and frozen again. The telephone was repaired in a couple of days, but we are still waiting to get the other equipment. The TV and HiFi were repaired in Durban so we have to go there to get them. The video machine is in the line to be repaired. The ISDN modem is being replaced with an ADSL modem (so we are looking forward to that!). The printer is not repairable so we are looking for a new one. We have claimed from our insurance company so are hoping that they will cover the damages.

South Africa is having a severe power shortage so we have “load shedding”. They shut off the electricity for 2 hours every other day. Fortunately, they do it on a schedule and they seem to be sticking pretty close to the schedule. Ours is off from 4 to 6 in the afternoon. It does make preparing supper a little difficult. To add to my frustrations, our water was also off for several days this month (while Michael was away.) They said it was a broken pipe. In four days our water was off for over 60 hours at one time and 12 hours another time!

Michael just returned from teaching at South African Bible Institute. He was there for two weeks. He had three students this year. He stayed with a friend and was able to visit some of the churches in the Northern Cape .

I decided not to go to Kimberley as I felt I needed to be here for Diane at this time. Mac is not very well. He has been in hospital since we got back from Cape Town on April 3. He is still receiving chemotherapy and he is on oxygen most of the time. He has times when it is very hard to breathe and then he panics. He is in a lot of pain. His knees are very swollen and sore. They think that is a side-effect of the chemotherapy. Diane stays with him at the hospital most of the time. She continues to do work from the hospital or home or wherever she is. Please continue to pray for them.

We are getting ready for our annual grade 7 Life Skills camp which will be at the end of May. Pray for us as we prepare for it. We will need to provide work days for those students who do not have the money for the camp. We make sure every student has the opportunity to attend camp by earning their way. Pray for those who will be attending and for those who will be teaching and leading.

Michael and Caryl

March 2008

We have safely returned from more traveling. We attended the annual Ministers’ Week at Postmasburg in the Northern Cape. We took the chairman of the Church of Christ Mission and his wife with us. They came to our house on Friday evening and we traveled to Kimberley on Saturday. We stayed the night there and then traveled on to Postmasburg on Sunday morning. We arrived just in time for the morning service. I think there were a few sighs of relief when we arrived, as Michael was the preacher that morning.

Throughout the week there were devotions and a class each morning. There were also worship services and lots of meetings. We were very impressed with how well the church people worked together to provide for us. The meals were very good and they also managed to be on time in spite of the difficulty of cooking outdoors.

No one had planned the program for the women so they asked if I would teach a lesson one day. Fortunately, I have learned to be prepared and did have some notes with me. I felt the lesson went well and all the ladies participated in the discussion. I really enjoyed the fellowship and times of getting better acquainted with the ministers’ wives.

The next big event is Easter and we will have a busy weekend. The churches of KwaZuluNatal will meet together in the Durban area. We will go up on Friday. During the day there will be a long service (from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.) in which there will be sermons on the seven last words of Christ from the cross. After a big meal, there will be an evening service. Then on Saturday there will be classes and meetings. They have asked both Michael and me to teach on Saturday. By Saturday evening we will be in Eshowe for our monthly visit to the churches there. On our way home on Sunday, we will stop in Durban to pick up the people we take from Umzumbe to attend the services there.

Next week we will be flying to Cape Town as Michael’s sister’s daughter is getting married there on March 29. Several months ago we decided that all of our family would fly down to Cape Town and spend a week so we could enjoy a family holiday at the same time as the wedding. We are all really looking forward to it. With Mac’s health we are still a bit uncertain as to what he will be able to do, but we are continuing with the plan for a family holiday. Mac is in the hospital again because he has been in a lot of pain. The latest news is that they will continue the chemotherapy though the oncologist says it is simply buying a bit more time. We continue to pray for a miracle.

Please pray for the meetings this weekend that God will bless all who attend and give safety on the road. Easter is one of the biggest holidays in South Africa and there are a lot of people traveling. Also pray that we will have a safe trip to Cape Town and that we will all be able to enjoy the time together as a family.

February 2008

It has been a while since I have written an email, so this will try to catch you up on our activities so far this year.

We have traveled quite a lot already this year and there are more trips coming up. So far we have had safe, though not uneventful, trips.

On the 6th of January we went to Umzumbe for church. It was a rainy, miserable day and no one came to church. We had communion and came home.

On the 13th of January we took three of the ladies from Umzumbe to Estcourt for a funeral. The wife of the former minister there had passed away. When we first came to South Africa we often went to Estcourt and Mrs. Sithebe was very kind to us. She had a very difficult life and yet was always smiling and joyful. We will certainly miss her.

On the 19th and 20th of January we went to the Eastern Cape for a church service. We picked up the minister and his wife and traveled about 2 hours on a gravel road to a very deep rural area. There was no electricity, but we had a great worship service there. On the trip home we suffered a vehicle breakdown which forced us to stay overnight with the minister and his wife. Diane and Mac rescued us the next day. We will write a report on that in the next South Africa Torch.

On the 27th of January we were in Eshowe for our monthly visit. Although the attendance was small we had a good worship service. The elder invited us and two other couples from the church to lunch and we were able to have a good discussion about issues in the three churches in that area.

Last weekend Michael traveled to Umtata . Two of the elders there are doing studies through South African Bible Institute and needed to write exams. South African Bible Institute asked Michael to administer the exams. He left Umtata quite late on Sunday and only arrived home after 1 in the morning!

Tomorrow (Thursday) we will leave for Kimberley . The South African Bible Institute Board Of Governors meeting is Friday afternoon and Michael is a member of the Board. On Saturday we will also attend the graduation of the students from 2006 and 2007.

Mac and Diane continue with a real “roller-coaster” life. At the beginning of January the doctors told Mac that there was nothing more they could do for him. Then later in the month he had scans and he was told that the cancer was gone in the left lung - though there is scar tissue - and that there was some scar tissue, but less cancer in the right lung. Also the tumor in the right lung was shrinking. The end of last week he ended up in hospital with gastroenteritis. Fortunately he was only in hospital overnight. However, this week he is very short of breath and the doctors did scans again. They think he has a lung infection or pneumonia. Continue to pray for Diane and Mac.

Michael and I saw the doctor recently and we are both on some new medications. The doctor says it is just because we are “aging”. Actually, we are both feeling quite well. We are just suffering from the heat right now as we are in the middle of summer.

We have been busy with routine maintenance at Umzumbe Bible Institute. We have mowed lawns and done a few more repairs. Last week in the midst of the mowing, Michael was asked to take a lady to the hospital because she was ready to deliver her baby. She had called the ambulance, but it hadn’t come and she was getting desperate. Michael will give a more detailed report in the next South Africa Torch, but I will just tell you that the baby arrived about 5 miles from the hospital!!

Michael and Caryl

2007 Email Updates

December 2007, Christmas Newsletter

First of all we want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy 2008! We wonder where the year went. Last year we were snowed in on New Year’s Day! We definitely won’t have that this year - though we have had a lot of rain recently.

The National Youth Seminar went very well. The attendance was lower than we had hoped, but those who attended were blessed. It was held at Margate, which is only 20 miles from home, so we returned each evening and were able to sleep at home. Michael and I shared the responsibility for our small group with Simpiwe Mteza, a young minister, who was interested in getting some training and experience so he can be small group leader in the future. He did a great job. Another man sat in on our group as well. The youth we had in our group participated very well, so we really enjoyed our time with them.

The last day of November the Smith family from East London came to stay with us. Phil participated in the National Youth Seminar and he stayed with the youth in Margate. Roxana and the boys stayed at our house, did school work (she home-schools), did some sight-seeing and took care of their two dogs. They stayed on for a couple of days after the seminar. We really enjoyed our time with them, but felt the time was too short, especially as the seminar took so much of our time. They have now returned to the United States to minister in Kansas.

We spent a couple of days in the past week helping our son-in-law, Mac. He is the manager of Oribi Bible Camp. They are fixing up a couple of the houses on the camp site for use by families. We painted, repaired and helped out wherever we could.

We are looking forward to a busy few days. We will be going to Eshowe this weekend. Michael’s brother and his wife (Larry and Marguerite) from Minnesota are here for a few weeks. They are staying with his sister, who lives about 30 miles from us. On Monday night (Christmas Eve) we will be having a Christmas celebration with all of them (18 people, I think). On Christmas Day we will be at Diane and Mac’s house with our children and some of their in-laws. I think there will be 23 of us.

Again we wish you all a very happy Christmas celebration. May we all keep Christ at the center of our celebrations.

Michael and Caryl

October 2007

We attended the annual conference of the Church of Christ Mission in September. As we had expected, things were pretty tense at the beginning of the week. Some of the classes were cancelled for the executive committee to hold meetings. When it came time for the reports, we just heard one excuse after another as to why there was no financial report. It has been about 5 years since there have been proper reports.

On Friday the elections were held to choose the new executive committee. Some of the men asked Michael to serve as election officer as they felt he would be accepted as unbiased. He began by giving a devotional and encouraging the people to choose officers who would fulfill their responsibilities as servants. The election went very well and the result was that only one of the previous committee members was returned to his position. The spirit among the people seemed to improve as soon as the elections were over. Please pray for the new committee. They will be meeting soon to try to resolve some of the issues which have been causing problems.

Michael and I participated with Scripture Union in a Life Skills course at Port Shepstone High School in October. There were about 250 students and 25 volunteers to work in small groups. It is such a blessing that the school is open to this Bible-based program.

The end of the school year is approaching and the students are writing exams. Michael has continued to give a devotional talk each Tuesday at the rural high school, but the attendance has decreased from around 200 to about 50. The teachers are very discouraged because the school year was disrupted by a strike, absenteeism is extremely high, and there is a serious lack of discipline. We try to encourage the teachers when we are at the school.

Please continue to pray for our son-in-law, Mac. The last time he had chemotherapy the doctor was thrilled to see that the cancer had stopped growing. However, within a few days Mac was in terrible pain and has now been admitted to hospital for pain control medication. He has been in hospital for about a week and will be receiving chemotherapy again tomorrow (Wednesday). It has been very difficult for Diane. She spends as much time with him as she can, but she is also trying to do some work at her office.

Michael and Caryl

August 2007

Michael spent two weeks in Kimberley teaching one student at the South African Bible Institute. He was disappointed in the student, but felt that he made some progress in helping the school get better-organized with finances. A friend from Kimberley has agreed to help with the book-keeping.

The weather was very cold while Michael was in Kimberley. He said he often saw ice by the road as he drove to South African Bible Institute early in the morning. He stayed with a friend, whom he has known since primary school days in the 50s.

I chose to stay at home (where it was much warmer.) I worked on sorting out some old mission papers, filing, and putting some historical information on the computer. When Michael got back we took care of some of the office work that had been piling up. We made significant progress in reducing the backlog.

Please continue to pray for Mac and Diane and all of Mac’s family. Mac continues to get chemotherapy. It really makes him exhausted. He sleeps a lot and doesn’t have the strength that he once had. To add to the drama for the family, Mac’s dad was retrenched because he wasn’t coping at his job. His brother, Oliver, came out from England to visit Mac and ended up helping their parents take care of business related to the retrenchment. Then Mac’s dad ended up in hospital for two days as he was not doing well. Oliver’s wife is expecting a baby next month and she experienced some problems while he was here. The family really feels overwhelmed by all of this. We continue to pray for them. They are Christians, but this is a very tough time for them.

Yesterday we celebrated Mom Stanley’s 86th birthday. We took a cake to her before we went to church and then all of the family visited throughout the day. She got several bouquets of flowers and lots of cards. She keeps telling us that she thinks Jesus will come for her soon.

Pray for the national church in South Africa. It is in a state of crisis. Too many people are more interested in power, prestige and position than in God’s Kingdom! We continue to pray that God will work in the hearts of men and women.

Michael and Caryl

July 2007

The annual youth camp was held at a school in northern KwaZulu Natal. Attendance was especially good with over 125 attending. The classrooms were used for classes, meals and sleeping. There was a large hall for the worship services. Michael and I were hosted by a teacher who is a member of the church. We were well cared for. There will be more information and pictures of the camp in the next South Africa Torch.

Mac, our son-in-law, has been receiving chemotherapy and radiation treatment for lung cancer, but the cancer is continuing to grow and spread. His doctor has done some more tests and is changing the treatment. Please continue to pray for Mac, Diane and the rest of the family. His parents and grandmother live nearby, and his only brother and his family live in England.

Michael will be teaching a two-week intensive class at South African Bible Institute in Kimberley from 30 July to 10 August. Pray for him as he teaches and for his students.

Michael and Caryl

13 June 2007

Please pray for our son-in-law, Mac, and for our daughter, Diane. Mac has been seeing a doctor for several months because of problems with his lungs. He was treated for pleurisy, then pneumonia and finally allergies (to dogs, dust, grass and mold). However, no treatment seemed to help, so on Thursday (June 7) his doctor sent him to Kingsway Hospital in Amanzimtoti to see a pulmonary specialist and to have tests done. They did a bronchioscopy, drained fluid from his lungs and removed a swollen lymph gland amongst other things. The lymph gland confirmed what the doctor suspected and on Monday we were told that it is lung cancer. This week he has been going through more tests to determine whether the cancer is present in any other part of his body. The CT scans which were done today (June 13) are clear., but he is still in hospital as he will be having more tests.

The oncologist is anxious to get started on treatment, but they are waiting to determine whether their insurance will cover treatment in the private hospital. There is a government hospital with a good oncology department, but right now the government workers are on strike. Because there is a danger of that happening again or of equipment breaking down and delays in getting repairs done, the oncologist is working very hard to get permission for the treatment to be done in the private hospital.

We will keep you informed as we learn more.

Michael and I will be leaving on Friday morning for Kimberley There will be a South African Bible Institute Board of Governors meeting on Saturday and the Annual General Meeting on Sunday. Pray for us as we travel and as the Board makes decisions regarding the school. We will return home on Monday.

Caryl

Late April 2007

We are back in South Africa and are getting settled in. It is great to be home again!

Dina and Sean moved out of our house about a week or so before we got back. Intruders took advantage of their absence. The alarm went off and the security company sent someone out to check. He said all was in order. When they contacted Sean to say the alarm had gone off again, he decided to come out and see for himself. The garage light was on, so he went around the back of the house and discovered a couple of young guys had broken in. He shouted and they escaped over the concrete fence around our property. They did not succeed in stealing Dina and Sean’s bicycles (which they had moved out of the garage) or anything else of value, but they had made a huge mess in the garage, even eating part of a cake that was in the freezer.

We have enjoyed some family time since we got back. Sean and Mac celebrated birthdays the day after we got home. We got to see a lot of their friends and enjoyed birthday cake and home-made ice cream.

We have been to see Mom Stanley a couple of times. Her health has deteriorated some, but we enjoyed our visits with her. She recognized us immediately and even made comments about people who had sent greetings to her.

We stopped by Magog Primary School on our way to Umzumbe Bible Institute early last week and most of the teachers came out to welcome us back. We are looking forward to getting back to our classes there and we are making plans for the next Grade 7 Life Skills camp which will be at the end of May.

When we went to Umzumbe Bible Institute we were able to assess some of the damage done by the intruders at the end of last year. It is a big mess and we have not been back to start the clean-up yet. Two doors were stolen and at least one other door will have to be replaced. It looks like the best plan might be to back the pick-up up to the building and take a lot of stuff to the dump! It seems that their main purpose was to damage and destroy.

While we were at Umzumbe Bible Institute, the high school students walked past on their way home. Many of the Grade 8 students, who had been in our Life Skills classes last year, greeted us and two girls even came into the yard and visited with us.

We plan to go to Mntwan’ungamizizwe High School next week. Michael will resume his Tuesday morning devotions for the students (and teachers) there. Once we have completed the necessary repairs at Umzumbe Bible Institute, we will resume the extra lessons in English for them. We will have to replace our computers before we can begin computer lessons.

Michael has telephoned some of the church people so we are making contact with them again and are looking forward to resuming our activities. On Sunday (21st April) we will be at Umzumbe for church and on April 28th we will go to Kwa Mashu (near Durban). Our plan is to visit the churches throughout KwaZulu Natal over the next few months.

Pray for us as we get re-settled and as we re-establish our ministry programs.

Caryl and Michael

Early April 2007

Our time in the States is getting very short. We leave on the 11th of April, so have less than two weeks left. It is a busy time as we pack and prepare to leave.

We have completed our speaking schedule. It has been a good year. We visited 22 churches, two ladies groups and some individuals that support us. We had to cancel two speaking dates because of weather. In January we were within 50 miles of the church in Nebraska, but they had so much snow that they cancelled their church service. At the end of February we got snowed in and had to cancel a speaking date in Indiana because we were snowed in in Minnesota. We also visited four churches that have an interest in our work, but are not regular supporters. We spoke for some youth groups, cell groups, and schools while we were traveling. We were blessed with good weather most of the time and safe travels. We enjoyed our visits with people who hosted us and provided meals for us.

We are now in the process of packing up our possessions so we can move out of the house provided by the Horicon Church of Christ near Truman Minnesota. What a blessing that has been - a place to call our own when we weren’t traveling! We will store some things with our siblings and pack a lot to take back to South Africa with us. We are trying to decide what to keep, what to store, what to throw away, and what to take with us. Now if the weight limits for our luggage weren’t so low it would be a lot easier! Of course, we also need to take some goodies back to the family in South Africa.

Pray for us as we prepare and as we travel. We are looking forward to getting back to our own home, seeing our children and grandchildren, and resuming our work.

Pray for us as we reestablish our work with the young people in the local primary and high school, as we return to the Umzumbe church, and as we travel throughout KwaZulu Natal and visit the churches to preach, teach and encourage.

Thank you to each of you who welcomed us to your churches and your homes.

Love,
Caryl and Michael

January 2007

It has been a busy month with a lot of traveling. Not only have we visited churches in South Dakota and Minnesota, but we also took a few days to enjoy a vacation. Although it is a strange time to do sight-seeing in the northern part of the United States, we spent three days in Western South Dakota. Michael had never see Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, the Black Hills, the Badlands, Wall Drug, etc. I had been there so many years ago that I had only vague memories of my visit. Since we were already in South Dakota, we decided to head on west and we really had a wonderful time. There was some snow, but it was warm enough that we didn’t even need hats, though we did wear our gloves while we walked the presidential trail at Mount Rushmore. It was a most enjoyable interlude.

This year we were able to attend the Dakota Christian Conference and what a blessing it was. The messages by Ben Cachiaras were challenging and the fellowship was great.

So far the weather in our travels has not been bad. We have had some snow, but have been able to get to all of the churches as scheduled. The end of January has brought us more typical Minnesota weather – cold, snowy, and windy.
We are getting anxious to return to South Africa and our flights are now booked. We will leave Minnesota on April 11 and arrive home on April 13. A lot of work awaits us in South Africa. We will have to repair the buildings at Umzumbe Bible Institute as a result of the damage done during the recent break-ins. We will also re-establish our ministry to the school children in our area and visit the churches of KwaZulu Natal.

Pray for us as we travel to visit churches in Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, Indiana and Ohio over the next 2 months. Also pray for us as we make decisions about what to take back to South Africa with us.

Caryl and Michael

2006 Email Updates

December 2006

We have been busy traveling over the past two months and I seem to have gotten behind in my emails.

We have enjoyed our visits to churches - renewing friendships and reporting on our work in South Africa. We have traveled many miles and have had safe journeys, for which we are most thankful.

We attended the National Missionary Convention in Indianapolis. What a joy to share in the worship services, attend workshops, meet missionary colleagues from South Africa and around the world, meet Bible college students and see many of our friends from churches around the country.

We reported in our last email that we had heard from our son-in-law that the mission property had been burgled. Unfortunately, the burglars have broken down the doors again and again after Sean repaired them. We now know that we have lost tools, mattresses, a small refrigerator, a gas cylinder and equipment which we had on hand. The last time they even stole the doors off two of the buildings! We won’t know the full extent of the losses until we can go back and start looking around for ourselves. Michael phoned a lady who lives near the mission and she says they suspect some people who live in the community are doing it. We just don’t know how to stop them or what to do to protect the property - short of hiring someone who could be on the property at all times.

The National Youth Seminar was held early in December. We have not heard much about how things went, except that the attendance was lower than anticipated. We pray that those who were there were blessed and encouraged in their walk with God.

We are at our home near Truman now and will speak here on Sunday. Then we will be going to visit family for Christmas celebrations in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. We are looking forward to that, though we will miss our children and grandchildren in South Africa over the holidays.

Pray for us as we continue to travel in the new year. We will be in Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, Indiana and Ohio during the next three months. Our goal is to finish our speaking dates by the end of March and then return to South Africa in mid-April.

Crime is really a serious problem in South Africa. We would ask you to pray for our family and the Christians in South Africa. Also pray for God’s protection for anything of value left at Umzumbe Bible Institute.

Michael and I wish you a very Merry Christmas. May your celebrations be joyful and Christ-centered. We also wish you a blessed year in 2007.
Love,
Michael and Caryl

October 2006 Supplement

Shortly after we sent out our monthly email to you, we received word from our son-in-law, Sean, that there had been a burglary at Umzumbe Bible Institute. A lady who lives near UBI phoned to tell him that there had been a break-in. All of the doors in the office/library complex had been broken, the alarm system had been removed from the wall, and all of the rooms had been ransacked. On a more positive note, it seems that nothing may have been taken. We were surprised to hear that he computers and lawn mower were still there. We are waiting to hear from Sean if he can tell if anything is missing. Of course, we will not know until we return and see for ourselves as Sean is not that familiar with the things that should be there. We do not have burglary insurance so we will just have to pay for the repairs that have to be done. Pray for Sean as he has to deal with this in our absence.

Caryl

October 2006

We are well into our speaking schedule and it has been encouraging to meet with people in our supporting churches. Over the next few months we will do more traveling and will visit as many of the churches as possible.

If all goes as we plan we will be mostly in Illinois and Indiana in November, Oklahoma and Nebraska in December, South Dakota in January, Iowa and Nebraska in February, and Indiana and Ohio in March. We will also be in some Minnesota churches almost every month.

We have not heard much from the people in South Africa. Michael wrote to the teachers at the schools in the Umzumbe area. The English teacher we have worked with for the past few years did respond and he said, “I told my colleagues at school about our letter and they were happy to learn that you are still okay. And they did express the fact that they miss your Tuesday Prayers.” We will be glad to get back to that again when we return to South Africa.

We know that the annual conference took place in South Africa, but we have not received any reports of how it went. We continue to pray for the Christians there.

We have learned from our children and Michael’s sister that Mom Stanley has not been very well. Our desire is to see her again when we return to South Africa, but we do not want her to linger in pain. Continue to pray for her.

All of our children seem to be keeping busy and we are thankful for email so we can keep in touch with them. Sean has begun his orthotics/prosthetics clinic in Port Shepstone and we are pleased for him.

One sad note is that a very dear friend of mine (Caryl) in South Africa passed away recently. She was a little older than me and had some health issues, but I was surprised to hear she was gone.

We are getting geared up for winter. We have our winter coats and boots, so I guess if the snow comes we are prepared. We have seen a few light flurries, but so far no snow has stayed around.

Continue to pray for us as we travel and report to churches. Our desire is to inform and encourage interest in the work in South Africa, Pray that we will be able to do that.

Caryl and Michael

September 2006

Greetings from Southern Minnesota. We are happily settled in our home and enjoying country life. We have made applesauce from the apples that grow in our yard. We can hear the sheep bleating in the pasture across the driveway. We saw three deer out the kitchen window tonight.

We have begun our travels and have booked almost all of the weekends until early December. We will be contacting other churches to arrange dates in the new year soon. Our initial speaking engagements have been in Wisconsin, but the next four weeks take us to churches in Minnesota. Then in mid-October we head out to Eastern Ohio for our first long trip.

It has been great to see friends and family again. We have enjoyed our visits and times of sharing. The people at the Horicon Church of Christ have been very generous and are taking good care to us.

We hear regularly from our children in South Africa, but have not heard from any of the African brethren and co-workers there. We do know that the annual conference will be held at the end of the month and we would ask you to keep the speakers and leaders in your prayers.

Dina began work as a nurse at the hospice in Port Shepstone and Sean is looking into opening up an orthotics/ prosthetics clinic in Port Shepstone. They seem to have settled into our house now and it sounds like things are going well for them.

Pray for us as we travel and speak. If you have specific times when you would like to have us come to visit, please contact us by email or phone. michael.stanley@venturenet.co.za or caryl_stanley@hotmail.com
612-770-7921 (Michael’s cell) or 507-436-5232 (house)

August 2006

We are getting settled in the parsonage at the Horicon Church of Christ, which is in a rural area just south of Truman Minnesota. The house has a bedroom, bathroom, office, living room and kitchen on the main floor. The upstairs has three bedrooms, which we just use for storage. The church people have loaned us furniture and essentials. They have been most welcoming and we have enjoyed our time here.

We spent the first month based in Minneapolis and involved with family activities. We were able to participate in a wedding, a holiday, a cancer fund-raiser and a family reunion.

We begin our visits to churches this weekend. We will be in Wisconsin and Minnesota in August, September and October. In November we will be in Illinois and Indiana (for the National Missionary Convention.) In December we will go to Oklahoma. We are in the process of arranging the schedule for the rest of the time. Pray for us as we travel and speak.

We have discovered that the trunk of our car is a little small for our suitcases and display, but we are happy with our car. We got cell phones while we were still in Minneapolis - and now discover that we have no cell contact at our house. We have to drive about 10 miles to get a signal.

However, it seems it will be better in most of the areas where we will be traveling. Michael’s number is 612-770-7921. When we are at home you can reach us at the Horicon Church of Christ. The number is 507-436-5232 and it rings in our house.

We are in regular contact with the family in South Africa. Sean is handling our financial affairs there and we are all on a steep learning curve!! We thought we had everything in order, but we are all thankful for email so we can quickly deal with issues that come up.

Pray for the churches in South Africa. The annual conference will be coming up at the end of September. We have heard that the venue has been changed since we left South Africa. We are not sure why that was done. Pray especially that there will be a revival among church leaders.

Michael and Caryl

July 2006

We arrived back in the United States on July 14. It is great to be here and we have been busy since we arrived.

It definitely was not our smoothest trip! We had trouble checking in in Durban because we wanted to check our luggage through to Minneapolis. The agent was having a lot of trouble so we finally asked her to just send our luggage through to Johannesburg and we would collect it and check in again. By then we were late so had to run to our flight. When we were seated and the doors of the plane were closed, Michael realized that he had left his DayRunner (a book which includes calendar, addresses, phone numbers, etc.) in the security tray. We couldn’t go back, but the flight attendant was able to confirm that it was there. When we got to Johannesburg we tried to have it brought up before we left at near midnight. Unfortunately, all the planes had already left Durban for the night.

The flight from Johannesburg to Amsterdam was not full, so we were able to stretch out a bit and we both slept. I suppose there were movies, but neither of us were interested. We were exhausted and really enjoyed just getting some rest.

We had a full plane from Amsterdam to Minneapolis. When we were somewhere over the ocean they asked if there was a doctor on board. Later they announced that we were making an unscheduled stop because of a medical emergency. They said we would land at Goose Bay. Before we landed they told us to prepare for an emergency landing, but we didn’t land. Michael had noticed that he couldn’t see the wing because of fog or cloud. We were on the way down when, suddenly, we were climbing again. Apparently, the runway for instrument landing was closed for repairs and the visual landing runway was not visible. So we flew on to Gander and landed there. The emergency medical case was taken off the plane and we refueled before going on to Minneapolis.

Fortunately, our family hadn’t given up on us, in spite of being about 2 hours late. We enjoyed a meal at a restaurant with 11 other family members before heading to Duane and Kathy’s for the night.

Since we have been back, we have done a little fun shopping (like treats we haven’t been able to get for a few years) and some major shopping. We have purchased a car. It is a 2005 Chrysler Sebring. We trust that it will serve us well for the next few months. The Mission was given a brand new laptop computer with printer. It has worked hard for us over the past few days as we have taken care of some important mission work.

Last weekend we attended the wedding of a nephew. We helped with the Groom’s Dinner on Friday night and Michael was invited to participate in the service on Saturday by reading scripture. It was so nice to be able to participate in this special family event.

Tomorrow we leave for a week of holiday. We will return in time to participate in the Stillwater, MN, Relay for Life and the Stanley family reunion at Kimball, MN. Then we will begin visiting churches. We have a few weekends scheduled, but we look forward to hearing from you about when we can come and visit you. Please contact us at michael.stanley@venturenet.co.za or phone us on 612-770-7921 to arrange a date.

Pray for our family and the churches we have left behind in South Africa. Also pray for safety for us as we travel here in the United States.

Caryl and Michael