Children’s camp for 120 teenagers
At the beginning of June, we were able to organise a children’s camp for almost 120 teenagers from 12 day centres. For many, it was the only opportunity to attend a summer camp, as it was free of charge. The camp was financed by donations via OM.
We played together, sang, laughed, gave Christian input, did handicrafts, made a film evening and had great conversations. Of course, we also ate a lot and experienced many other things. The absolute highlight for almost all the children was the swimming pool. On the very first day, they were already asking when they could swim. We had to divide them into groups for pool time and they were always on time.
It was great to see how much fun the children had and how much they enjoyed their time at the camp – with friends and in a place that wasn’t home.
Summer Outreach as a family
In July, we travelled to two villages as a family with a team of OM employees and short-term workers. We always carry out these outreaches in cooperation with a local church, and the people are very grateful for the support. Every day there was a children’s programme, we visited people at home, brought them food parcels, told them about Jesus and prayed for them. It was a fulfilling time where we saw God working in our lives as well as in the lives of the children and adults.
In the first week, the temperatures rose to over 40 degrees and we were initially unsure how we were going to run an outdoor children’s programme in this heat. I, Silvia, led the programme and gave it a lot of thought before we went to the village. But God had already prepared a solution. There was air conditioning in the room where we held the programme. In addition, some of the short-termers brought materials to make bracelets. Instead of playing outside, we spent the time in the air-conditioned room doing handicrafts. As not so many children came to the programme, we had enough time and materials for each child, and each child got plenty of attention.
In the second village, it was much cooler and we were able to put on a great programme every day together with the local church. The church even organised a bouncy castle and a trampoline, which the children really enjoyed. So we were able to offer a 4-hour programme without any problems. Thanks to enough Romanian-speaking helpers, we divided the children into small groups for the Bible lessons. This was one of the best decisions, as the children were better able to understand, discuss and ask questions, and we were able to pray for them much more specifically.
The outreach went by far too quickly, but I believe that it touched and changed many people deeply.
Third summer outreach
In August, I, Silvia, spent another two weeks working with a team in two other villages. The programme was the same as before, except that this time I didn’t have a leading role, which was a bit like a holiday for me. In both villages, different churches are working on building a congregation.
There is already a building in the first village, and a church service with Sunday school is held there every Sunday. One afternoon, we helped a young single mother to tidy up her garden. She had just moved into an almost dilapidated house, but she has to live in it because she can’t get another house for free. It was impressive to see how much work a team can do in two hours. The church in Ungheni, which supports this village, is very innovative. In addition to the church services, there are teenage evenings, a crèche for needy children, a hotel and even a fitness centre. As we hadn’t done enough exercise while cleaning up, we went to the fitness centre in the evening.
In the second village, a family has only recently started working there. They are planning to buy a house and offer regular activities for the children. Our children’s programme was the first of its kind in this village. The children were a little wary at first, but as they got to know us better, they opened up more and more and we had many wonderful experiences with them.
Recreation and team retreat
After the many outreaches, we treated ourselves to a few days camping by a lake in August. At Lake Bicaz we found a place where we could enjoy the sun, water, mud and frogs. Every evening we made a fire, and we hardly had to get the wood ourselves. We had inadvertently camped on the property of a local who was so pleased with us that he kept bringing us wood.
We then went on to our annual team retreat. We used this time to relax, socialise and enjoy the beautiful Romanian countryside. It’s always nice to spend time with the people you see every day and have in-depth conversations.
Unfortunately, when we wanted to drive back to Moldova afterwards, there were problems. At the border, we were told that our car had been in Moldova for more than 6 months and we were therefore not allowed to drive back. Although we tried to negotiate, it didn’t help. So we drove back to Romania in the evening and wanted to camp at Lake Stanca. Unfortunately, it was already dark and Tim drove into a huge puddle of mud. As we couldn’t get out, we set up the tent and prepared to spend the night there. Luckily Tim was able to get hold of someone from the local 4×4 club who pulled us out around midnight.
The next day we saw how beautiful the lake was and decided to camp there for the rest of the week.
High profile visit
Tim’s father was with us for the first time since we moved to Chișinău. We enjoyed our time together and the two of them gave free rein to their creativity in the garden. After a few long days of work, the children were allowed to take delivery of their research station. It was nice to have him here, also because he was able to be there for Ruben’s seventh birthday. He particularly enjoyed the Lego building time together, while Elia learnt how to play Uno from Grandpa.
Elia didn’t quite understand what “winning” meant. After he had discarded all his cards, he was totally disappointed that he was no longer allowed to play. As a child, Tim spent many evenings playing Settlers of Catan with his father, which also rubbed off on our two girls. They kept forcing Grandad to embark on new adventures of discovery, with Grandad realising that he had to try much harder than when playing Uno with Elia – and still lost, much to the delight of Anna and Lara.
The conversations we had together in the evening after the children had gone to bed also remain a fond memory. It’s always nice when family visits us or we come to stay.
New addition to the family
In addition to the beautiful nature, there was another reason why we stayed at the lake all week: On the first morning, a one-year-old dog turned up. She played with the children during the day and slept next to the car at night. Shortly before we left, Tim had said that dogs were great, but not compatible with our lifestyle. And there she was – Leica.
You never know what you’re going to get with stray dogs: Do they bark? Do they bite? Are they healthy? So we watched them carefully. How does she react to noise? Children playing? Other dogs? Leica always remained calm – even when Tim accidentally dropped a few metal bowls on the floor next to her with a clatter, she only opened her eyes briefly and continued to doze.
After two days we decided to try an adoption. She had to be tested, chipped and vaccinated before she could be imported. As she was only allowed to cross the border three weeks after vaccination, we found a private rescue centre. The first problem: she didn’t want to get into the car. Despite treats, she remained steadfast. When Tim tried to get her in, she grabbed his arm in fear – but didn’t bite. With a little coaxing and a tin of wet food, she finally got in three-fourths of the way. A little push, the sliding door closed quickly, and after a bit of petting from Silvia, the journey began.
All the tests at the vet were good, except for a tick, which is normal in this area. So we sadly left her in the care of Monica and her team. But as soon as we got home, we found out that she had blood in her urine and wasn’t eating. Canine malaria! If she hadn’t come with us, she would have died a few days later. Fortunately, Monica recognised it in time and Leica recovered quickly.
We picked her up exactly one week ago and drove her home. Here she is slowly making friends with the cats. The street dogs are also interested in her – she promptly went into heat. After two nights on a lead in the garden, Lara came running into the house: “Dad, we have dogs in the garden!” As she hasn’t been neutered yet, we hope that there won’t be any offspring after the new addition to the family.