Christmas News

Our daughter, Heidi, was born on 29th August:

In the UK

Plans for the Year

I'm going to keep this page updated with our travel plans for the year, as they develop.

This is what we know so far about our Home Leave plans:

23 May: Fly to Sydney, Australia
26 May: Fly to Maui, Hawaii
1 June: Fly to Florida
12 June: Speaking at Bethel Community Church, Sarasota, Florida

19 June - 25 June: Vacation with Andrew's family
28 June: Fly to London
10 July: Speaking at 'The Stable', Barnet
24 July: Speaking at Barnet Brookside Methodist Church

30 July - 6 August: Holiday with Clare's family
29 August: Baby due

1-2 October: Mission event at Huntingdon Methodist Church
10-13 October: Leicestershire
13-21 October: Cumbria and Scotland
21-28 October: Guildford, including involvement at St. Saviour's Mission Sunday
28 October - 31 October: Barnet
31 October: Fly to Florida
4 November - 23 December: USA - FL, MI, TN, NC
23 December: Drive back to Palmetto, Florida
11 January: Fly to Brisbane, Australia
18 January: Arrive back in Ukarumpa, Papua New Guinea

We're hoping to see as many as you as possible while on our travels!

Leaving in a Week

We're busy getting ready for our eight-month home assignment, which starts in a week. We leave PNG on Monday 23rd May, visiting friends in Sydney, Australia and in Hawaii before arriving in Florida at the beginning of June to spend four weeks with Andrew's parents.

Andrew is trying hard to finish up as much work as possible before we leave and also needs to clean up his office and work area, as well as get some things done around the house, so he is keeping busy.

I (Clare) have been doing lots of sorting and packing. We are glad that a friend will be staying in our house while we're away, so I've been getting the house ready for her to move in. Although Andrew and Levi have now had their PNG visas renewed, my passport is still in the government offices waiting for for the new visa. I'm not completely sure what will happen if the visa isn't renewed before the date we leave, but it would certainly add complications!

Levi, now two and a half, is sleeping better than he was last time we wrote, and we hope he adjusts well to sleeping in new places over the next few months. This time away from PNG will be a big change for all of us, but please pray especially for Levi, for whom everything and everyone will be particularly unfamiliar. Right now, the concern he expresses most often is whether he will be able to bring his favourite toy puppy on the plane! (This dog was actually given to us as a wedding present, but we never found out who it was from. If you gave it to us, please let us know!!)

I'm now 25 weeks pregnant with the new baby, who is making his/her presence known on a regular basis! I've been having regular check-ups at the clinic here in Ukarumpa, and will arrange for continued medical care once we get to England.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support, which we value particularly at this time of transition.

For One Morning Only

I (Clare) recently had a new experience: teaching preschool for the morning. There is no agency the school can contact to send for a substitute/supply teacher, so if a teacher is unable to work one day, members of the community might be asked to fill in.

Supporting Translation

One of our roles in PNG is as 'support team' to Beth Fuller, a translation adviser in the Aitape West multi-language project. Men from twelve different language groups have been working hard to translate the book of Luke into their own language. Now, the work on this book is almost complete. These books are being taken into the villages where the languages are spoken, so that others can read them and give input into whether any final changes are needed.

In this photo, you can see Jonathon (from Onnele language), Clement (Bauni Pou), Joe (Baunti Barupu) and Augustine (Bauni Pou) binding the books they helped to translate. Beth has been advising these men at each step of the journey; we've been able to support her in small ways by doing things like keeping in touch via radio and email, and running errands for her back here in Ukarumpa. Levi likes to pray for 'Auntie Beth' before he goes to sleep each night!

Hard Work, Fun and Home Assignment