Bijeljina

This week we drove to Sarajevo to pick up the Leonards who flew in from Frankfort, Germany.  The Leonards have responsibility for 11 Humanitarian couples in the Europe area.  We are one of those couples.  While in Sarajevo we had lunch in a delightful restaurant which is really an enclosed alley between two buildings. 

Elder Leonard, Sister Leonard, Susan, and Gary

 

On Friday we went to the town of Bijeljina for a wheelchair distribution.  The Red Cross of Bijeljina had picked up these chairs from the previous distribution in Tuzla.  They had brought the chairs to a warehouse to be stored and then organized a distribution for the surrounding communities.  As soon as we arrived we were ushered in front of the media where Gary spoke about the Church, our humanitarian organization, and where the money to help those in need comes from.

 

Gary and Media

 

 Media and recipient

 

 Perica Gligić, Gary, Elder Leonard, and Nermin

 

Discussing distribution with Red Cross and Deputy Mayor

 

After he spoke then they interviewed someone who was there to receive a new chair.  Following the ceremony we followed the Red Cross director down the road a little way and had lunch at  "Restoran Kenoba".  What an delightfully enchanting place, complete with Bosnian decor.

 

Sister Leonard, Elder Leonard, Gary and Susan

 

Nermin, Elder Leonard, Gary, Susan and Perica Gligić

 

 

When we arrived, the place was empty, but not for long! 

  

Fireplace 

After lunch we walked around the complex.  It is called "Etno Selo Stanisici".  It is an ethnic village, complete with the restaurant, hotel, monastery, replica of the bridge in Mostar, an amphitheatre , a children's amusement park, authentic watermills, and a mini stable.  It was so captivating.  There were ponds along with cottages which had been moved there from other locations.  This is a place that we will definitely want to return to in the summer. 

 

 

 

 

Hotel

 

 One of the ponds (the swan is hiding)

 

Two cold ladies

 All in all it was a great week.  We feel truly blessed to be able to be a part of such a wonderful program which helps those in need.   

English Classes and Lotosice Closing Ceremony

Our young elders began their second session of English classes this week. .  They had another record turnout for sign ups. We have English classes on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.  Each class, beginning, intermediate and advanced meets twice a week.  There are four elders so that makes teaching a bit easier. There are two beginning classes, two intermediate classes, and one advanced class.  The elders make the classes fun with games which everyone seems to enjoy. In the pictures the players each have a fly swatter. As the elders say a word in Bosnian the players turn and see who will be the first the swat the word in English.   

 

On Thursday we had the opportunity to attend a closing ceremony for Lotosice (a closing ceremony marks the completion of the project. The media is always invited to the ceremony.)  We were interviewed by a radio station this time. 

Lotosice is a sheltered workshop providing work and training for people with disabilities. The project funds were used to purchase supplies for a new fence and security system where they make furniture.  The project also included a compressor for painting, a pneumatic stapler, a vacuum system for the sawdust, a computer and software for their computer numerical control router, and a copier. 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We are preparing for visitors from Germany next week and more visitors from Salt Lake City the following week.  The work moves forward and we are never without something to do.  We truly are thankful for the opportunity to help others to help themselves.   

Wheelchairs, New Elders, and Couples Conference

Yes, you could say that we had a busy week!  On Tuesday we had a wheelchair distribution here in Tuzla.  A wheelchair distribution consists of distributing a container of 250+ wheelchairs along with mobility devices such as crutches and walkers.  The ceremony was held at the former U.S.Army "Eagle Base" just outside of Tuzla, but still in the Tuzla Canton (county).  The Red Cross uses the old Army barracks as their warehouse.  Elder Kroff and Elder Merl were able to help put the wheelchairs and mobility devices in various stacks according to the 13 municipalities which each received a share of the equipment.

 

 

 

 

 

Representatives from the different Red Cross offices came to pick up their chairs.  We had a young lady come to get her chair.  Fatma is 16 years old.  She was only able to attend primary school and then was not able to go to secondary school because of her disability.  But that did not stop her.  She has competed in the Special Olympics and won 3 gold medals in swimming and table tennis.  She told us that is now learning archery.  She has also written 3 different books which she gave us a copy of. 

 

      

 

 

As part of the "ceremony" we were interviewed by Bosnian National TV.  After the ceremony everyone loaded their wheelchairs into cars and vans to distribute to those in need.  Later that night at English class sign-up one of the students from a previous class commented that he had seen us on TV. 

 



 

Wednesday we drove to Croatia where we met with the Croatian Red Cross in Zagreb on Thursday morning.  We discussed a wheelchair distribution for Croatia and talked about our ongoing well cleaning project.  We also started putting together an area project where we will buy materials for hygiene kits and have the local church branch and young adults in Zagreb assemble them.  This will give the church members in Zagreb the opportunity to serve and help the Red Cross with hygiene kits for their emergency response efforts.

 

After our meeting Thursday morning we went to the Mission Office.  We missed our new elders by just a few minutes.  They had just caught a bus to go to Tuzla.  The bus ride from Zagreb to Tuzla is 5 1/2 hours long.  Our new missionaries are Elder Quinn from Dallas, Texas and Elder Compton from Mesa, Arizona.  Sorry, no pictures till next week.  Can you believe it, we have 4 elders now?  We were told that we would be getting new missionaries.  Last week we went apartment hunting and found them a great apartment just around the corner from our church in the center of town. We also went shopping to get them dishes, silverware, pots and pans, bedding and towels as well as a microwave, washing machine, and vacuum.  

 

We went to the mission office to pick up the Office couple, the Erwins .  All of the senior missionaries were able to go to a conference in the mountains just above Zagreb.  We stayed at a ski lodge and had a wonderful time,  There was a total of 18 rooms in the lodge.  We used 16 of  the rooms.  The senior missionary numbers grew this week when we received two new couples on Tuesday.  We now have 14 couples in addition to three senior sisters.  The conference was wonderful.  We learned about "Hastening the Gathering".  As President Rowe, our mission president spoke to us regarding statements Elder Russell Nelson has made regarding the Adriatic North area we were struck with the thought that Elder Nelson is to Adriatic North area as President Monson was to the people in the former East Germany.  In September Elder Rasband visited and said to us: "What a privilege be on the front end of a beginning."  It really is exciting to see how the church is growing in this part of the Lord's vineyard.  Doors are opening and you really can feel we are on the dawning of a new era..  We were also counseled to Go to Work and Build, which we can do through Faith, Hope, and Charity.   

 

During another part of the conference we divided the men and women.  The elders discussed welfare issues and the sisters did a craft which Susan was able to teach.  Lizzy and Sara had sent all the supplies to make felt flowers with one if the new sisters who came this last week.  It was a lot of fun and all were thankful for them sending us the supplies to have our own enrichment activity.  Susan will be teaching this same craft to some of the Bosnian ladies in the Tuzla Senior Center in the coming months.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

          

Snagovo Primary School

This week we were able to take part in a closing ceremony for a water filter which we were to secure for a primary school in the small village of Snagovo.  We have visited the nearby town of Zvornik (one of the town in which mass murders and violence occured during the Bosnian war in the 90's) early in the month (see January 6, 2012) to discuss this project.  The water in this primary school was not fit for drinking.  The children had to bring water from home if they wanted to have something to drink.  There are 45 children in the school ages 5 to 10 years old.  We were able to purchase a filter that will clean and put chlorine in the water to make it potable.  When we arrived at the school we discovered that the gentleman whom we purchased the filter from had also donated a water dispenser that will be installed this next week and the children will be able to have both hot and cold water for drinking.  It was a delight to visit with the children.  They had made a thank you poster for us as well as drawn pictures telling about their clean water.  There was one young man who had written a thank you which he read in English to us.  He did a fantastic job.

Class and poster

 

Young man reading his thank you

Gary checking their art work

 

Student's art work

 

 Poster the children made

It says that "water is a precious liquid that means life"

 Children in Class

 

Water machine which was also donated

 

Some of their art work

 

More art work

 

More Children in class

 

Filter

 

These are the projects that we enjoy the most.  It gives everyone a good feeling to know the impact small donations from Church members make in the lives of these people. We feel that we are instruments in the Lord's hands. 

 

We also visited Banja Luka, another Bosnian city.  Here we met with the local Red Cross as well as the rehabilitation hospital regarding a wheelchair distribution which took place last year.  We discussed the possibility of  a future wheelchair project.  They told us of their need for wheelchairs for children.  It breaks our heart to see these young children (who are the same age as our grandchildren) with such a need.  We are hopeful that we will be able to help make a difference in their lives.

 

  5 year old patient

 

Another patient in need of a larger walker

 

We are indeed thankful for the opportunity we have to be able to serve those in need in this part of the Lord's vineyard.  We wish we could do more.  Again we thank you for remembering us in your prayers and for your support.  May the Lord bless us all as we strive to do his work.