Winter is Here

One of the things we were apprehensive about coming to Frankfurt was the cold, winter weather.  Well, it has arrived with vengeance.  In fact, it has been much colder than normal.  We have had a week of sub-freezing weather and a little snow.  The humid cold is more than what we are used to in Colorado.  We are grateful that last week we were able to move to an apartment right next door to the Area Office.  We have a 200-foot commute to work.  We are glad not to have the one kilometer walk each way to and from our last apartment.  We are on the 12^th floor of a 13-story high-rise.  The apartment (and kitchen) is a little smaller, but we have a commanding view of the Frankfurt skyline. We came to Frankfurt three months ago with two suitcases plus a carry-on for each of us.  We were amazed at how much we had accumulated.

One area Geoff has been working on is humanitarian donations.  You are probably aware that the Church makes multi-million dollar donations for relief when major disasters occur.  These often get publicity.  What you do not hear much about are the hundreds and hundreds of smaller donations. The Church has senior missionary couples throughout the world looking for opportunities where the Church can assist local charities by donating funds or materials and equipment usually with a value ranging from $5,000-30,000.  When the missionaries find an opportunity, they submit a proposal to the senior humanitarian couple for the Europe Central Area.  If it is approved, they prepare a Letter of Donation.  The form and details of the letter need to be approved from a legal perspective by the Office of the General Counsel.  The letter must include the name of the local Church entity in the country, the name of the cooperating organization (local Charity), the details of what is being donated and certain legal disclaimers to protect the Church.  So far, Geoff has reviewed and approved letters in the past two months for:

Albania – chicken coops, medical supplies, food, fuel for orphanage, medical equipment

Belgium – winter clothing for refugees

Bosnia and Herzegovina – dairy processing equipment, food and hygiene products for refugees

Bulgaria – food

France – hygiene kits for homeless

Hungary – food, medication, cleaning supplies, toiletries, baby supplies, toys & educational equipment

Italy – housing for refugees, food for Ukrainian refugees, medical assistance for refugees

Kosovo – nursery beds for nursery damaged by fire, food and medical supplies

Macedonia – funding for legal aid for refugees seeking asylum

Montenegro – garbage receptacles, food for Roma families with young children

Romania – tents for refugees, surgical equipment, Ronald McDonald House, appliances for disabled

Serbia – school furniture, portable showers in a bus, food products, firewood, educational materials

Slovakia – emergency supplies for Roma displaced by apartment fire

Spain – materials for refugee women, winter clothing, utilities, food for food bank

Please pray for our senior couple missionaries who ease suffering, strengthen individuals and families and shed the Light of Christ wherever they serve.  These missionaries truly spread the Spirit of Christmas all year long. “Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.””  Matt 25:40

Ten days ago, we went to France for lunch on a Saturday. The Area Legal Counsel (Geoff’s boss) served as a young missionary in the Paris mission.  He is passionate about French bakeries.  He planned an office trip to a US WW2 military cemetery just across the border in Saint Avold, France.  The itinerary was as follows:  Drive two hours to Saint Avold, stop at a bakery, visit the cemetery, return to the bakery for lunch, and drive home.  It was wonderful.  The cemetery there is the second largest US military cemetery in France.  There are 10,000 UD soldiers buried there.  It is second only to Normandy.  The families of fallen soldiers had the choice to have their sons returned to the US or to be buried in France in a military cemetery.  About 40% of families elected

We took a weekend trip to Rothenburg which is about two hours away.  Rothenburg is a medieval walled city that was virtually untouched during WW2.  It is the village the Disney Imagineers used to model the setting for the original, animated Pinocchio movie decades ago (even though the real Pinocchio is from an Italian village).  It was all decorated with lights and had a beautiful little Weihnachtmrkt (Christmas Market).  After dark, we took a Night Watchman’s tour of the city for an hour.  The guide dressed as a medieval night watchman and told us all about what life was like for the watchman and the residents in Medieval times.

We don’t yet know what we will be doing for Christmas.  We planned a trip to Paris, but there is a catch.  We have applied for a residency permit.  Until it comes, we are not allowed to leave the country (we cheated when we went just across the border to Saint Avold).  We are praying it comes in the next three days so we can go.  If not, we will celebrate Christmas here in Germany.  We will try to plan a quick trip to Bavaria.