Greetings,

First, let us say how grateful we are to all who have been contributing to our support and for those that responded to our appeal for funding in June.  With gratitude to you all and praise to God, we’re happy to say our funding is about where it should be for this fiscal year.  It is a privilege to partner with you in this work and we pray for your continued support.  We thank God for you all!

The big events of the summer got started when we attended the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s General Assembly in Atlanta, GA in June.  We helped lead a workshop for Central Seminary while there and got to mingle and net work with CBF Baptists from all over the country.

While in the Atlanta, we also had the opportunity to attend a workshop on the growing international communities in the US.  Be looking for the term “Diaspora Missions” as the idea grows of working with and through international groups in the US to reach not only those here, but their friends and families that remain in their original countries.   Almost every people and language group in the world is already in America often looking for acceptance and a place to belong.  Shouldn’t our churches be the first place to give a welcome?

The CBF gathering was soon followed by the American Baptist’s International Ministries’ All Staff Gathering, International Partner Consultation, Call Retreat and World Mission Conference in Green Lake, WI.  Four conferences held back to back over a two week period in July stretched the Green Lake facilities and everyone involved.  But it was a great way to celebrate the 200^th birthday of International Ministries and to seek the Lord’s leading as the third century of service gets underway.

Meanwhile, the FOUNDATIONS Judson Communities classes we are organizing have been progressing well.  The full, 14 class program has now been completed in Ft. Wayne, IN, Utica, NY and New Bern, NC.  This weekend, the 10^th class will be held in Nashville and next weekend, the 7^th class will be held in St. Paul, MN.  A total of 99 students have now completed the program and we anticipate an additional 110 students will complete the programs in Nashville and St. Paul by the end of the year.  We are very grateful for the instructors that have been so willing to teach and for all the students that have been eager to take the classes.  All the classes have been conducted in the Karen language.

In family news, Shannon had a good summer internship in Paso Robles, CA working with animals at an organization called Zoo To You.  She has now started her senior year at Malone University and hopes to train animals after graduation. 

Erin graduated from Judson University and is taking a year off to do internships and hopes to start grad school next year.  Her degree is in Environmental Science.  She just completed one internship on Fire Island off Long Island in NY being involved in various kinds of wildlife research.  Right now she is home in Kansas but will soon head to Big Pine Key in the Florida Keys for another wildlife research internship that will last until the end of the year.

Sean is well into his second year of teaching English to first grade students at the Prince Royal College in Chiang Mai in Thailand.  When this school year is over he plans to take a teacher certification program with an eye toward teaching in international schools.

We still have several hundred pounds of Tobeebay Coffee available for sale.  Coffee flavor degrades after it is roasted so hurry and order some now. 

Thank you again for making our work possible!

Blessings,

Duane & Marcia