Winckles Family Update

Cat in the Bag

The expression "curiosity killed the cat" is certainly founded on truth. Today Paisley was curious about a cloth bag, and soon found himself in the bag!

The Farewells Begin

We say farewell to Katie's parents and extended family today and head back down to Southern Michigan. Cousins from Australia and Hawaii have been up here as well, so we took the opportunity to make a group photo. In all likelihood all of these people will never again be in the same place at the same time.

Pictured are: Larry, Alan Washburn (first cousin, once removed), Katie, George Washburn (Katie's father), Jane Suphan (first cousin, once removed), Stephen Washburn (first cousin, once removed), Melissa Washburn (first cousin), John Washburn (first cousin), Mary Suphan (first cousin), Ruth Washburn (aunt, seated), Anna Washburn (niece), Luana Washburn (Katie's mother), Loren Washburn (Katie's brother), Matthew Washburn (nephew), Kristy Washburn (sister-in-law), Grant Washburn (nephew), and Jonathan Washburn (nephew). We had a great time with everyone!

Our original plan was to return to Hungary this Wednesday, but our depart has been delayed a bit due to some medical concerns of Katie's. She'll have further diagnostic testing tomorrow, and we have a consultation with her doctor on Friday.  If all goes well, we'll be returning to Hungary next week.

Please pray that the test will be conclusive, and that we will have wisdom in making decisions about the proper course of action.

4th of July Parade

A traditional part of 4th of July celebrations across the United States is a community parade. A group of us went to the parade in Brimley, Michigan this afternoon. You couldn't ask for more perfect weather! The kids always have a good time, and usually end up gathering a lot of candy that is thrown out to them.

Click here to see more photos of the parade.

Katie's idea of bliss

Up in the U.P.

We traveled to Bay Mills Point in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan this week for a short visit with Katie's parents. Today we visited the Point Iroquois Lighthouse, which is only a few miles away from the Washburn family cabin.

Beginning a new life...

We concluded our whirlwhind stay in Jamestown, North Dakota this week, cutting our visit short by a day in order to get back to Toledo, Ohio for a doctor's appointment. A lot was accomplished during our time there, and Larry's mom and sister seem to be off to a good start in their new life as North Dakotans.

Hello Jamestown!

We've had an exhausting week in Jamestown, trying to get Larry's mom and sister settled in to their new apartment at the Heritage Centre and established in North Dakota. We've dealt with bankers, a lawyer, mental health professionals, physicians, an insurance agent, the newspaper, the cable tv & telephone company, electric company, the driver's license bureau, the department of motor vehicles, and more! We've unpacked an untold number of boxes, organized bedrooms, carried out tons of trash, installed shelves, organized cupboards, sorted clothing, and more!

In spite of the hard work, we've had lots of time to laugh. Nancy and Katie had fun trying on old nightgowns today when unpacking one box. We discovered another box with waste paper baskets that still had trash in them -- which had been move to North Dakota from Michigan!

Katie enjoys walking as a means of exercise and relaxation, so we took a small break this morning and participated in a 5K family walk that actually started on the grounds of the Heritage Centre and proceeded around the Jamestown reservoir. It was nice to be able to take our minds off the work for a few minutes.

We have three days left in North Dakota, and still a lot of work to get done. Pray that things would go smoothly.

Ferndale FMC

After an exhausting week we took a "break" today from packing and traveled to the Ferndale Free Methodist Church. We led a combined adult/youth Sunday School class during which time we talked about common fears and concerns that are shared all around the world, as well as detailing some of Larry's Europe work (new missionary orientations, affiliations, and appreciative inquiry). 

During the morning service we had a chance to share briefly with the children and then speak to the congregation about the ministries in Budapest. We are thankful for the support that we receive from the good folks at Ferndale, who are now in the midst of difficult economic times.

Goodbye Monroe...

After weeks of preparation, sorting, pitching, and packing the moving day finally arrived. The moving van is now loaded and on its way to North Dakota. Larry's mom and sister are ensconced in a Comfort Inn, and we are ready to drop! We fly out to North Dakota on Monday.

One of the highlights of the afternoon was when Nancy showed Andrew a secret hiding place that Larry's dad used to put valuables. Larry had looked there earlier in the week and didn't see anything.  But today Nancy turned on the closet light and Andrew discovered a flat box that was almost identical in color to the wood.  It turned out to be a box of $100 worth of quarters!  Andrew and Nancy got to split the find!  Nancy was absolutely thrilled!

Evening in Spring Arbor

This evening we spoke at the evening service of the Spring Arbor Free Methodist Church. It is always great to reconnect with Pastor Mark VanValin and his wife, Linda, as well as with all of our other dear friends and supporters there.

Morning in Jackson

We participated in all three of the morning worship services this morning at the Jackson Free Methodist Church, and spoke during the Sunday School hour as well. Pastor Doug Langford likes to use an interview format with us during the services, and this time we had the opportunity to share about the various ministries and activities taking place in the Budapest Ministry Center, as well as about the Appreciative Inquiry process that we've been involved with across Europe.

The Jackson Free Methodist Church is our single largest supporting church, and we are thankful for their faithfulness and encouragement!

Friends in Spring Arbor

We had dinner tonight with Shasha and Jenn Wu and their family, in Spring Arbor, Michigan. Sasha is a professor of computer science at Spring Arbor University and Jenn was one of Katie's English students during 2005/2006.

Southern Michigan Annual Conference in Coldwater, Michigan

We spent the day today in Coldwater, Michigan attending the Southern Michigan Annual Conference. It provided us with a great opportunity to visit with some of our missionary colleagues, pastors, and other friends. The conference was held at the Coldwater Free Methodist Church, which has a beautiful new family center that was perfectly suited to hosting the event.

We were happy to be able to visit with Troy and Angela Peterson (recently returned from Taiwan), Patrick and April Barrett (recently returned from Costa Rica), Fred and Barb Adams (on home assignment from the Philippines), and Dustin Weber (preparing for field assignment). Earlier this week someone at a church confused Larry with Dustin, but as you can see from the photo, there is absolutely no resemblance between the two of them!

We also connected with a large number of pastors and delegates from our supporting churches, including several who had been pastors at the church where Larry grew up in Monroe, Michigan. (Earl Habecker, Bob Bolton, and Sheryl Colter) It was wonderful to be able to see these fine people once again! 

Oh yes, there was a conference going on, too!  Bishop David Kendall presided, and scattered throughout the day special reports were given by pastors and church members about how lives had been transformed in their congregations in the past year. A stand-out testimony came from the delegates from the Taylor - Warren Road church. This couple had a very troubled past and had divorced over twelve years ago. It was only in recent years that each person came to faith in Christ and ended up attending the same church. They both became involved in church activities and programs, and recognized that their lives had been transformed -- they were no longer the same people. They concluded their testimony by announcing that they would be remarried in the church this coming August!

Cornerstone Community Church - Battle Creek

Larry spoke at the Cornerstone Community Church in Battle Creek, Michigan last night. The pastor is Eric Perry (aka Erik the Rev).

Morning at Holland Free Methodist

We began our summer speaking engagements this morning at Holland Free Methodist Church in Holland, Ohio. This is our home church and is also where Andrew and Christy now attend (and are actively involved in leadership.) It was great to be able to reconnect with many old friends and to meet new people.

One special person that we met today was Pastor Keith and Rachel SImpson's newly adopted son, David. It was a delight to see how well he is doing developmentally and socially. He is integrating well into the family.

This summer we are addressing three questions as we visit churches. They are: "Where is our church?", "What is our church?" and "What difference does it make?" We'll tell you more about the answers to these questions over the next few weeks.

We also took the opportunity to take a new family photo, which we will use as our official photo on this blog.

Farewell Reception for Jessie and Nancy

One of our major project this summer is helping Larry's mother and sister move from Michigan to North Dakota. Today a farewell reception was held for Jessie and Nancy at their church in Monroe, Michigan. The reception also provided the opportunity to take a Winckles family photo with three generations present -- perhaps the last such opportunity for quite some time.

Genoa 5K with Andrew

We went with Andrew this morning to watch him run in a 5K race in Genoa, Ohio. He accomplished his goal of breaking 19 minutes and in so doing cut a minute off of his time! Good job, Andrew!

Katie Meets Paisley

We arrived in Holland, Ohio this afternoon and will spend the next few days with Andrew and Christy. Katie was thrilled to meet their newest cat, Paisley, who is now 8 months old. He is a very friendly cat, and warmed up to Katie immediately. Fig, our original cat is now ten years old and is queen of the household. She even gets to drink from a glass!

It's Nice to be Remembered

Judit sent us this drawing the Kristof made for us yesterday in Budapest. It's nice to be remembered!

Congratulations, Peter!

Peter graduated from Calvin College this afternoon with a Bachelor's of Arts in Computer Science degree. Good work, Peter! We're proud of you!

Where did four years go?

We arrived in Grand Rapids, Michigan today in order to attend Peter's graduation ceremony. There was a cookout tonight for all the families of the graduates, and we had the opportunity to meet some of Peter's friends and their families. It seems like only yesterday that we attended the picnic at the start of Peter's freshman year. Where did four years go? Larry's mom and sister came with us today, Katie's parents will join us tomorrow.

Message from Budapest

Here is a brief update from Larry about the status of funding of our work in Hungary. You can pledge your support online at www.fmwm.org/give

Budapest Report from Larry Winckles on Vimeo.

Good Job, Peter!

Peter and Andrew were going to run together in the 2009 Fifth Third River Bank Run in Grand Rapids, Michigan today.  However, Andrew wasn't able to participate because of an injury that hadn't fully healed. Peter ran in the 25K race, which he completed in just over two hours! Good job, Peter!

Last Day of English Class

Today was the last day of the English Class for this academic year. Because many people were absent last week, we took another group picture today.  Seven new people are in this picture, and five who were present last week are absent. We've had a great group of students this year!

One of the reading groups presented a short drama, which they had read this year. Katie was presented with flowers and a memory book, and then we had refreshments! 

Welcome to Europe, Dick and Sheila!

  Larry just returned to Budapest after spending a couple of days with Dick and Sheila Dickinson in Oostende, Belgium.  Dick and Sheila arrived in Belgium two weeks ago, and they will be working as Free Methodist missionaries there, working alongside our church leaders in Oostende and Brussels and helping direct the further expansion of the church in Belgium.  Marcie Huson also joined Larry to conduct orientation meetings for the Dickinsons. If you happen to communicate with Marcie, ask her about what is special about Belgian frites (french fries).