Everyone,
You may remember me telling of a young woman "M". (I have edited a few details) Her landlord made life difficult for "M" and her family. Well, thankfully "M" and her family were recently able to move into a place by themselves. Although they were glad to be on their own it was difficult because they had nothing in the way of household supplies. We had a few dishes at the ARC that we were able to give them and a few other people gave them some needed items. I went home to see what I could round up and gathered some silverware, knives, cutting board, towels etc. I knew that one thing she really wanted was a big pot for cooking rice etc. I didn't have an extra so Kent and I went down to a local store and bought one. I also had a few beautiful children's quilts left that I had brought home from WA a year ago - thanks to Judy Klutt and her team of women. I had been waiting for just the right person to give them to and this was such a perfect opportunity. I put a pretty pink one in the package for Kent to take to the ARC the next day. What a blessing it turned out to be as I found out their little girl had been sleeping under the carpet at night in a effort to keep her warm. I am attaching a picture of her snuggled under her new blanket. I also had a blue blanket and found that a friend of "M's" had a little boy who was sleeping under the carpet as well so I was able to pass the blue one along to him. God is so good to provide ahead for the things we need to show love to our refugee friends and he often does that through the love and generosity of our larger team of supporters. Thank you.
It was a busier than usual week for me last week because several people on our team were away. I worked on Tuesday as I usually do, and Wednesday hosted the team meeting and team fellowship in our home. Thursday was my usual busy day of laiki and grocery shopping as well as sending out my update and catching up on some short term team stuff. Friday I spent on the couch with chills and a low grade fever. This seems to be a recurring problem. I am not sick but feel as if I am coming down with a cold or something. I feel shivery and achy. I think it is related to my arthritis which seems to be flaring a bit right now. It doesn't keep me completely down but I have been taking naps and going to bed early which is unusual for me. Anyway, I usually don't go into the ARC on Saturday as it is a very hectic day and I seem to end up with a headache and am very worn out by the time I get home. However, this Saturday we were very short handed so I said I would head up the children's room that day. For the craft I had made little booklets out of copy paper and divided some foam stickers of animals that we had into envelopes to hand out to the children. The envelopes were to eliminate fighting over which animals they got. The booklets were a hit and they enjoyed drawing pictures to complete the pages where they placed the animal stickers. Much to my surprise, the envelopes themselves were an even bigger hit! Usually most of the kids leave their craft in the room hanging on the wall but many of the kids took theirs home by slipping them inside of the envelopes. They decorated them and found other things to put inside as well. It always amazes me that something simple that we take for granted is often a treasure to someone else.
Tuesday in the kids room we made a craft of a paper basket with five loaves and two fish. In the past we cut out the craft items ahead of time but realized that cutting was a skill these kids needed to learn so have had them cutting out their own projects. Although this sometimes requires us to tape pictures back together when someone misunderstands instructions, it is good to see the kids being more independent. Tuesday I was pleased to see that after we helped the older ones understand how to assemble their baskets, they in turn helped the younger ones with theirs. Not only are they learning motor skills like cutting, but they are learning responsibility and service as well.
The weather here has turned a bit cooler. Although yesterday was sunny and warm, today the sky is grey and it looks as if it may rain. We have talked about getting some wood so we will be ready when we need a fire. We enjoy the cooler weather and snuggling down under a blanket or eating a bowl of hot soup. For many of our refugee friends however the cooler weather means that their already difficult lives become that much more difficult. Often they are sleeping outdoors or if they have shelter it is sometimes in an abandoned building with no heat. Every winter we hand out sleeping bags and plan to do so this year. This is an expense outside our regular budget and any money that comes in designated for Christmas that we do not use for our Christmas parties will be used to buy sleeping bags. You can also make a donation directly for sleeping bags by clicking on this link www.iteams.org/us Please give to Helping Hands Athens and designate for Sleeping Bags. Each sleeping bag cost around 15 dollars or 12 euros. If you would prefer to give my mail you can send a check to: International Teams 411 W. River Rd.
Elgin, IL 60123 again designate for Helping Hands Athens Sleeping Bags.
As always we are thankful for you, our larger team as we strive together to be faithful to the work that God has given us. We love you all.
Serving Him Together,
Kent and Myrna Morley
Tripoleos 76
Elliniko 16777
Athens Greece
011 30 210 96 38 625
backhoeboy1@gmail.com
http://kent-uniquelymorley.blogspot.com
To join our Support Team:
Online go to: www.iteams.org/us
Or Send to:
International Teams
411 W. River Rd.
Elgin IL 60123
Please designate for the ministry of Kent and Myrna Morley and indicate whether this is a one time gift or monthly support. Thanks :)
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