THANKSGIVING WEEKEND IN USTI nad ORLICI 2007

After one day's rest from the big Thanksgiving Outreach in Liberec, we took off for east Bohemia and spent 4 days in the Usti nad Orlici region. Friday was a day of preparation: brining the 18 lb. turkey, preparing the breading for the dressing (Ken had to make his own cornbread and roast and cube several loaves of white bread) and Linda prepared two sheet cakes of apple crisp for dessert. The next evening we served 33 people a full Thanksgiving dinner and gave a slide-show of the history and traditions of the American Thanksgiving. Many of the guests had never seen a whole, roasted, stuffed turkey, so it was a huge hit! We crafted homemade "paper roll" turkeys and each guest filled in a feather with what they were particularly thankful for this year. It was a delightful evening.

The next day, Sunday, we visited the new church plant in the town of Kraliky, 45 minutes east of Usti. Petr Appl, and his wife Ladka, have been faithful and hard working assistant pastors in Usti and they now have a new home and church in Kraliky; as well as a new, 3-week old daughter named Esther.

On Monday, before returning home to Liberec, we returned to Usti nad Orlici and led an English class in the church's Family Center for the pre-schoolers and their moms. The mothers also wanted to make the "thank-you turkeys" and expressed their gratitude for the service the Center is to their community and families. The Center participants are a lively group and it was great to see how much English the children knew. We sang Old McDonald and Hokey Pokey.