The Kummers at Black Forest Academy

Italian Ministry - "Centro Evangelical Isola"

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The Evangelical Center at Isola del Gran Sasso, Italy has been instumental in the salvation and discipleship of Italian young people and adults since the late1950's. It was started by an Italian American who, after becoming a Christian in America, was burdened to return to his homeland to reach Italians with the good news of Jesus Christ. He was soon joined by some missionaries from Switzerland and together they constructed a center in order to do camps and to established a Bible Institute.

Stephano, Bob, Fabio, Simone, and Marco

Wherever we go we run into people from our past ministry at Camp Maranatha!

Stephano (left) came to a family camp with his parents at Maranatha in 1999.

Our first week here Sue helped cook for the staff and volunteers. The second week Sue was the cook all by herself!

Bob has been working on the new building project installing shower doors, painting, and mounting the hardware on the doors.

One of the guys Bob has been working with is Lucas a young man from Switzerland.

It has been good to get to know the other volunteers from different places in Italy.

The new building project has been going on for a number of years. They are trusting God to bring it to completion by August of this coming year.

One of the other buildings on the property.

A missionary couple, Robbie and Rose, come to the Center every Wednesday morning to lead a Bible study for the staff and volunteers. They are from our mission, CrossWorld. It has been great for Sue and I to participate in that.

Robbie and Rose organized an American "Thanksgiving Dinner" at their church (about 45 minute drive away). Sue helped with the cooking and serving and I helped do the dishes. It was well attended and many from the community that don't attend the church came.

The young man in the center of the photo (below) with his newly-wed wife attended our youth camps at Camp Maranatha years ago.

Sue with two more Camp Maranatha friends: Anna and Claudia. It was a nice surprise to discover that they attend the Robert's church as well.

On our day off Sue and I got up into the mountains (only about a half hours drive away from the center) to go for a walk.

Italian Ministry update

2011-11-29T14:55:00.001-05:00

After our visit with Marshall at BFA we drove back to Italy for the last three weeks of our Italian ministry tour.

The purpose of our time in Italy has been to give of ourselves in order to encourage what God is doing in the Italian Church. We also come with the prayer that Godwould use this experience to speak to our hearts and to open our eyes regarding ourreturning to Italy as missionaries in the future. Our visits have included many friends withwhom we’ve shared our lives with in the past, as well as many new friends alongthe way.

The City of Faenza

Our first stop was in Faenza. We stayed with Carmen, a TEAM missionary who we met in language school who came and helped us run camps at Centro Maranatha. We also attended a TEAM Italy prayer meeting and got to hear what God is doing in the lives and ministries of our other friends with that mission.

The City of Rimini

Our next stop was in Rimini where we lived and worked for over a year. During our first missionary term in Italy, Gabriele (on the left) and Bob taught Sunday school together. His dad, Enzo is in his late 80's and was a prisoner of war in Germany for two years during World War II.

Graziano and Sabrina and their family are good friends of ours from the Rimini church. It was great to spend time with them and to hear how God has been providing for them and how He has been using the difficulties that they have experienced to reach out to others in their community.

Two brothers: Cristiano and Alessandro (and Daniel) are good friends of ours who came to our camps at Centro Maranatha and were in the young people's group we helped out with when we were in Rimini.

The City of Cattolica

Our Friends in Italy are more than just friends, they are family! God certainly honored His promise to us for having left family and country to serve in in another country for the sake of sharing the Gospel (Mark chapter 10). We certainly feel like one of the family when we are with the Bardeggia family. We met all of them through their involvement at Camp Maranatha!

The next generation of Italian believers in Jesus Christ

Baptisms at BFA!

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Three students testified publically of their faith in Jesus Christ and were baptized in church on Sunday during the time we were at BFA to celebrate Marshall's birthday. Marshall and Hannah were baptized during our first year at BFA in 2006.

What greater joy can we as parents have then to see our kids come to the place in their lives where they see the need for a personal relationship with their Creator and Savior.

Our vice principal baptizing his son

One of the girls who was in Sue's small group sharing her journey to faith in Jesus Christ

She was baptized by her dad.

One of our Korean students was baptized by his dorm dad!

The staff and faculty of the Black Forest Academy are committed to much more than giving Mk's and international kids a good education. We are making disciples of Jesus Christ!

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you, and lo, I am with ou always, even to the end of the age." amen

Marshall's 16th Birthday

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My son, do not forget my law, but let your heart keep my commands; for length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you." (Proverbs 3:1,2)

November 7th was Marshall's 16th birthday. Sue and I drove up from Italy to spend time with him and to Celebrate his special day. It was so good to spend time with him.

Sue made a wonderful Italian meal for the whole boys' dorm. We brought some of Marshall's favorite foods from Italy. Antipasti: parmesian and Mozzarella cheeze and prosciuto crudo!

Sue with Cory, one of the Resident Assistants at Maugenhard Dorm.

Marshall and some of his dorm buddies!

Marshall's dorm parents: Susan and Mark Powell

Sue also made lazagna, garlic bread, and off course a birthday cake!

Italian Ministry Assignment update

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October 28th - November 4th

Bergamo, Italy

This leg of our Italian Ministry Assignment we visited an old friend and fellow CrossWorld missionary, Raney, who works with a church in the city of Bergamo. Raney used to help out with summer camps at Camp Maranatha even before Sue and I came with our family in 1992. She has been in the city of Bergamo for 14 years. The city of Bergamo is a large industrial city and many Italians and immigrants have come here to find work.

Raney and Bob putting down some parquet flooring in the church

This church in Bergamo is very international. 70% are Bolivians!

There are a good number of children in the church

Bob preached on Sunday morning "in Italian"

Italian Ministry Assignment

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October 21st - 28th

Perugia, Sansepolcro, Citta di Castello, Badia Tedalda, Ponte Presale, and Ca Buffa!

These are the cities and villages where we visited friends this past week. These are people we have shared our lives with in our past ministry. We have continued to stay in touch with them through writing and to see them face to face has assured them that they are still important to us.

Perugia: These are friends we met in 1992 when we were in Italian language school.

Maria, Sue, and Imma

Sue met Imma in the outdoor market in our town. She worked for at a fruit and vegetable vendor. Our kids, Alison and Hannah, remembered Imma being the banana lady.

Maria and Francesco (in red) and their son Fabio (holding the dog) were the first neighbors we met in Italy.

Citta di Castello: This city is where we attended church our last 7 years in Italy. Cristian and Christi and their children attend this church. Cristian attended our camps at Camp Maranatha and met his wife while serving one summer at Camp Sankanac in Pennsylvania. Many of you know Cristian!

The Cenciarini family are special friends of ours from Citta di Castello. They blessed us with their hospitality many a Sunday in their home and Anja is a dear friend of Alison from Italian high school.

Badia Tedalda:

Sue and I stopped by to visit Centro Maranatha where we helped run camps and maintain the property for 11 years

We were happy to find Daniele our "Frutivendolo" (Fruit Vendor) on his rounds with his truck.

Ponte Presale:
Tosca was one of our next door neighbor our last four years in Italy.

Ca Buffa: And the family Montini

Ca Buffa is a little cluster of houses a couple of miles up the mountain from where we lived in Ponte Presale. Alessia (with her mom, Katerina) was Hannah's best friend in Italy.

Bob and Sue's Italian Ministry Assignment update

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October 8th - 21st

Following our time with the BFA Rome trip we had a short visit with Marshall. It was the first time we had seen him in 6 weeks. He had grown taller and thinner in that short period of time. Sue was worried that he was not eating enough or that he was not well. This was not the case It was just another growth spurt. We enjoyed a long weekend with him, taking him out to eat and doing some shopping together.

Marshall continues to improve his basketball game. He hopes to make the BFA team again this year.

When we arrived in Germany to visit with Marshall the weather had turned quite cold. It was quite nice when we returned to Italy to find it sunny and warm!

Sue and I returned to the hotel where we had stayed with the senior class of BFA. Our purpose was to build our relationship with the owners and staff who work there.
A view of the beach from the roof:

Bob, the owner of the motel: "Fabio", and two of his workers: Roman and Marinello. They spent a lot of time doing stucco repairs on the walls up on the roof.

Sue spent time building bridges with the mother of Fabio, Margherita, and the other ladies (like Rita below) who work on staff at the hotel. We learned a lot more about the difficulties of the Italian economic situation from both the employer and the employee's perspective. Although Sue and I did not share the Gospel message verbally with these folks at this time, we do feel that we brought the life of Christ to them and developed our personal relationship further with them.

During our stay in the Rome area we attended a small evangelical church in the city of Rome. After church they had a fellowship dinner which helped us to get to know them better.

Some of the "Saints" of the city of Rome!

Mario, the pastor of this church, and his wife (for over 25 years) are Canadian. Mario was our guide one day for our class trip. He does an excellent job giving a Biblical perspective on the history and sites of Rome.

Some of the children:

Rome Trip !

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Second leg of our tour of duty in Italy: BFA's senior class Rome Trip!

Sue has been one of the organizers of this class trip for the past 4 years. Sue and I have helped lead this trip together for three years. Although it is called "Rome Trip", the class also visits the cities of Florence and Venice.

Sue and I met up with the group in Florence

The Senior Class of 2011/2012:

We spent a lot of time on the buses!

Sue and I with Seniors who were "our" Liel kids during their middle school years

(when we were subs)

St. Peters, Rome

One of the highlights for Sue was getting to spend time with the girls who were in her small group the past three years:

Sue and her girls all dolled up for our special dinner at a Restaurant in Rome

Bartering for souvenoirs with the street vendors!

Two of our guys getting a caracature sketch

Funny!

Andrea, Susan, and Sue (and a purse bartered and paid for in 4 minutes flat!)

Sunday worship and testimony time on the beach

Last day of the class trip we spend in beautiful Venice!

The BFA staff who served as class sponsors. Their colaboration and God's blessing made this a wonderful time for our senior class. We enjoyed a special dinner together in Venice.

Ciao Italia!

On the Road again, back to Germany!

" Forterocca", and Sue and Iz's trip to Florence

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The first five weeks of our time of service in Italy was spent in the little town of Bobbio Pellice and working with a team with Operation Mobilization at their center, "Forterocca". One of the ways we helped out at OM center was with our Italian language skills. One of OM's missionaries, Iz is studying Italian and needed to go to Florence to meet with an Italian language tutor for 4 days. Sue accompanied Iz and together they drove to Florence in our car.

Florence, Italy

While Iz did her language study Sue scouted out the city in preparation for "Rome Trip", which we will be helping out with in a couple weeks!

What is it about women and leather goods?

Sue arranged beforehand to meet up with Graziella, a friend who lives near "Centro Maranatha", the camp where Sue and I worked at for 11 years.

Graziella

Together, Sue, Graziella, and Iz drove to Sansepolcro (the city down the mountain from where we used to live in Italy). They stayed in Graziella's apartment and were there for "Market Day".

At the open market Sue met up with another friend who lives down the road from Centro Maranatha, "Doriana"

Doriana's daughter, Laura works as a hair dresser in Sansepolcro. So got to spend time with laura and Iz was able to get her hair done at the same time! Meeting up with these friends and their speaking Italian was great for Iz's Italian language learning.

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More pictures from our 5 weeks with the Operation Mobilization team in Italy.

We were invited to a birthday party for one of the director's children. It was another occasion which endeared us to the OM team. The director and his wife have three children just as we did when we served in Italy.

A good friend of ours from the city of Rimini and his boys, Daniel and Josh

Sue and I on a hike above the town of Bobbio Pelice. It is a place where Waldensian Christians were marched by soldiers and forced to either recant their faith or be thrown from the cliffs above. This makes for a meditative and somber hike amongst the natural beauty.

Iz and Sue

The cows coming home from their summer up in the mountains. There is usually a town festival in each of these villages to celebrate this event. Unfortunately we didn't get to experience that. Apparently they don't all come down off the mountain at the same time. You can't miss the racket that the huge cow bells make when they come moseying through town.

This is an indicator that winter is soon on its way!

The Valley Pelice and the history of the Waldensian Church

The history of the Waldensian Church is a sad one but is an encouraging testimony of God's grace to strengthen His children during times of persecution. This church is on a hill that overlooks the Catholic church in the village below. It is a monument to the freedom that the Waldensians ultimately gained following a long period of persecution by the Roman Catholic church.

Here: a swiveling device mounted on the church fountain which was used for baptising infants.

Here, reconstructed, is the settlement which once was used as a working farm and Bible institute for the training of Waldensian young men to prepare them for a lifetime of evangelism.

                                 Translated: "The cross is the power of God. We preach Christ Crucified" from
                                       l Corinthians 1:18,23

The winters here in the foothills of the Alps can be severe. Here below is what one of the rooms looks like.

Translated: The school of the "Barba" as they were called (Bearded, I think), similar to others during the Medieval Times, prepared the Valdensian preachers for their witness and itinerate ministry before the period of the Reformation.

Translated: The young candidates finished their study with a year of apprenticeship for maturing spiritually. They were then consacrated by the annual assembly to depart two by two to begin their dangerous mission of itinerate evangelism which was to extend for the rest of their lives or until the forces threatening their martyrdom ceased.

Here below is a cave where the believers met for secret worship. They were eventually found and were killed as they sought to escape.

Bob & Sue at Forterocca

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Sue and Bob in Italy

We are now at the Operation Mobilization center,“Forterocca” in northwest Italy. We willbe here for the month of September helping as volunteers. The center is in a small village, Bobbio Pelice, in a valley at thefoothills of the Alps. Theuse of the center is unique in that it is used to host both Christiansand non-Christians alike. Forterocca is also located in a unique place in Italy - where protestant reformation took place - before Luther. That reformation is refered to as the Valdensian Movement and there are still many Valdensian churches in this part of Italy. In just two weeks we have had the privilege toencourage and serve believers, and to share Christ with those who do not yetknow him. It is a privilege to be here to serve!

The Buildings

The main building: Forterocca, "Strong Rock" refers to Jesus Christ or the Fortress as song in Martin Luther's song, "A Might Fortress is Our God"

These buildings - located behind the main building - are the kitchen and dining hall, which are awaiting funds in order to be completed.

One of the bedrooms inside

A glimpse of the beautiful scenery from the front patio:

The Volunteer Flat (below) - is the top floor apartment seen in the center of picture. Sue is standing on the balcony. What beautiful scenery!

Another view of the flat, looking out of one of the windows from the main building:

The People

More important than the buildings are the people who serve at the center! They are Operation Mobilization missionaries who have a particular desire to reach out to the people in this community.

The Newly-weds on the staff: Rita (a Hungarian) and David (a German)

Rose and Matt (from Scottland)

Bob and Matt

Sue and Rose

Iz (American), Sue (?), and Kati (Peruvian) AND GELATO!

Sue and Carla (a local woman) cleaning rooms to prepare for a group that was coming that weekend

The group of Italians who came for the weekend for a conference and to offer a concert to the local community. Sue and I really enjoyed hosting this group and using our Italian.

Some of the other work we are doing:

Lawncare

Painting the volunteer flat' kitchen (notice the shirt Sankanacers?)

After Sue's finishing touches in the kitchen:

Living in community

Sue getting a makeover by Iz

Sue and I celebrated our 27th wedding anniversary while here at Forterocca and this past weekend we celebrated Sue's birthday!

After church on Sunday we walked down the street for ice cream. Here you see Jill (an OMer from the States) and Sue, with Sue being "undone" by tasting a new flavor.

The Nobili family came to visit us for a week: Colette, Daniel, Josh, and Cristiano. They are dear friends from Rimini and from our years working at Camp Maranatha.

The countryside! Sue and I have done some hiking in the Alps on our time off.

The village, "Villanova", located about 5 miles down the road (end of the road) from the Forterocca center:

One of the local residents

A "Rifugio"- kind of a youth hostile - where hikers can stay, at 1700 meters above sea level.

Ammira il Creato, Loda il Creatore = Admire the creation, Worship the Creator

(Part of a memorial to men who lost their lives in the mountains)

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The Kummer's summer 2011:

Alison graduated from Taylor University in May and spent the summer with us in Germany before moving on to Uganda for 4 months. During her stay with us she raised money by cutting hair for people in our church community. Here she is getting some practice on Marshall.

Alison and Marshall helped out the Blackston family lead worship at church one Sunday morning.

Marshall and Mr. Griesse

Marshall applied to a drum company to be sponsored by them. Mr. Griesse, a teacher at BFA and another fellow James Hoffer from our church made up a video recording for him.

Before sending Alison off to Uganda we had a prayer time at our apartment for her. Pastor Harrop and his wife Mary and Art Melli, an elder in our church came to join us.

Alison departed from Frankfurt for Uganda

Alison to Africa!

Marshall a boarding student at BFA in Germany this school year.

Marshall and his roomate Evan at the Maugenhard dorm.

BFA's director Phil Peters interviewing the first graders at opening ceremony.

For Alison's birthday we drove 6 hours to spend a couple days in Paris!

Alison and Sue got a free makeover at Sephora's!

Marshall and some of his buddies at our apartment:

Carl, Joseph, Jordan, and Ben

Another highlight of our summer was driving 16 hours from Germany to Croatia. It was the first time in a while that we got to go on vacation together as a family. It was high season for tourism in the Mediteranean but Croatia had the cheapest prices.

We discovered some rugged rocky beaches with crystal clear water.

It was good to spend time together like this for we were soon to be going our separate ways for the school year.

Marshall jumped from this cliff into the sea below.... really!

It was surely a highlight of his summer!

This photo is for Sue's sister Lois and family in Montebello, VA.... this sign is in Paris, France.

Liel Dorm 2010/2011

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Black Forest Academy and the Liel Dorm

This past year Sue and I have been dorm parents of a co-ed middle school dorm in the village of “Liel”, Germany. Liel dorm is one of seven residential facilities of the Black Forest Academy. We had seven girls and four boys, plus our son Marshall who was a 9^th grader this year. Also in our dorm “family” was Lauren, our resident assistant (or RA). As dorm staff our goal was to create a home atmosphere where each student felt loved and a part of “the Liel Family”. With God’s help we succeeded, and in this nurturing environment our students were enabled (in the absence of their parents and siblings) to achieve their academic and extracurricular goals. We need to add that we had a lot of help by our “dorm subs”, who filled in for us on our days off, and by several teachers who donated a lot of their time coming to our dorm in the evening to tutor our students in their studies.

As a family we played together, ate together, did chores together, attended one another’s sporting and musical events, worked on homework together, and went to church together. As dorm staff, we laughed with our kids, cried with them, had times when we were not on the best of terms with them, had fun with them, worried about them and prayed for them, instructed them, were at times disappointed by them, and were many times awed by them. Our role in their life journey was only one school year, but we believe it was significant – for them and for us!

Lauren (our RA) Sue and Bob

Presenting... Our Liel Kids:

Se Eun (or G.I.)

Joshua

Aaron John (A.J.)

Luke

Joyce

Priscilla

Britta

Han Seung (Kate)

Hye Reen (Ira)

Laura

Kaelah (spelled wrong below)

Marshall

Last Week of School 2011

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June 2011

Our last week of school!

Our last week of school was full with our students studying for their exams, packing up and preparing to go home, cleaning the dorm, parents arriving, and lots of last things.

Eighth Grade Banquet

(These are all the 8th grade girls- can you pick out our five)

All the eighth grade boys - including our 4

Spring concert

Participating from our dorm were: Josh, Ira, and Laura on the violin and G.I. on the flute. Here center on violin is Ira.

The reality of the school year being over began as parents began showing up to take their kids home for the summer.

Ira and her mom!

Josh's dad the photographer!

Luke and Marshall cuttin loose from studying to dance in our kitchen!

Dorm Cleaning: Part of living in community means each one of us doing our part to keep our home and yard clean and in order. The whole dorm must be cleaned before our students can leave for the summer.

Beating the dust out of the living room rug.

Ira and Britta doing some thorough cleaning in the kitchen.

Marshall

Final Band Practice

Marshall got together with his band "Cyprus" buddies to jam one last time before the summer. Two BFA alumni, Merrit and Jack (middle of picture), came to watch and listen. Merrit and Jack had a rock band when they were students at BFA. Merrit gave drumming lessons to Marshall and Jack gave guitar lessons to Parker (bottom left in picture).

High School Graduation Day 2011

Ester Shady (center in photo)

Sue and I have known Ester since she was in the Liel dorm 6 years ago.

We have now experienced 6 graduations at the Black Forest Academy and have known many of these students - two of them have been our own daughters! They change so much in just a few years and then their out of the nest!

Sue and Trevor Hope. Another Liel Dorm MK, now graduating!

Aunt Sue and Uncle Bob with our dear dorm daughter Ira.

Sue and Lynn Paterson, the dorm mom from the Storchenblick Dorm.

And Marshall and his friend, who is a girl, "Lizi Bell"

May Birthdays

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May 2010

Greetings from Sue and the Liel dorm!

May was a very busy month as we approached the end of the school year. Each Sunday we celebrated the birthday of one of the four Liel Kids who have summer birthdays. There were also school organized banquets to attend and Sue and I went to the USA for 8 days to attend Alison's college graduation and to help her move out of her apartment.

Happy Birthday Joshua

Joshua will be turning 14 this summer. He is a Korean American whose parents work in Asia. Josh loves sports and goofing around with the guys. He is serious with his studies though and with his music. Josh plays the violin and his favorite sport is soccer.

Hamburgers and hot dogs with all of the fixins was Josh's choice for dinner, and Lauren cooked him up a birthday cake.

Who's on the bottom? Oh,... well,... that would be Josh. Alright, everybody up before you break something!

These two guys: Andrew and Pepe, Josh's small group (Chrysalis) leaders came as unexpected guests. They had something to do with why Josh is looking all wet.....

Because he was hauled off to the nearby water fountain and "Troughed". Man did he put up a fight.

After getting troughed its your obligation to hug your captors.

Happy Birthday Joyce

Joyce is the biggest hugger at the Liel dorm. She can play the piano and sing, and has even written her own worship music

The gift of friendship!

An accident in the kitchen! When Lauren opened the corn starch it just kind of blew up in her face.

This was NO accident!

Chocolate fountain for desert.

Happy Birthday Priscilla

Priscilla is another of our summer birthdays. She is one of our sports lovers in the dorm. She participates in middle school intramurals, joined the track team, and is always up for playing a game outside or in the house. She is also one of the dorms "loud speakers". When we need someone to come down from upstairs we just ask Priscilla to yell up to them to come down!

Sue made lazagna for the birthday girl.

And Lauren made cup cakes!

And the boys made.....

Who can wash the shaving cream off with water pistols first.... boys or girls?

I'm not sure which team one, but our water bill is going to be a doozie!

Alison's Graduates

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May 2010

Alison Graduates from Taylor University

Sue and I are so proud of Alison! She worked so hard these past 4 years earning money for school and studying hard to get good grades. Her major was English Literature, with a minor in Sociology. She also received a certificate for teaching English as a second language. She graduated with high honors, receiving Magna Cum Laude.

Sue and I flew into Charletsville, VA from Germany and drove out to Taylor U. in Indiana with Sue's father and Hannah. Hannah had already completed her second year at Cornerstone U. and was living with Sue's sister and dad in VA. Sue's sister Judy flew in to attend Alison's graduation from Colorado.

Although we were tired and jet-lagging, it was nice to be together in the USA again.

"On the Road Again"....!

At a rest stop we discovered this truck full of piglets,..... so cute!

Alison had finished packing before we arrived!

After the ceremony Pictures:

Alison and her room mate, Kenzi

After graduation we packed up Sue's dad's van with Alison's possessions.

Sue and her "little sister", Judy. It was a special treat for us that she came. Alison's stayed with Judy and her family (cousins) in CO the summer after her first year in college. That summer she worked at Focus on the Family.

As we went our separate ways, Sue's dad flew with Judy to spend time with them, the Franklins, in Colorado.

Then Sue and I, Alison, & Hannah drove back to Virginia, packed to the hilt with Alison's belongings!

Sue and her sister Lois in VA.

Enjoying a meal with Aunt Lois, Uncle Earl, and Justin.

Alison & Hannah remained at Aunt Lois's for several weeks to work at their B&B. They made beds, did laundry, and served meals to back packers and other guests who flooded in during their stay.

For the past two years Alison baby-sat Phoebe, this little adopted girl.

Presently Alison is raising money to serve for 5 months in Uganda to help care for orphaned babies.

She will be doing this from August through December of this year.

Alison has also applied for the Peace Corps. She is working through the application process and awaiting her appointment. She will be serving for two years and will be teaching English.

May's Highlights

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May 2010

Just 4 weeks left!

May was a month packed full with many school and dorm activities for our Liel family!

Kate's Birthday

We started out celebrating kate's (Han Seung's) birthday. Kate is one of our 8th grade girls. She is from Korea and her father is a dentist. This was Kate's first year at BFA and her first experience as a dorm student. Kate is known for her laugh and her screams!

We celebrated Kate's 16th birthday although her real birthday is not until later in June.

Sue and Lauren cooking up some special Asian dish in honor of Kate.

Ira, Aubry, and Laura

Birthday Games

Waterballoon violence about to begin!

A new kind of volleyball using a tarp for tossing a water balloon over the net to the other team. Hey, it worked great, try it! Both teams have a tarp.

Water slide!

And if that is not enough fun, how about a water slide? Incoming... Kate!

Sue's Small Group

Sue at the Junior-Senior Banquet with her group of Junior girls.

Sue has been working with these girls for two years. They meet every Wednesday evening for Bible study, lively discussions, prayer, and have done lots of fun things together. Her co-leader this year is Dani Jernigan.

Here below they are enjoying a picnic at our place - the Liel dorm.

Two of our eight grade girls, Laura & Priscilla, joined the High School track team this spring.

They are great athletes and good runners.

Kjersty, the girl on the right in this picture was a Liel girl for two years. She is now a senior.

For Hot Lunch Tuesday this week we had baked potatoes with all the toppings!

Middle School Banquet

Here is Bob with all of his dorm girls plus "Jaz" (a girl who will be a Liel dorm girl next year). Our Liel Kids really got dressed to the hilt for this affair

Sue and her Liel boys!

Sue, Lauren, and I with two couples who sub for us on our days off: Susan and Larry McCrary and Shelly and Sean Blacksten.

We're all decked out and off to the staff appreciation dinner!

Liel Boys' Passage to Manhood

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April 2010

First Father-Son Overnight Campout, "A boy's passage to manhood".

Bob organized two overnight campouts with our Liel boys and their dads. He originally wanted all the boys and their dads to go together. However the dads differing schedules did not allow for this. As it turned out our Korean boys and their dads camped out the weekend before Spring Break, and our non-Korean boys camped out the week after Spring Break. The theme of the overnight was, “A Boy’s Passage to Manhood”. There were also some other dads and their boys who participated who are from families who have been helping us as subs and as special cooks throughout the year.

The idea was to create a father-son event which would become a point of reference in our boys' lives when their fathers acknowledged their passage from boys to men. It was an occasion for fathers to spend quality time with their sons, time set aside to communicate their love and respect for the young men that they have already become, and a time to affirm their commitment to them as they look to the journey still before them. Furthermore, it was a time to challenge these boys spiritually. Each one of the dads prepared something to share with all of the boys around the campfire: a personal conviction from God’s word and from their own personal experience that God had taught them.

We set up camp together, cooked our own food and ate outdoors together, the dads slept with their sons in a tent, and we played some team building games together. We also made sure we took a lot of photos to help remember the event. In addition to what each father shared, I asked another Christian man to come along to be a special speaker for us. And finally, each dad also prepared beforehand a personal letter to give to their son at a designated time during the campout. From this day forward they were to consider themselves young men.

Our campsite was a camping "hutte" made available for public use by the local forestry service. They are available by reservation and are cost free. Inside the hut is not suitable for sleeping so we pitched tents outside.

The weather was perfect for camping out and once we got camp set up it was time to make a fire and cook our meals. It was really enjoyable for me (Bob) to get to know these Korean dads through this experience and to see them having fun with their boys.

We were still eating dinner at night fall.

G.I and his dad Taekkyu, and Jae In and his dad Hyeonghoon

The camp head cook,... Breakfast was pancakes, eggs, and sausage!

Josh and his dad David

Group initiative, "The electic fence". Everyone must help the others over without touching the wire (bungy cord)

Symbolizing each boy's passage to manhood and his need for trustworthy men and friends to mentor and encourage him on his journey.

Driving a stake in as a point of reference to declare: "This is the day I became a man"!

Josh carving his initials on a beech tree to be returned to on a future day

Jae In Kim and G.I. Jang

Notice the older rusty nail heads. They were hammered in last year by Marshall and his buddies.

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them dilligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up." (Deuteronomy 6:5-7)

"Then it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to observe all these commandments before the Lord our God, as he has commanded us." (Deut. 6:25)

A Boy's Passage to Manhood

2011-06-15T09:49:00.000-04:00

April 2010

Liel Boys Passage to Manhood

A Boy's Passage to Manhood

Second Overnight Group

1st, a 40 minute hike to our campsite!

A.J. attempts to cross the mine field of mouse and rat traps while blind-folded - guided by the voice of his Father.

David and Shaffen

Cory, an RA from the Maugenhart dorm came to help out with set up and cooking. He had prepared two ducks to cook on a spit over the fire. Way to go Cory!

The Ducks! (and dogs)

Cooking and sharing jokes & stories around the fire. Luke, Shaffen, David, and A.J.

Special speaker, Rob Carey, came with his son Mika. He shared about the difficulties he had growing up and how God used them later on in his life. Rob is the fifth grade teacher at BFA's elementary school.

Our first group initiative: Everyone over the electic fence (bungy cord) without touching it. Luke is the first one.

Then Luke's dad, mark was next.

A.J. "Passes Over" to "Manhood"

Luke drives a stake into the stump as a point of reference of this significant day in his life, while his proud dad watches on.

Father & son: Sean and Shaffen

Carving their initials into an old beech tree. Come back in the future and find them again!

Father & Son, Tim and David Crouch

Father and Son, Warren and A.J., "My father's letter to me!"

Letter Time!

"My son, do not forget my teachings. Let your heart keep my commandments; for length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you" Proverbs 3:1,2

March Gladness

2011-06-14T15:37:00.000-04:00

March 2011

A.J.'s Birthday

A.J. (Aaron John) turned 14 this week. His mom and dad came up from Italy to help celebrate. His sister Olivia is also a BFA student. She lives in one of the girls' dorms. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed a picnic outside.

... And in keeping with dorm tradition, A.J. gets carried outside and troughed in the local water fountain!

Sunday Evening Dorm Fellowship

Sunday evening in each dorm is dorm fellowship. In our dorm the dorm staff (Sue, lauren, or Bob) lead the group in an activity which is followed with an application from the Bible. This Sunday Lauren led us on a hike up to the Salsonburg Castle, which is in the hills not far from here.

Kids that climb on rocks

The castle and.... Kate!

Medi -evil methods:

Lauren expounds on the passage!

Inside the: Turret

Sue with a Tuesday Hot Lunch favorite: "Stir Fry"

Hae Soek, our Korean Care person on the BFA staff, cutting G.I.s hair.

Bob's up a tree! Trimming branches and doing yard work were part of our Saturday chores

Lets keep looking up!

March Gladness Continues

2011-06-14T14:12:00.000-04:00

More March Mad- I mean- Gladness!

Do you remember when your kids remembered just before going to school one day that they had a special project or item due that very day and you had to scramble around to bail your kid out the last minute? Well, Aunt Sue today is "Spirit Day" and we want to do-up our hair funny. Can you help us?

Ira, you're first.

Laura you're next

OK, girls. Off to school!

And you boys look great!

Middle School Play

Our Liel kids star in: "The Mouse That Roared"

Our Liel dorm had 5 of our students in the middle school play! They began remembering their lines and practicing their parts before Christmas break. They did a great job!

Starring Priscilla and Laura.

Britta

Luke, Britta, and Joyce (And Luke gets the girl in the end)

Operation School Tension Release!

Nothing like a friendly water war to break a two month stretch of studying and dorm life. Charge!

Get Josh, he started it!

Good Job Sue! We done ~~war~~ wore them out!

February Birthdays

2011-06-14T11:39:00.000-04:00

February 2010

Birthdays at Liel Dorm
Birthdays are special days in our dorm. We either celebrate them on a Saturday or on a Sunday afternoon. There is always a special meal or desert, three friends (outside the dorm) are invited, some special games to play, and a reading of Psalm 139 to the birthday child by the dorm dad. This Psalm tells of the intimate knowledge that God has of each one of us, how much he thinks and cares for us, and the prayer of the Psalmist to be examined by God, his Creator, and to be led by Him in living a righteous life. The reading is followed by a prayer for the birthday boy or girl by one of the dorm staff.

This month we celebrated two birthdays: Ira's and G.I's!

Happy Birthday Ira

Ira was a new student to BFA and it was the first time she had to live at a boarding school away from her parents. She was very corragious and hard working. She has a strong and fun personality. Uncle Bob enjoyed teasing Ira throughout the year.

Ira invited three friends to her party. They first had fun playing dress up upstairs in the girls' rooms.

For her birthday Ira had a special Korean meal made by Mr. and Mrs. Kim, who have students in the Middle School at BFA this year.

Our four Korean students were particularly excited about this meal!!!!

Ira's most special guest was Sonia, her sister. Sonia was a senior at BFA this year.

Ever try blowing out trick birthday candles? They keep lighting back up!

Another tradition on birthdays is "Personalized Balloons". Here are the ladies of the house:

G.I.'s Birthday

G.I.'s real name is Se Eun, which means "grace" in Korean. This is G.I.'s 2nd year at BFA and as a dorm student. G.I. is very social and a compassionate friend. He loves music and is often found playing his flute along with some favorite songs down in our rec. room downstairs.

Lauren made an amazing home made chocolate cheeze cake, as requested by the birthday boy.

Two of G.I.s guests were Jae Inn and Ben. They came bearing gifts.

G.I. and his big brother Marshall....

... who were being entertained by Ben, who is an excellent violinist!

And finally, G.I. was wrestled to the floor by his guests, dorm dad, and brothers and hauled off outside to the town watering trough for a birthday dunking. Getting "Troughed" is a dorm tradition for guys on their birthdays.

Last Week of February

2011-06-14T09:20:00.012-04:00

Intramurals As an extra-curricular activity the middle school offers our students intramural sports. There are usually around 6 teams and each sport plays for about 3 weeks. Here our own Priscilla takes the puck down court against the opponents' defenders in hockey.

Music
BFA's music department offers many opportunities to discover and develop musical talent. We have some amazing teachers in this department who offer weekly lessons and who schedule music recitals with live audiences in order to hone our musicians skills.

Here is Ira playing during a strings recital.

Marshall practicing his piece at the dorm.

Organized Fun!
On the weekends Sue, Lauren, and I plan activities that we all do together. On this particular Saturday half of our gang went to the town of Lorrach to shop, while the other half of us took a hike through the woods to the Lorrach Castle.

Taking a break at an interesting tree

Our Korean girls!

"Spirit Day"
The Middle School faculty organizes Spirit Days a couple times per semester to let the students dress up in extraordinary ways!

A.J., our resident Mexican (whose parents work in Italy), dressed up like an Arab from the mid-east, where as G.I., (whose parents work in the mid-east and are Korean) dressed up like a Mexican.

Hot Lunch this week was Pasta al Forno, or baked pasta. Here below are two of our cool dudes enjoying it!

Joyce and her friend Karyn

Our joyful servers: Sue and Lauren

Liel Dorm Kids Help Lead Chapel

2011-06-13T13:14:00.019-04:00

February 2010
The Middle School at BFA has its own chaplain and a chapel program on Friday mornings. Each week the kids lead worship and one of the faculty shares a Bible message. This past week some of our Liel dorm kids participated in running the whole chapel time. Even giving the message!

Joyce on the piano, G.I. on the flute, and Ira on the beat box.

Worship

Joyce gives the message. Her daddy, a pastor, would be proud!

G.I. leads in the final prayer

Marshall Plays Basketball

2011-06-13T12:19:00.011-04:00

February 2919
Our son Marshall played on BFA's JV basketball team this year. Our school plays teams from US military bases here in Germany. BFA sports present students the opportunity to discover and develop physical talents and learn to be a team player. They also offer an opportunity to grow spiritually with the challenge to play their best to the glory of God. We thank God for the dedicated coaches who volunteer their time and the opportunity our students have to participate.

Marshall's team and BFA's JV coach huddle up before hitting the courts.

Spending some time on the bench!

Marshall defending

Marshall driving to the basket

Basketball is a popular sport at BFA for our fans. Our boys varsity team did really well this year and our girls varsity team lost the championship by only a few points. The whole school comes out to cheer our teams on.

Our Laura and some of her 7th grade friends.

Three of our Liel girls (Ira, lauren, and kate) showing fans how a Proverbs 31 woman can work with her hands and cheer her team on at the same time.

Sue with one of her friends, "Janelle". Janelle and her husband Matt have been friends from our adult small group from church. Their son also plays on the basketball team with Marshall.

Ski Trip

2011-06-13T10:59:00.010-04:00

January 2010
Our second weekend after coming back from Christmas break we took our Liel gang skiing. It was a huge success because 5 of our kids learned how to ski for the first time. As you can imagine it was very discouraging at first but by the end of the day all of our beginners were able to use the tow bar (lift) and ski down the hill without falling. It was so rewarding !!!! Thank you God!

The ski resort is only an hour away and the snow was great.

First Weeks Back

2011-06-09T16:25:00.017-04:00

January 2010
Hot Lunch Tuesday!

Every other Tuesday we serve a hot lunch at the school cafeteria for our kids. Sue and our Monday evening dorm subs prepare this the night before. This past Tuesday they prepared an Asian stir fry dinner. We also invite our dorm subs who work on staff at BFA and their kids who are students to join our kids for hot lunch. It is a way we can bless them and thank them for their helping us in the dorm on our days off. In this picture you'll notice our daughter Hannah. She was able to be a part of our dorm family for two weeks before returning to college (for her Spring semester) in Michigan. She was always available to help out with something, and Joyce and G.I. enjoyed her playing her flute and guitar with them. We miss you Hannah!

Notice the "Chop Sticks"

Kate (above)

Joyce, Britta, and Ira

Above are Shaffen, Luke, and A.J. . Shaffen and his family come as subs on Thursday evenings when Sue and I have the day off.

Meet Britta! Britta joined our Liel dorm family this semester. Her family (seen below with Sue) served at BFA for many years and needed to move back to the USA during Christmas break. Her dad is a medical doctor and taught AP Biology in our High School. Britta was able to live at the Liel dorm in order to finish 8th grade before returning to the States to be with her family. Britta is an extremely bright girl and is a warm and friendly dorm sister.

Britta's Family:

(Britta standing next to Sue)

Britta celebrated her 14 birthday in our dorm.

Hannah (Britta's friend from 8th grade), Britta, and Joyce

The Kummers' Christmas Together

2011-01-07T16:19:00.021-05:00

Christmas 2010!

"For my eyes have seen Your salvation which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel." (Luke 2: 30-32)

The joy of commemorating Jesus Christ's first advent into this world to be our Savior was made even more special by Alison and Hannah's coming home for Christmas. This was made possible by some special gifts by our family and those who support us in our work at the Black Forest Academy. Thank you, and thank you Lord for Your indescribable gift!

One of the fun things we did together was to drive to the city of Frieburg (about 40 min. away) to go Christmas shopping and to see the Christmas market.

Most of what we did together was to hang around the house (dorm) together. It was a great family retreat.

Alison and Hannah helped lead singing at our church's Christmas Eve service.

For Christmas dinner we all worked together to prepare the meal!

We had sweet potatoes, turkey, stuffed tomatoes, creamed onions, green bean casserol, stuffing, and corn pudding.

Alison giving us some swing dancing instructions:

Even an ole dog can learn some new tricks.

Christmas Season Begins

2011-01-07T15:25:00.022-05:00

December at BFA was an exciting time of Christmas celebrations and anticipation of Christmas break. Here below are pictures of the Christmas concert, which all of our Liel Dorm kids were involved in. See if you can pick them out!

The guy in the middle is G.I.

Our Laura in the middle.

Ira

The whole middle school choir

Here we are getting our Christmas tree from a farmer, "Zigfried" who lives down the street from the dorm.

And decorating our house for the season.

And making Christmas cookies!

The Mindeks, the family that substitutes for Sue and I on our weekends off, singing a song in Bosnian at our dorm Christmas party.

The dorm kids and the Mindeks made special crafts for Lauren, our RA, and for Sue and I. They presented them to us at our dorm Christmas party.

Our eight 8th graders served as waiters at the High School Christmas Banquet.

Here is our resident High Schooler, Marshall, with his date Lizzy, at the banquet.

Ester and Michael below are Liel dorm alumni and very dear to Sue and I. They were in the dorm the three years that we served as substitutes at the Liel dorm. They are now seniors.

Here we are modelling our new Liel Dorm sweatshirts!

Laura and G.I.

November Snow

2011-01-04T16:48:00.018-05:00

A Great Surprise!

We were thrilled to wake up one mid November morning to find several inches of snow! We have had snowy weather off-and-on since then. The snow was a welcome diversion to the school and dorm routine and made us all start thinking about Christmas.

Here's one of my (Bob's) friends, a "Cincia Allegra", the name of a species of chickadee in Italian. Sorry, I don't know what it is called in German. It is most likely not as romantic sounding as the Italian version!

Luke, you wouldn't!

Kaelah well armed!

An after school snack on a snowy day.

The Saturday after our first snow we took the kids from our dorm up to the village of Marzell to go sledding. Marzell is the location of two of BFA's other dormatorys, "Sonne" and "Blauen". Marzell is about a 1000 feet in elevation higher than our town and gets quite a bit more snow than where are dorm is located. Behind the Sonne dorm is a small ski slope which is great for sledding. Here are some pictures of our kids.

Marshall's Birthday

2011-01-04T16:23:00.015-05:00

For Marshall's birthday Sue organized a special Korean dinner and invited a couple of Marshall's Korean classmates. Meet Karen:

Jin and Kayla

Mrs. Won and her husband Samuel were our cooks!

Some instructions from the cook.

Pass the chop sticks please!

I can't name the dishes for you but they were delicious. Marshall says that Korean quisine is right up there with Italian food!

Marshall and his buddy Jordan.

Not clear from this photo,.... but this is Marshall getting "Troughed". We carried him out, down the street, and dropped him into the water fountain trough to baptize him into his 15th year. Can you believe it?

"Herbstmesse", or Autumn Festival

2011-01-04T16:01:00.010-05:00

Every year BFA organizes a bus trip for the students into the city of Basel, Switzerland (about 20' drive) to go to the city's fall festival, "Herbstmesse". Its a carnival that is spread out in different sections of the city. The kids enjoy being in the city, going on the crazy rides, particularly the bumper cars!

Hey, how'de you do that?

Here is Sue and some of our Liel dorm kids standing on a bridge that crosses the Rhein River. Notice the tall ferris wheel in the distance.

Basel is a beautiful city and the homeland of my (Bob's) grandmother's relatives.

Han Seung (Kate), Sue, and G.I.

Kaelah, Hi Reen (Ira), Kate, and our RA Lauren.

Josh and G.I.

G.I. and his buddy Jae In.

An Amazing Autumn at the Liel Dorm

2011-01-03T16:57:00.042-05:00

This October we had the most beautiful Autumn that we have ever seen in Germany. The fall colors were spectacular in the countryside surrounding our little village of Liel. We also had some great times together in our dorm.

One of our dorm activities was to go out to a farm and pick out some pumpkins to carve out.

Up in the sky, its a bird, its a plane, its....

Carvin Artists!

Carvin Artists masterpieces:

Lauren is a farm girl from Maryland. One of the things they grow on their farm is pumpkins. Lauren (with Kaelah's help) made us homemade pumpkin pies!!!!

Meet Katie, Susan, and Susan's son Parker. They come and sub for our RA on Monday nights. They bake snacks and help our students with their homework. Parker is also a good buddy of Marshall.

Laura's mom and dad came from Maldova to visit her on her birthday and to cook a special Italian meal for us!

Lauren (our RA) and G.I. give a hand.

They made around 25 pizzas with tappioca pudding for dessert. Laura's mom is from an Italian (American) family and you won't find a more delicious pizza,... even if you go to Italy!!!

Two Italian cooks in the kitchen. (You can't do better than that!)

A really Happy Birthday!

Spirit Day and Middle School Fall Party

2010-11-06T12:11:00.006-04:00

The Liel kids all dressed up for "Spirit Day" with the theme "Colors"

Goldi-locks and the three bears: Karen, Kate, Ira, and Joyce.

Our RA, Lauren, and Priscilla (the Cat in the Hat).

Senior Class Trip

2010-11-06T11:25:00.015-04:00

Sue and I were asked to leave the dorm for a week and help with the senior class on their class trip to Italy. Sue has been helping to lead up this trip for the past three years, and I have been twice. It was great to get back to Italy and speaking Italian again and great to spend this special time with the senior class, particularly those we know who are Liel dorm alumni!

Sorry for the tourist picture!

Sue in her element: trying to strike us a deal to get in to the Vatican Museum.

Sue with two of our Liel dorm alumni: Trevor and Sara.

Bob and Daniel.

Sue and Ted looking for a good restaurant for some of the staff to eat lunch at.

Sue and Kjersti, another one of our Liel girls!

One of the highlights of the trip was seeing the students sharing their faith and caring for one another.

One student (Daniel seen above above with Bob at the Coleseum) led another student, Mark, to faith in Christ. Two days later he was baptised here in the Terrenian Sea (across the street from the hotel where we stayed).

Another Liel guy, Ross, having been transformed!

Sue dancing with Ross in a Piazza in Venice with Ross.

Liel Dorm Field Trip to Lake Titisee

2010-11-06T11:15:00.006-04:00

Titisee is a beautiful little village in the Black Forest about an hour NW of us. It has a lake where you can rent paddle boats, hiking trails, and shops that sell German souvenires (even one that claims to have over 1000 cukoo clocks.

Hiking down to the lake to have a picnic:

The boys in our dorm: Luke, A.J., Josh, Marshall, and G.I. (Se Eun)

Paddle boat fun!

September Highlights

2010-11-04T17:39:00.015-04:00

Joshua enjoying our picnic lunch.

Luke, Laura, and Marshall playing croquet.

Our computer and music room (A.J. & Marshall).

Breakfast in our sunny dining room (meet the whole gang!).

Sue in the Kitchen making chocolate chips!

A surprise welcome for Sue's birthday. Sue and I came home from our day off and found our apartment TeePeed, with confetti scattered everywhere, and our bathroom filled with balloons.

Game Night! Ira and Sue playing Jenga.

Bob and Laura

Ira and G.I.

Marshall (or is that Irkle?) and Josh.

First Day of School

2010-11-04T17:08:00.010-04:00

Loading the kids up in the vans for their first day of school.

Opening ceremony. Seated here in this section of the auditorium are the BFA staff who are working in the 8 dormatories:

The hardest part of the first day of school for the dorm students is saying goodbye to to mom and dad and younger siblings.

New Beginnings at the Liel Dorm

2010-11-04T16:39:00.008-04:00

Surprize! Yes, after 5 years of serving at the Black Forest Academy in various roles, the Lord has led us to take on the role as dorm parents. The Liel dorm is located about 6 kilometers from the main campus of BFA. It is a currently a middle school dorm for 10 international students who attend BFA. Our kids names are Lora, Josh, G.I. , A.J. Luke, Kaelah, Kate, Ira, Priscilla, and Joyce. Oh, and yes there is Marshall our son. Our Resident Assistant's name is Lauren (seen with Sue and I below).

Bob's Brief Visit to the USA

2010-11-04T15:18:00.003-04:00

Bob made a quick visit to the USA this summer to spend time with his mom and family in New Jersey. He got to spend time with his brother Blair, wife Victoria, and Zachary (their son). He also spent time with his dad, mom, and his sister Janet's family in NJ as well. A friend from the Hawthorne Gospel Church let Bob use his old 87 Cadalac to get around with. It was a great car. Bob also got to spend some time with Alison who was working at our home church in Elverson, PA, and with Hannah who was working at Camp Sankanac. They came up with him to visit Bob's mom one weekend at the Jersey shore. Bob was able to spend time with friends at our the Community Evangelical Free Church in Elverson as well. A special treat was seeing some of our Italian friends from Camp Maranatha, guys who had married American girls from Camp Sankanac, who had come to visit with family in PA.

Boys Passage to Manhood

2010-06-10T05:15:00.057-04:00

Bob and seven dads organized a "Boys Passage to Manhood" overnight camp out for their sons. Their goal was to create a special father - son time through which they could speak into their sons lives about issues crucial to being Christian men. This event also provided a reference point in their lives when their dads acknowledged them as men.

We met at the local German High School and Hiked 45 minutes to our campsite.

It had rained for over a week, and more was predicted, so we brought some dry wood.

We stopped at a fork in the road for one of the dads to speak to our sons about the importance of making wise decisions.

Our arrival at camp!

A beautiful spot with a small cabin, or Hutte in German, with some grassy area around it to pitch tents.

Of course we brought our pocket knives!

Recognize this handsome dude?

We organized various team building initiatives to communicate truth to our sons.

Here there was a mine field of mouse and rat traps. Each boy was to pass through the mine field blind folded, and was to proceed by listening to his father's voice.

There were also distracting and annoying voices too, with intent to mislead....

It was a fun time in the Black Forest! God blessed us with holding off the rain.

Dogs and ho-bo dinners for supper.

Smores!

Night sounds and an organized time around the campfire when each dad shared something from his heart to the boys.

A night game of Capture the Flag!

Real Coo-coo birds woke us up in the morning, starting around 5:30am, and kept it up for the next few hours! It was beautiful.
Breakfast followed.

A time of worship followed by a message from Vince Purpero, a missionary with Campus Crusade who came up to speak for us that morning.

Team building - problem solving initiatives:
Tie an overhand knot.

Helping one another out of the "electric fenced" zone.

Boys crossing over into manhood.

Hammering in a point of reference (Spike) in time.

And leaving a personalized sign (initials in a beech tree's bark) to be revisited sometime in years to come.

There was also a time when each son read a letter written to him by his dad which acknowledged his transition into manhood along with words of appreciation and encouragement. Bob also invited his friend and colleague Brad Winslow to come along to be our photographer who took these great pictures. Although hardly twenty four hours, this was a time which our boys (now young men) will remember and look back to in the years ahead. We look forward to creating more events like these to continue speaking into the lives of our sons. Be encouraged to do the same with your sons and daughters as well!

Bob's small group

2010-05-24T17:09:00.018-04:00

Here are some pictures of Bob's small group. Brad Winslow, who I used to work with on the maintenance crew, helps me work with these young men. Together we are teaching the guys to work with wood and become familiar with wood working tools. We meet together on Wednesday nights in the maintenance shop. We have also been going through the Gospel of John focusing on the Person and works of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Son of God. He is God. Faith in who He is is the first step in following Him as a disciple. As God, He knows all about us and our every thought. His miracles show that He can be trusted, and that we can entrust our salvation and lives unto Him. Encouraging these boys on as disciples of Jesus Christ is our purpose.
There are five 9th grade guys in our group: Alexi, Ben, Evan, Jason, and Joseph.

Alexi and Brad

Some "Mumbai" figures the guys carved led to sharing about idolatry.

Making some walking sticks

Joseph plays for the BFA soccer and basketball teams

Jason is a good friend of Marshall's...

He joined the wrestling and track teams this year.

Ben and Evan are amazing violinists, and Ben is one of our schools best runners,.... and only a Freshman!

May Baptisms

2010-05-24T09:47:00.043-04:00

One of the highlights of the Spring term at BFA is when students profess their faith in Jesus Christ through water baptism. It is an occasion for great joy and encouragement to see our students (and our own children) making this step of faith. The Black Forest Christian Fellowship which holds its services in our school auditorium offers this opportunity to students and the church community every year at this time. Due to the number of students desiring to profess their faith in Christ by being baptized required dedicating two Sunday services for this event. Each baptism was an exciting testimony of God’s working in the lives of our missionary kids. Some of them were of elementary and middle school age whose faith had come to fruition through the instruction of godly parents and through AWANA and Sunday school leaders. A few teens came to faith after having had to endure great hardships like the loss of a dad. Others came to faith after a period of rebellion. Most of these students were baptized by their dads, some by our pastor, and a few by those who have been mentors or someone close to their family. A few of our boarding student’s parents were not able to be present for their son or daughter’s baptism. These students chose to have their dorm parents and RAs (Resident Assistants) to take part in this significant event in their parents' place.

Jesse Frank, the man in the black leather jacket, leads up the AWANA program that is an important ministry to our children.

Last, but not least, was a man from our German community. He was recently led to faith in the Lord through his step mom. She also led his dad to faith in Christ as well!

There were a few others not included in this list of photos who were also baptized!

International Christian Educators Conference

2010-04-19T14:12:00.015-04:00

During our Spring Break the Black Forest Academy hosted the I.C.E. Conference. It was attended by 200 delegates from 25 international Christian schools (plus BFA's staff) from countries like: Russia, Madrid, Prague, Kazakhstan, Albania, Niger, Mali, Turkey, Tanzania... We had great speakers, training workshops, testimonies, and teaching materials made available to us. It was so exciting to hear how God has been working through the ministry of education around the world and it was such a privilege to be amongst such an elite and humble group of God's servants. As a new teacher I attended workshops that gave me creative teaching tips and some how-to's on class discipline. As a result of the conference I gained an even greater appreciation of the value of Christian education particularly as a means of discipling young people for Christ. We are training young people to think Biblically in every area of study, on every issue that we are confronted with, and in whatever culture we find ourselves in.

Three work teams from churches in the USA came to serve at this conference. They did an enormous amount of cleaning, set-up and take-down, waiting on tables, and running a childrens' program. They came at their own expense so that most of us on staff at BFA could attend this conference.

Marshall had the privilege of playing his drums with the team that led worship for the conference.

The Middle School Play, "Get Smart!"

2010-04-05T19:13:00.019-04:00

"Hey Baby Boomers, do you remember when... there was real TV?" Do you remember Maxwell Smart and Agent 99? Well our Middle-Schoolers had a lot of fun acting out the play, "Get Smart".

Getting dressed up and fussed over.

Winning the hearts of young admirers.

Here we are at Control Headquarters with Smart on the left and "The Chief" on the right. Do you recognize anyone else in the picture?

Marshall as "Garth", a Kaos agent, eaves-dropping on Smart (Agent 86) and agent 99.

Agent 13 getting orders to club the Kaos agent Garth.

The wicked Kaos plot thickens.

More trouble from Kaos for Max and 99!

A possible turn of events!

Making a call on the "shoe phone".

Agent 46?

Crime does not pay!

Middle School Play Preparations!

2010-04-05T18:43:00.012-04:00

Sue organized the building and gathering of the many props for the play as well as how they needed to be moved around on the stage during the various scenes of the play. I helped out too as her chief construction aid and stage hand! We also recruited Mr. Powers, the HS principal, and some of the other middle-schoolers to help out.

And the directors, Heather and Bonnie, spent many hours working with the players practicing and acting out their lines! There were also many other moms and BFA staff who helped with costumes and make-up, selling tickets, and with organizing food for the rehearsals and play.

High School Retreat

2010-04-05T17:59:00.011-04:00

At the High School retreat the speaker challenged the students about the difference between hoping in something and things that we hope for. That which we hope in identifies who we are. Things that we hope for on the other hand do not identify us but identify goals that we seek to achieve. The message was very well received by the students, who appreciated the straight talk and truth from the word of God, as well as the personal stories shared by the speaker. He also spoke to them about letting things go from the past which have been holding them back from following Christ. Thank you for praying for our students and staff who attended.

Sue enjoyed hanging out with the girls from her small group on the retreat and together they had some special times discussing the truths which were presented to them from God's word by the speaker.