Project news and prayer points north-western Europe

Last week we shared news about projects in several countries in south-eastern Europe. Now, let's take a look at some projects and prayer points in north-western Europe.

Teen Challenge Netherlands in Heerhugowaard will start a discipleship school later this year. Last month they hosted an open house for anyone interested. Do you know young people who would like to invest a year of their lives in discipleship training? More information can be found HERE.

Earlier this month they hosted a training for Teen Challenge workers from rehab centers throughout Europe. There was a good turnout. The TC building in Heerhugowaard is a beautiful accommodation for a training center and ministry institute.

Last week the freezer broke down. Quite inconvenient when you have a house full of guests. Director Stephan Barendse immediately called out for help and pledges started coming in. Traveling Light will also contribute towards the purchase of a new energy-efficient freezer.

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Last Friday we visited Frédéric & Natacha Hensgens, the directors of Teen Challenge in Belgium. In early February they lost their son Nicolas to suicide. An unimaginable tragedy for them, their daughter Mahora, and further family and friends.

At their center 'Maison Betser' they currently care for a number of people who are in the process of reintegrating into society, a kind of re-entry program. Prayers for comfort and support are much needed.

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Last summer we visited Teen Challenge Iceland. They are active in coffee house work and street evangelism. They have the desire to start a Christian drug and alcohol rehab center in due time. For now, they are looking to open a thrift store, which will offer work opportunities and generate some income.

Let's face it, funds are always needed to pay for rent  (coffee house, day program, etc.), to purchase materials (coffee, tea, study materials, etc.), and to pay for other expenses. Please pray that their efforts to reach people with addictions will be effective and bring forth fruit.

Donations are always welcome. You can send a gift in different ways, please take note:

Send a donation to St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U and make sure to mention 'general' or otherwise which country or project.

💳 Give by card

👉You can also donate directly via our website!

Project updates south-eastern Europe

As Traveling Light, we support initiatives (which we generally refer to as 'projects') throughout Europe.

These projects often involve helping addicts as well as homeless and other displaced people. But certainly also the command that Jesus gave to all of us: 'Go out and make disciples of all nations.' Evangelism, outreach, coffeehouse work, church planting, Bible education... we encourage and support it all.

The project of the month in our secondhand shops / coffee houses over February, was the work of Radko & Nevin Kratsov in Bulgaria. In collaboration with Youth with a Mission (YWAM Sliven), they are active on many fronts within the Roma community, which extends throughout south-eastern Europe. Radko teaches and provides leadership training in Bulgaria and surrounding countries and helps Roma people develop a Biblical vision in every area of ​​life: relationships, work, health, finances, etc.

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The project for the month of March is the work of Teen Challenge in Croatia. All sales proceeds in our shops Twinkeltje and de Schor will go towards this project. So come and visit us! Even if you don't buy anything, you can always give a specified donation.

Ico & Jagoda Matulic lead an evangelical church, several house groups, and two coffee houses. They are also involved in the work of Living Free in Croatia and surrounding countries and in evangelism activities on islands off the coast.

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Now that we are talking about Living Free... Jonatan & Valentina Vlaisavljevic are the overseers of the Living Free network in Europe. They live in Macedonia.

'Living Free' is in fact the non-residential aspect of Teen Challenge. You can follow the program through a church or other group without admission to a clinic or rehab center. After all, it is only a small part of the people who struggle with addictions and other life-threatening problems that register with a rehab center.

Fortunately, there are other possibilities to help people on their way to true freedom. For example, the Living Free trainings, counseling and coaching sessions, and various support groups. It is discipleship that contributes to a healthy spiritual climate in churches and communities. We want to support this work in 2025 with a donation for materials and travel costs.

Donations are always welcome. You can send a gift in different ways, please take note:

Send a donation to St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U and make sure to mention 'general' or otherwise which country or project.

💳 Give by card

👉You can also donate directly via our website!

Ice skating fundraiser brings in 9,000 euro for juvenile home Teen Challenge Kazakhstan

It has been a week since Krijn Donk crossed the finish line on the Weissensee in Austria after skating 200 km! He did this as a fundraiser for the juvenile home of Teen Challenge in Kazakhstan.

Looking back on the long tour, Krijn says: "It is always a tough day when you skate such a distance. After having had quite a few tumbles on the ice, I am grateful to God that I came out of the battle unscratched despite muscle pain in my back and legs."

Crossing the finish line unharmed and in one piece is indeed something to be thankful for. Many followed his efforts via webcam and live tracking and cheered him on after every completed lap of 12.5 km.

"The first 100 km went great, I did it in 3.41 hours. Onwards to the 150 km marker was really tough and the last 50 km were pure suffering. The ice was very good at the beginning of the day but with higher temperatures in the afternoon, it became more and more difficult to get through the ice. I felt pain in my whole body.

I am therefore very happy with the results: a total skating time of 8.04 hours, 26th of all riders finished, and €9,000 in sponsorship funds!"

What a great result indeed. Many thanks to all sponsors, also on behalf of the Teen Challenge team in Kazakhstan. The money will be used to purchase a new passenger van. As soon as we have photos, we will let you know.

Did you know that donations are always welcome? You can send a gift in different ways, please take note:

Send a donation to St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U and make sure to mention 'general' or otherwise which country or project.

💳 Give by card

👉You can also donate directly via our website!

Project updates

We love to share several news snippets with you, to keep you updated.

Krijn Donk was supposed to skate the 200 km tour on the Weissensee in Austria on Tuesday 28 January, for the benefit of the Teen Challenge juvenile home in Kazakhstan.

The organization moved the event to Monday 27, due to temperatures above freezing (which is not good for the ice!). Krijn started this morning at 07:00, but it soon became clear that the conditions were far from ideal. To save energy, he stopped after just over 2 laps.

He expects to try again on Friday 31 January. So we hope and pray that the frost will set in again. We can already share that a good amount of funds have come in (almost 6,000 euros) for which we are very grateful. But Krijn wouldn't be Krijn if there wasn't an actual challenge to participate in. So keep an eye on Friday. You can follow him via this link! ✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦

The 2024 annual report, including the financial report of our treasurer Martin de Haas, is now on our website. If you want to know how much has come in and gone out in donations, how many countries we have visited, and how many projects we have supported, take a quick look here.

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Looking back on the Christmas package campaigns, we are very, very grateful for the enormous amount of donations that came in for this. We were able to donate a total of 9,000 euros to the four different projects!

2,500 euros for Operation Christmas Joy of  Transform Iran. 2,500 euros for the winter campaign in Moldova. 2,000 euros for the sailors and 2,000 euros for the prostitutes in Berlin who received nice gifts and prayers!

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Last week we (Jan and Marja) had a surprise visit. Gesi & Blerina Hysenaj, the directors of Teen Challenge in Albania, came by for coffee. They were in the Netherlands for a short meeting with another non-profit organization.

One of the students who completed the rehab program was also with them, his name is Joy. Via this link you can watch a video in which Joy tells what it's like at Teen Challenge and how his life has changed.

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Donations, large and small, are always welcome. You can send your gift in different ways:

💛Send a donation to St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U and make sure to mention country/project/general.

💳 Give by card

👉You can also donate directly via our website!

Weissensee fundraiser for Teen Challenge juvenile home, Kazakhstan

It's January again, the month of our biggest fundraising campaign of the year.

Krijn Donk has signed up for speed ice skating on the Weissensee in Austria on January 28, a 200 km tour! Like every year, he wants to raise money for a nice project. This time it will be: the juvenile home of Teen Challenge in Kazakhstan.

Krijn has been training relentlessly for the 200 km. Last summer he suffered from a heart rhythm disorder and then he had a cardioversion, twice. He is now fit again, for which he is very grateful to the Lord!

👉 Of course we hope that you will sponsor his fundraising campaign.

As for the project... Last summer Krijn and Cora visited Maxim and Evgenia (Jenja) Buzinovskiyi in Almaty. The couple cares for teenagers who, for whatever reason, cannot live at home or do not have a home. They also have three children of their own.

The teenagers learn what it is like to live together as a family. They get to know God and the Bible and are given important lessons for their later lives.

In 2016, the proceeds from the Weissensee campaign also went to the juvenile home in Kazakhstan. Click here to read that message. Back then, the Traveling Light ice skating team raised money for a kitchen which is still being used gratefully!

Last summer, they had technical problems with their 20-year-old passenger van and they have been living without the van for two months now. Quite a difficult situation, we are sure you understand. They have been saving for a new van for a while, but they aren't there yet. We also made a donation towards that fund in October.

The men from the nearby Teen Challenge drug and alcohol rehabilitation center have removed the engine from the van, they hope to be able to get it working again, but so far without good results... It is really time for a new(er) van!

Krijn would like to raise funds for this. It is possible to sponsor him individually with an amount per kilometer, with an amount for reaching the finish, or with a general amount

👉If you decide to participate, send an email stating the amount you want to give to krijncora@gmail.com. We then keep track of the pledges, which is always exciting!

• Send a donation to St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U. Make sure to mention TC KAZAKHSTAN YOUTH
• Give by card
• Give directly through our website
• When in the USA, make your tax-deductible gift payable to EEO Inc. Make sure to mention TC KAZAKHSTAN YOUTH

Visit to Teen Challenge, Albania

First of all, we would like to wish you all a blessed 2025!

An update on the Christmas package campaigns will be coming up, but first this...

At the end of November, we (Jan and Marja) were in Albania, where we participated in the Europe Teen Challenge leadership conference in Dürres.

Several people from Global Teen Challenge were present as were directors of Teen Challenge rehab programs and centers from more than twenty European countries. Orges & Blerina Hysenaj, the directors of TC Albania, provided a great welcome and a blessed stay.

During such a conference, updates are given about the various rehabilitation centers. There is room to pray with and for each other, to meet each other, and several seminars were given about the challenges of this time and age. [Click on the photos to enlarge]

Think of other/new types of addictions such as vaping and gaming, additional problems such as self-mutilation (cutting) and trafficking, and the fact that the age at which addiction occurs is getting younger.

We have talked with everyone as much as possible 😀 and we also visited the Christian rehab center STREHA near Tirana with the entire group. A fairly small farmhouse where 14(!) men are currently staying, don't ask us how.

It is great to hear and see how lives are completely changed and how the parents and family members are also affected by this. They often have a Muslim background and now see with their own eyes that Jesus is truly the Healer and Savior!

Every month Gesi & Blerina organize a meeting with the parents and families. They share the Gospel, pray and worship together. They cry together, lift each other up, and remind each other that Jesus is alive and able to change the lives of their sons, husbands, and brothers – and their own lives too because they need Jesus as well.

Because the house is now far too small to accommodate everyone who comes for help, a piece of land was purchased last year where a new rehab center will be built in the near future! But that will take some time (and quite some funds). We will keep you informed.

Among the men currently staying in Streha, there is a lot of creative talent. They paint pieces of wood and put scriptures on them. We all received such a work of art.

We want to continue to support the work of Teen Challenge Albania in order to change the city and its surroundings, 'one person at a time' so to speak. Will you help?

You can send a donation in different ways:

💛Send your financial gift to St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U and make sure to mention TC ALBANIA.

💳 Give by card

👉You can also donate directly via our website!

🔔When in the USA, make your tax-deductible gift payable to EEO Inc. Make sure to mention TC ALBANIA

Christmas packages 2024

Every year, Traveling Light supports a number of 'Christmas package' campaigns from various organizations. It is a blessing to be able to give to people who, for whatever reason, are not doing so well, perhaps because they are refugees, addicted, homeless, or far from home. Surely, one of these projects has your heart 💓!

Winter packages Moldova

Winter is approaching again in Moldova. The first snow has arrived and the Pilgrims and Teen Challenge team is getting ready to help people in need! Johannes writes:

"Last year we were able to distribute 450 food packages and almost 35 tons of wood and coal. By visiting the houses, we can see if there are any more needs, and in a dilapidated house in one of the villages we met Andriana, a 12-year-old girl who really needed help. She is now with us in "Pilgrim House" in Riscani and is flourishing!"

A standard aid package consists of 2-3 bags of coal or briquettes + a large food package of 12-13 kg; that is equivalent to a full month's pension. They start the practical part of the project immediately after New Year and continue until the beginning of February.

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Christmas bags for sailors in the ports of Ghent and Terneuzen

For port evangelist Alexander Eberson, the Christmas period is the best opportunity to show the seafarers in word and deed that God also cares for them. He wants to give a Christmas package to the sailors he visits.

Such a package contains a hat, a pair of socks, a patience game, a notebook with pen, a bar of chocolate, a roll of Mentos fruit, a bottle of shower gel, a homemade Christmas card and a Christmas message. A Christmas package costs approximately €7. He can only distribute packages with your help.

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Operation Christmas Joy in refugee camps

Transform Iran wants to show vulnerable children the love of Jesus this Christmas. They are doing this with Operation Christmas Joy (OCJ).

OCJ was founded in 2015 and at its core is about sharing the joy of Christmas with children living in difficult circumstances. OCJ began as a response to the needs of refugees from conflicts in the Middle East and has grown into a major operation that continues to impact children in many countries including Turkey, Armenia, Greece, and Pakistan.

Today, OCJ has grown from a single event to a series of weekly outreaches that allow the Transform Iran team to build relationships with these children, provide them with a loving community, regular educational and recreational activities that build their confidence and strengthen their understanding of who Jesus is and how to relate to Him.

Give the gift of real help this Christmas! If you like to sponsor a Christmas package, you can send a donation to:

• St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U, or 
• 💳 give by card, or
• donate directly via our website!

Project Hope Boxes for prostitutes in Berlin, Germany

Each year we raise money for Christmas packages distributed by various organizations.

For example, to the sailors in the ports of Antwerp and Terneuzen, to the widows in Moldova, and to Iranian children in refugee camps. We will post about that next week.

But first, we would like to highlight a special Christmas package campaign in Berlin, Germany. A few weeks ago we were in Solingen for a meeting with team members of 'Alabaster Jar', a project under the flag of Samaritan's Purse that offers help to prostitutes in Berlin.

We were already in contact with Sandor Hofäcker of Samaritan's Purse in Germany by Email and WhatsApp, following the donation we had sent in early 2023 for humanitarian aid after the earthquake in Turkey/Syria. It was time to meet each other.

The team members of Alabaster Jar help women in Berlin who are trapped in prostitution. Many of them were forced to leave their home country and are now stuck in the red light district - a difficult life, especially in winter. Did you know that there are three hundred brothels in that city alone? 😢

Kathrin and Mari work part-time for Alabaster Jar and go out on the streets together with volunteers to talk to prostitutes and offer them a perspective for a better future. They also have a brothel outreach where they visit and hand out cards and presents to the girls/women.

In their coffee house on the Kufürstenstraße, they welcome the women for coffee/tea and a chat and every year they also organize a Christmas party. At the moment the team is busy filling Hope Boxes. The boxes, filled with love and personal care items, will remind the women that they are important to the team and, even more so, to God.

Last year they provided almost a hundred women in the red light district of Berlin with beautiful and lovingly wrapped Hope Boxes. No woman left the Christmas outreach without a gift and a big smile on their face.

It is possible to sponsor a Hope Box by donating 40 euros.

• You can transfer 40 euros or any other amount to account number NL91RABO0118582275 in the name of Traveling Light, make sure toe mention HOPE BOX.
• You can give by card.
• You can also donate directly via our website!

Project updates, news, and travels

A quick update on projects, travels, and news.

We were able to send a donation to Teen Challenge in Lebanon. Due to the ongoing war with Hezbollah, many people in South Lebanon, as well as in Northern Israel, have been driven from their homes.

Garo Margossian offers humanitarian aid (food, water, medicine, etc.) where possible. He has already received the funds, for which we are grateful.

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We will be in Albania in the coming days for the Europe Teen Challenge (ETC) leadership conference in which directors from most European countries participate.

Every year it offers a great opportunity to meet each other, catch up, and receive updates about the projects we have sponsored.

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Our dear friends Alex & Janet, who met in our coffeehouse Twinkeltje and got married recently, love flea markets. They regularly have a booth or participate in car boot sales with all kinds of nice stuff.

The proceeds will go to the projects of Traveling Light. We are very thankful for their help of course!

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Atelier de Schor will be holding shopping nights on November 22 and 29th. The store is full of Christmas decorations, so cozy. There will also be a pop-up café for coffee, chocolate and tea during those evenings.

In December, in addition to the (normal) Fridays, they will also be open on Saturdays. So much nice (Christmas) stuff, you don't want to miss that. And of course the proceeds will also go to Traveling Light.

Come and enjoy shopping that supports the projects of Traveling Light in this way.

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Two weeks ago we (Marja and Jan) were in Solingen, Germany for a meeting with team members of the 'Alabaster Jar' project from Berlin.

A project under the flag of Samaritan's Purse that offers help to girls and women caught in prostitution. More about that soon!

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Donations, large and small, are always welcome. You can send your gift in different ways:

💛Send a donation to St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U and make sure to mention country/project/general.

💳 Give by card

👉You can also donate directly via our website!

Visit to Teen Challenge, Romania

We promised you a report of our trip to Bucharest, which we made at the end of September.

In January of this year, Krijn Donk and Albert vd Graaf ice-skated 200km on the Weissensee. This sporting event raised over 8,800 euros in sponsorship money for the Teen Challenge women's home in Bucharest, Romania.

So it was the right time for us (Jan and Marja) to visit them again. At the end of September we flew to Bucharest. We stayed at the beautiful rehab center for men, where we were very well cared for and had the opportunity to spend time with the men in the program.

We had wonderful meals, slept well, and we were even able to use their passenger van to go to the women's home.

We provided Bible study during the 'chapel' time, had many conversations, and were able to pray with the students for personal needs.

We were also able to share encouragement from the Bible with the ladies and had nice conversations. We were really able to take the time for such personal minsitry. A delicious lunch was also provided.

At the back of the garden at the women's home, the completion of the classroom and studio has  progressed quite well.

It may be difficult to see in the picture, but the two containers (the classroom on the left and the studio lengthwise on the right) are connected by a roof.

There will also be a porch. In the classroom, the ladies receive their group lessons and Bible studies and in the studio, jewelry, soap and candles are made for sales in churches and at conferences (a creative source of income).

The sanitary facilities on the ground floor of the house still need to be renovated, that is definitely on their list of things to do.

But the home is completely full of women and girls who are dealing with life-threatening problems (drugs, alcohol, human trafficking, etc.) and currently they can't miss the use of a bathroom, to be honest. As soon as that work is done, we will show photos.

On Sunday we went to the church of Teen Challenge (Biserica 43) and there we were allowed to share a word, which was  a great honor. The church is full of ex-addicts and their families, which is a beautiful sight to see.

It was a very busy weekend but at the same time very encouraging to see how so many lives are being changed forever, how much love and attention staff and volunteers are giving to people who have sometimes lost all hope.

By the way, we saw that one of the passenger vans at the women's center really needs to be replaced. They often drive those things until they almost fall apart, because there is simply no money for something newer.

We would like to encourage them with a donation for another van.

If you want to help, you can send a donation in different ways:

💛Send your financial gift to St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U and make sure to mention TC ROMANIA women's home.

💳 Give by card

👉You can also donate directly via our website!

🔔When in the USA, make your tax-deductible gift payable to EEO Inc. Make sure to mention TC ROMANIA WOMENS HOME.