Passenger van for Teen Challenge Berdychiv, Ukraine

Last November, we wrote a blog post about the old Mitsubishi van of Teen Challenge Berdychiv, Ukraine being on its last legs.

The van is used to transport men, women and children from the rehabs, to the city, to the church, to the coffee house or to the doctor when necessary.

They needed at least 3,500 euro in order to purchase a good secondhand passenger van.

We send out their request for help through our blog and in December we were able to transfer 3,000 euro and another 600 dollars came through our friends from the USA. And so they could purchase a nice Volkswagen passenger van.

We received these photos last month, everyone is super happy with the van! Think about it, you all made it possible. On behalf of the men, women and children from the rehab homes: THANK YOU.

We love it when it works like this. Present a project, raise funds, donate the full amount and then receive feedback. Direct help, personal relationships (we hope to go to Berdichev again in July), no money wasted and happy faces. Knowing that your donations are being used properly is awesome, isn't it?

👉Mark your calendars:

Saturday April 6th we are organizing another MISSION NIGHT in our shop Twinkeltje, this time with guests from Georgia. Kuanysh & Madina are originally from Kazakhstan. Kuanysh came to Teen Challenge as an addict. He is now director of Teen Challenge Georgia. A great testimony.

Gifts for all those special projects are always welcome, you can send a donation to IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275. BIC: RABONL2U St. Traveling Light in Papendrecht.

Project Teen Challenge coffee house Sweden

A sneak peek in the new shop in Sweden

As you may have noticed we are really excited about the concept of Twinkeltje ... a combination of a hip second-hand shop and a coffee house for the neighborhood.

Wherever we go, we tell about Twinkeltje and so a similar initiative got started last year in Moldova and since last week also in Örebro, Sweden.

Last November we spoke with Christian Alderblad of Teen Challenge Sweden. He shared his desire to open a coffee house. With his team of volunteers he does street outreach among the homeless and addicts. The need for a simple meeting place for further conversations was there, but how to fund such a thing? We shared the concept of Twinkeltje with him: do not think money, think people 😁

Team TC Sweden

And so they prayed and looked out for a suitable location... and as of this year Teen Challenge is renting a store in the city. The team of volunteers worked hard to get everything up and running. Calls were made for people to help with items and materials.

Last week the "englahaket" was officially opened. It all looks very colorful and the shop has received its first visitors. Exciting of course. Click HERE for a short video.

The team now focuses on inviting people on the street for a walk-in evening or - afternoon while the shop will also be open for sales at other times. After all, rent has to be paid, and the rates are quite high in the city.

Setting up shop

We promised to help them with the start-up. Maybe you wonder why? Surely Sweden is not a poor country? Of course it is possible to find support in Sweden. But as Traveling Light we want to encourage (creative) initiatives to reach people with the gospel, whether that is in Holland or Hungary, Germany or Georgia.

We have visited Christian and his team in Sweden and we think it is great what they are doing to change their city!

We have a 💗 for nations and people and we want to bless Sweden. And think about this... if you do not sow seed in a country, you cannot harvest either! We pray and expect the spiritual climate in Sweden to change through these young people!

If you have a heart to help homeless people, addicts and displaced persons (the municipality of Örebro has quite a few refugees and labor immigrants who often wander in the streets) then send your gift to IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275. BIC: RABONL2U St. Traveling Light in Papendrecht. make sure to mention: SWEDEN.

THANK YOU.

Project updates & agenda

Construction of the NFD rehab center in Lebanon

It is about time we post some updates about several projects we have supported. We regularly receive quite a few messages and photo's that we would like to share with you all.

Back in August 2018 we introduced Garo & Gabriela Margossian from Lebanon to you. Garo is the founder of NFD foundation, an organization dedicated to drug prevention and helping addicts to overcome their addictions. Read our full article about Garo's project here.

The Margossian family

The construction of the rehabilitation center is progressing steadily. Garo explained that they are working in stages ... every time funds comes in, they can continue to build 👍 Much is still needed to finish this project.

By the way: in September Garo and Gabriela became the proud parents of Adelina Grace. She is a true answer to prayer.

In April of 2018 we presented project church kitchen in Navazi, Georgia. It took some time before the money arrived at the right place, but at the end of the summer pastor Temuri Muzashvili was able to start the construction. The communal kitchen will be added to the church.

Construction of church kitchen in Georgia

Construction is progressing steadily. During the winter months most of the work is at a standstill. However, we regularly receive photos and messages from Temuri. Always nice to see how the building is being constructed. In the photo, the dark red roof is the new extension.

Last year January we also donated the proceeds of our secondhand store to the work of Teen Challenge in Kazakhstan.

For some years they had a desire to convert an existing barn at the men's rehab center into a automotive paint booth for spraying cars and car parts. Well, the booth is in full use!

Paint booth at TC center Kazakhstan

They purchased the materials, sheathed and insulated the walls and ceiling, conducted the light, filled the floor with a special solution and installed heating. The room was remodeled and today it is working successfully. Men who have completed the program can find a job here. Fantastic!

Agenda:

Saturday, April 6: Mission evening Georgia with guests Kuanysh & Madina Akkuzov

Wednesday, April 17: Sponsor walk for Traveling Light

Saturday, April 27: King's day free market

Donations:
Donations are always welcome. You can send your gift to IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275. BIC: RABONL2U St. Traveling Light in Papendrecht.