Travel and project updates

About a month ago, we wrote on this news blog that we had plans to go to Comunita Brezzano in Italy for a work week in April.

Well, we will go this week with a group of volunteers and help to level the path to Casa Shalom (which is located on top of a mountain).

In 2013 we stayed at Casa Shalom for the first time, with a group, and since then we have returned almost every year.

Casa Shalom is a family home that lives up to its name. A wonderful place for a retreat, group meeting, or prayer week. We will definitely enjoy it and report back soon!

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After that week in Italy, we will go to the Europe Teen Challenge conference in the first week of May, this time being held in Warsaw, Poland.

This annual conference is always a great opportunity for us to meet staff, students, and volunteers from the various Teen Challenge rehab programs all over Europe.

Ron Brown will be the main speaker in Warsaw. We know him from California! We also saw Marja's name on the program 😀

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We are currently raising funds for the Teen Challenge rehabilitation center in Slovenija. We wrote about this in our previous post. We will undoubtedly meet in Warsaw. The photo is from a recent graduation ceremony, showing guys who have beaten their addictions and successfully finished the program.

Earlier this month the men went to a conference in Sarajevo, they made a video of it which is fun to watch!

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The project of the month in Twinkeltje and Atelier de Schor is the work of Brian Slater and Abundant Bread of Salvation in Israel. So, that's where the total revenue from the stores will go at the end of the month.

They need our support now more than ever. You can also transfer a specified donation, but make sure to include ISRAEL.

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We can always use your donations to support all these wonderful projects and programs. You can send a donation in different ways:

• 💛Send a donation to St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U and make sure to mention which project or country
• 💳 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 SLOVENIJA.

Israel, Twinkeltje, and Christmas packages

At the beginning of November we (Jan and Marja) were in Israel for a vacation. We took the opportunity to meet with Ilya and Janet Bantseev. They are the directors of Teen Challenge Siberia and recently moved to Israel.

They lived and worked in Russia for twenty-nine years and set up a wonderful work there, including drug and alcohol rehab centers, churches, children's work, etc. A few months ago, as a result of the war, they had to leave everything behind.

In Israel, they are now trying to find their way. There are a lot of Russians and Ukrainians who need help and are also open to the gospel. We had fellowship, prayed together, and visited a church service at King of kings in Jerusalem. An active international church that has embraced the Bantseev family. We were able to encourage each other, and that's what it's all about!

Of course, we also visited Brian Slater's food bank in Netanya. With his organization Abundant Bread of Salvation, he is busier than ever, especially with the new wave of refugees coming in.

Together with a few other volunteers we prepared and distributed food packages and we were also able to pray with various people. When all the work was done, we enjoyed a delicious meal and had time to catch up on current happenings.

The project for the month of December in Twinkeltje in de Schor is therefore the work of Brian Slater. All proceeds will go there. If you don't have the opportunity to visit our shop/coffee house, you can also make an specified donation if you want to support his work.

We saw a nice video come by on FB which Brian made the day we were there!

👉 Oh yeah, the Christmas packages projects 🎄 Donations are currently coming in, thanks for that. If you haven't considered it yet, don't hesitate any longer and make someone else happy today!

If you would like to make a donation, you can do so in different ways, please take note:

• Send a donation to St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U and don't forget to mention project or country
• 💳 Give by card

Financial report 2020

We are quite big for a small organization, we often say jokingly 😀

• An international network of more than thirty countries,
• a prominent place in our own town thanks to Twinkeltje and De Schor,
• a steady group of loyal supporters and
• more than half a million euro given away to good causes since we founded Traveling Light 10 years ago.

Our treasurer Martin de Haas has made up the financial report over 2020 and it turns out that in 2020, despite the current global crisis, we received almost 78,000 euro in donations from all of you and we were able to distribute all this over dozens of projects throughout Europe. A wonderful result for which we are very grateful!

As you can see, we are not using the gifts for anything else than the announced projects. Whatever comes in is also given away, so you can always be sure that your donations will actually arrive at their destination. A short annual report will soon be available on our website.

👉The projects we support almost always have to do with offering help and hope to the poor, the homeless, the addicted, the prostitutes, the children, the prisoners, and the lonely.

At this moment donations are coming in for the purchase of a Teen Challenge women's home in Ukraine. Great to see this enthusiasm, despite the fact that will not have an ice skating fundraiser event this year.

In Twinkeltje and De Schor, the January proceeds will go to Brian Slater's work in Netanya, Israel.

With his organization Abundant Bread of Salvation, he cares for the elderly, the poor, Holocaust survivors, and single mothers. It is of course always possible to give a specified donation for this. We will make sure it gets there.

All donations, large and small, for all our projects are always welcome and can be directed at St. Traveling Light in Papendrecht, IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U., stating the country or project you want to support.

Proceeds of secondhand shop go all over Europe

Last week we received a message from Poland and well from Teen Challenge Winiarczykowka. Janusz and Bogusia Gornicki are the directors of a home for the elderly which is located in a former border patrol post. 'We're painting the whole house,' Bogusia messaged.

👉The proceeds of our secondhand shop/coffee house Twinkeltje over the month of January went to the work of Teen Challenge in Winiarczykowka. They wanted to paint the house on the inside, which is the first time since they came to live there, 10 years ago.

'We are so happy with your gift,' Bogusia wrote, 'we were able to buy a lot of paint and now we can give the men a nice job. At the moment we are more or less confined to the house with these elderly people, so it is great to have such a beautiful project that we can all work on. They love it!'

Well, back in January we had no idea how our donation fro them would be put to use. But we are very glad to hear that the timing was perfect. For sure, the home will look wonderful when all the work is done.

👉The proceeds of Twinkeltje over February went to the work of Brian Slater and Abundant Bread of Salvation in Israel. Thank you all, on behalf of Brian.

Brian also works a lot with the elderly in his food bank and soup kitchen and he has to take the necessary measures nowadays. But the work in Netanya continues. Watch the video of his adopt-a-holocaust-survivor program HERE.

👉The proceeds of Twinkeltje over March went to the work of Teen Challenge among the homeless and addicted in Slovakia.

We (Jan and Marja) were scheduled to visit there last week, among other things for the presentation of the Slovak edition of Marja's book 'My Neighbor's House' which is now available on Kindle. All events and meetings have been postponed.

Twinkeltje (like other shops) is open on Saturday afternoon, albeit under the currently applicable rules. There is no coffee table, but shopping is always possible, we have good stuff!

👉The project in Twinkeltje for April is the Teen Challenge juvenile home in Kazakhstan.

GIFTS (large and small) for all our projects are always welcome and can be directed at St. Traveling Light in Papendrecht, IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U.

Our visit to Israel

Good atmosphere in the soup kitchen

In October we (Jan and Marja) enjoyed a wonderful vacation in Israel. But it was so much more than just vacation!

We helped Brian Slater from Abundant Bread of Salvation in his foodbank in Netanya. We unloaded pallets of products and placed everything on the shelves, we assembled food packages and served meals in the soup kitchen. Always fun to be there and give a helping hand!

Catching up with Polly

The proceeds from our shop Twinkeltje over November will go towards the work of Brian Slater. So come and shop for a good cause!

Also, take a look at this great VIDEO!

We had coffee and lunch with Polly Sigulim in Arad. The Teen Challenge women's home she directed for several years had to close due to several circumstances. But Polly still offers a safe place for women, now in her own home.

Because there is quite a bit of opposition from the Jewish orthodox community in Arad, she stays a bit under the radar so to speak. It was good to catch up and pray with and for each other. All in all, an encouraging visit.

Such honor to meet these Holocaust survivors

Together with Jeroen & Robin Honigh (from Milk & Honey Ministries in the USA) we visited Beit Joles, a home for the elderly in Haifa. Many Jewish people with a Dutch background live there. It was very precious to have time and conversation with these Holocaust survivors (often well in their eighties and nineties).

They enjoyed speaking Dutch with us and in the course of the afternoon, more residents joined our table. They shared stories of their hiding places during WW II with the help of the books Righteous among the Nations. They invited us to come again...

We also had a nice lunch and caught up with Amadeus Schmidgall, who used to be a staff member at Teen Challenge Emsland in Germany and now lives in Jerusalem.

With Mirka and Milan in Jerusalem

When we arrived in the old city that morning, we had an unexpected meeting with Milan & Mirka Antalik, whom we know from our trips to Slovakia. Milan arranges the book presentations and speaking engagements of Marja's Slovak books.

Such joyful meetings, and great to see how the Traveling Light network connects nations!

GIFTS (large and small) are always welcome and can be directed at St. Traveling Light in Papendrecht, IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U.

Looking back at a great year

Abundant Bread of Salvation

Dear ones, we can look back at a great year thanks to your help and prayers. We visited many countries and supported even more projects. At the beginning of next year we will present you with a financial report from our treasurer and a brief overview of all activities. Be patient!

We were able to donate 1,500 euro this month to the work of Brian Slater in Israel. With his organization Abundant Bread of Salvation he runs a food bank in Netanya, he visits orphanages and organizes trips and meetings for Holocaust survivors. Thank you for your gifts.

We also donated 1,500 euro towards the work of Teen Challenge The Gate among students in Wroclaw, Poland.

During the coffee house conference this December

We furthermore donated 1,500 euro for the coffee house work in Ukraine. It is our prayer that they will reach many people again in the coming year with the message of hope and life!

The proceeds in our secondhand store over the month of December were over 900 euro, all of which goes to the work of Radko Kratsov (Roma Ministry International) in Bulgaria.

We are very grateful looking back at 2018 and we will enter the new year full of courage and hope. We are looking forward to your support and prayers again.

Happy New Year, may 2019 be filled with His goodness and grace!

Project news

Haha, happy face at Bertine House

The first two months of this new year have gone by fast and we would like to share some (project) news with you. The final result of our Weissensee fundraiser 2018 added up to 5,800 euro. A terrific result for which we want to thank you on behalf of our ice skaters and of course the staff, women and children of Bertine House in Ukraine.

Speaking about Ukraine. Do you remember we donated towards the work of Teen Challenge youth coffee house in Berdychiv, last December? Well, we received some pictures and an enthusiastic report about their first meetings.

Many young people showed up and valuable conversations about God, school, relations and the future are taking place. We will keep you updated about this work on our blog.

Youth coffee house in Berdychiv

The proceeds of our second-hand shop Twinkeltje during the month of February will go towards the work of Brian Slater in Netanya, Israel. Under the name Abundant Bread of Salvation Brian and his team run a foodbank, soup kitchen and clothes distribution center for the elderly, single mothers and new immigrants. He also has good contacts with a local drugs- and alcohol rehab and he supplies the guys with clothing, food packages and (no doubt) spiritual encouragement. Check out this VIDEO CLIP.

Food bank Netanya

If you would like to invest in this work among the Jewish people that are considered ‘the least of these’, please come by our store and contribute. We are open on Saturdays from 12:00-17:00 hours. Or you can send your donation directly to IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U St. Traveling Light in Papendrecht. Make sure to mention ISRAEL.

We furthermore have been able to transfer 4,000 euro towards the purchase and installation of a new heater in the Teen Challenge re-entry hostel in Białogardzie, Poland. As soon as we have some photo’s, we will publish them on this blog. Thank you so much for your fast responses to this request for help. Together we can make it happen!

Visit to The Gate in Wroclaw

For the next project we will go to Poland again, to the student city of Wroclaw and the work among young people (The Gate) that’s happening there.

It is a very encouraging development that we receive requests for children’s and youth ministry work all over Europe.

Keep an eye on this blog or sign up for email updates (see sidebar on our BLOG).

Project work of Brian Slater in Israel

Brian Slater

Those who have been following our blogs for a while, know that we visit Brian Slater in Netanya, Israel almost every year. He is the founder of Abundant Bread of Salvation, an organization that offers help to Holocaust survivors, the poor and the elderly and also to new immigrants and single mothers.

Brian runs a food bank, clothing distribution and soup kitchen in Netanya and whenever we are in Israel, we enjoy volunteering with him. It is always a great opportunity to chat with the people who come for help (in German, English, Hebrews and Yiddish with many gestures of course). Volunteers come from all over the world.

Brian with Nachum (in the middle)

He is currently in the USA for a series of speaking engagements and presentations. The special thing about this trip is that he is traveling together with Nachum Kerpilevich, leader of the Association of Concentration Camps and Ghetto Survivors of Israel, Netanya Branch. This man is 84 years old and it is his first trip to America.

Brian had asked us some time ago if we wanted to help cover the costs for this trip. There is a lot of things to organize and take care of when traveling for two weeks in the USA. Meanwhile, the work in Netanya continues.

Location of food bank / soup kitchen in Netanya

If you want to know more about Brian's work in Netanya, it is really worth checking out his blog or Facebook page!

Of course we want to support Brian, his work in Israel and the trip in the USA. The proceeds of our 2nd hand shop Twinkeltje over September will all go towards this project. During our special Israel night on September 30th, we will also project pictures of Brian's work in Netanya.

If you want to help us with this, please send your gift to IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U St. Traveling Light in Papendrecht. Make sure to mention ISRAEL.

PS: For our current project Teen Challenge Armenia we have already received over 3,000 euro! Gifts are still welcome.

Offering practical help in Israel

Volunteering in the soup kitchen

Offering practical help, financial support and spiritual encouragement to ministries in need within Europe & the Mediterranean area... That's what it says on the website and weblogs of Traveling Light. let's call it threefold help :)

(Click on the photo's for an enlargement)

Brian & Jan in orange :)

This past few weeks we were in Israel (also to take some vacation) and we were able to offer a helping hand in the soup kitchen of the Beit Asaph congregation in Netanya. It is always a joy to serve there.

Lunch with all the volunteers

You can check out the weblog of initiator Brian Slater if you want to keep an eye on what's going on there from week tot week. Each Monday it is a special time for the elderly and single mothers in Netanya as they gather for a good meal and clothes distribution. Brian is always looking for volunteers, especially on a long term basis.

Celebrating Polly's birthday

On Tuesdays there is dry food distribution in Netanya which is also being managed by Brian Slater. Again, volunteers show up each week to help bag the foods, hand it out to the recipients and pray for people when requested. Very rewarding work!

We also visited the women's shelter Ark in the Negev in Arad. There is always some technical work to do for Jan and we furthermore were able to encourage some people through prayer. We also celebrated the birthday of director Polly Sigulim together.

The situation in Israel is growing more and more vicious, so please keep praying that God's plan will be revealed!

Video clip of the soup kitchen!

PS: The donations thermometer for our current project Bertine House in Ukraine has risen above 4,000 euro and we believe much more can (and needs to) come in for the women and children who had the flee the war in Donetsk.

Expanding our network in Israel

Always finding something to repair

As we wrote in our previous post, we celebrated our vacation in Israel. We have used some of our time there to visit several people and programs on behalf of Traveling Light.

We visited the Teen Challenge women's home in the south. Jan was able to do some practical (read: technical) work at Polly's home, who is the director of the program: fixing the washing machine, fixing faucets, repairing the shutters etc. We were happy to be able to do something in return of her hospitality.

The two Mondays we were in Israel we volunteered in the soup kitchen and clothes distribution center in Netanya. We worked with volunteers from all over the world as we served meals, handed out bread and clothes. We had the privilege of praying with an older Jewish lady who wanted peace in her heart. We explained to her that only Yeshua can give the peace that surpasses all understanding.

No baskets, but boxes full of bread

We also had a wonderful meeting with a Palestinian family in Jerusalem. What a loving couple! The man grew up in a Muslim family from East Jerusalem and his wife in an Arab Christian family from Bethlehem. They came to faith in Yeshua and talked about Him and the Word with such love and respect. Together they are blessed with five children.

For security reasons we will not post pictures or names, but please pray that the Lord will be their provider and protection. We will write some more about them in the near future.

With Brian Slater at Beit-Asaph in Netanya

We were also invited to visit a high-tech company that, besides many other products, makes audio players programmed with the Word of God. The little gadgets work on solar power and/or battery power. The spoken Word can go out in thousands of languages and dialects to people who cannot read, who are blind or those that find it difficult to read. We will write some more about this in the future. We are very glad with all the new connections we made, we truly believe that the Lord sets them up!

Good news: we only need 975 euro to reach the goal for our current project heater Teen Challenge Poland. Who wants to help us with this last portion?

PS: Are you working at a Teen Challenge center somewhere in Europe and do you have a need? Please, consider giving a gift to help TC Poland, it will set the wheels in motion for your ministry as well!

1,500 euro for soup kitchen Israel comes in!

Food distribution in Netanya

Hooray! Thanks to your generosity and prayers we are able to make many people happy this week, and that is something we just LOVE to do at Traveling Light.

The 1,500 euro for the soup kitchen in Netanya, Israel came in! Yes, that fast :) Our heartfelt thanks goes out to everyone who gave towards this project. It is just amazing what we can do together in such a simple way. The money will be used for the purchase of promotional t-shirts for the soup kitchen. The t-shirts will be sold as souvenirs to volunteers, visitors and supporters and that will bring in some extra cash. Cash that is necessary to keep the soup kitchen and food bank running, as more and more people are making use of this service. Part of the money will also be used for the organizing of a special dinner to honor a group of Holocaust survivors. In October we will be visiting Israel again and we will share an update and photo's.

Jan and Marjan

Besides that, we have donated 280 euro towards dental work for one of the guys in the Teen Challenge program in Slovenia. What a blessing that will be for Marjan, who has lived without front teeth for years.  We will share his new smile as soon as we have a picture available. His dentist appointment is later on this month.... so, please be patient :)

Isn't it fun and rewarding to bless other people this way? We can only hope you are enjoying this as much as we do.

The generous soul will be made rich,

And he who waters will also be watered himself

[Proverbs 11:25]

Project soup kitchen, Israel

Brian shares food and tender loving care

For our next project we will go again to the soup kitchen in Netanya, Israel. Do you remember Brian Slater? He works for Chosen People Ministries and every Tuesday he opens up a soup kitchen in Netanya. About 150 people gather there each week to receive a good home cooked meal, prayer and free clothing. Of course Brian makes sure they will hear about the love of Yeshua too! Each week this crowd is waiting for the doors of the soup kitchen to open.

New food bank in the center of Netanya

Last year Traveling Light donated 3,000 euro for a new to open foodbank in the center of Netanya. This is not a place where meals are being served, but a place where packages of dry food are being distributed to the poor and needy. As you can see at the picture we took last October the brand new shelves were waiting to be filled!

We have contact with Brian on a regular basis because we translate his news letters into Dutch and distribute them among his supporters in Holland. Besides that we like to think and brainstorm with Brian about  ideas that will generate some income for the soup kitchen and food bank. He is always trying to come up with creative ways to fundraise. It is one of his ideas he shared with us lately, that we would like to take on as our next project: the designing and printing of t-shirts that can be purchased as a souvenir by volunteers.

The t-shirts will carry a slogan about the soup kitchen. Traveling Light wants to donate 1,000 euro for the purchase of these t-shirts. We expect that Brian would be able to buy about 200 shirts (made in Israel) for this amount. He will then sell them at the soup kitchen for about 15 or 20 euro a piece, where hundreds of volunteers from all over the world come each year to help. This should bring in a few thousand euro's. Money that will be used again to buy supplies for his work. Simple idea, great result!

Project soup kitchen is more than just financing the t-shirts. We would also like to donate 500 euro to sponsor a dinner for Holocaust survivors. Brian has done this recently, he invites about 10 elderly Holocaust survivors for a nice dinner. These are people who have escaped the horrors of WWII and have often lost many family members. The purpose of the dinners is to offer them a special meal, to listen to their stories and to share the love of Yeshua with them. We can make that love practical by sharing a meal.

We need 1,500 euro in total to bless the people in Israel. We are planning to go to Israel in October and we will certainly help in the soup kitchen again. Hopefully we will be able to attend this special dinner as well and have a chance to let our light shine in the lives of these people who are often way up in age and do not know God. If you want to join in blessing Israel, do not hesitate and send your gift to;

Rabobank number 1185 82 275, St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht, the Netherlands
IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275
BIC: RABONL2U

More information about Brian's work in Israel can be found by clicking on the label Netanya in the sidebar at the right or by visiting Brian's blog Yeshua's Fresh Bread.

How can you let your light shine?

Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter, when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn...

[Jesaja 58:7]

Documentary soup kitchen Netanya

Remember Brian Slater? We visited him last October and helped him in the soup kitchen in Netanya. Traveling Light was able to donate 3,000 euro for his new to open food bank in the center of Netanya.

For the past several years we have translated Brian's newsletters into Dutch and distributed them among his supporters in Holland. That's a great way for us to offer practical help :) If you would like to receive his newsletters, they only come out a few times a year, please email Brian at returnuntome1@yahoo.com and he will add you to the list. If you're interested you can also visit his blog Yeshua's fresh bread in Israel. Here's a great documentary about his work in Netanya, enjoy!

Visit Netanya, Israel

During our stay in Israel we not only visited the women's home in Arad, but the new food pantry in Netanya as well. We also volunteered at the existing soup kitchen in Netanya, which takes place every Monday at Beit-Asaph Congregation. When they open their doors many people (some elderly, some single moms, some low income) can come in for a free hot meal, groceries and clothes. Below are some pics we took:

Collecting donated food for the soup kitchen

Lunch with Brian Slater and the volunteers of that day

Sorting, folding and displaying 2-hand clothes

New, to be opened, food pantry in Netanya

Presenting the cheque from Traveling Light

Many thanks, also from Brian Slater, for giving generously for this project. Oh yes, there is another cool photo we want to share with you... in the soup kitchen and food pantry there is always a book table with bibles and other mateial. Since it is forbidden in Israel to evangelize to Jewish/Muslim people, there is a sign at the book table that says 'free to take'. In that way material is not being hand out, but people take it home by choice and that is okay! We found some beautiful bibles there, like this one:

Old and New Testament in Hebrew and Arabic!

While Jan served the people their meal, I had the opportunity to pray with several older people for physical ailments. So much joy was released that two elderly ladies started to shout and sing. It was awesome, God is so good!

Money for soup kitchen Netanya comes in!

Hooray, we are celebrating again here at Traveling Light (something we just love to do). Thanks to our faithful partners we were able to raise 3.000 euro's for the new soup kitchen in Netanya, Israel. Yes!

We wrote a beautiful check which we will symbolically present to Brian Slater when we visit him in Israel next month. The money will be transferred through internet banking, so Brian can use it as soon as possible for the new soup kitchen. Again, we were delightfully surprised at the gifts that came in like a life giving stream from all over the place. We even received a gift from the prayergroup at Church of the Living Christ in Ojai, CA. Thank you ladies, we love you and God loves the cheerful giver :)

We hope you all enjoy reading about the projects we want to sponsor. It is almost like we are zooming in at a tiny speck on this globe where people are working hard to make this world a better place. We just LOVE to send them support and encouragement from Holland. Next week we will introduce you to Polly Sigulim, the lady behind the Ark of the Negev project, a house for battered women in Arad, Israel.

As for now we like to wish everyone a great weekend and leave you with a blessing from the Book of Proverbs (11:25):

A generous man will prosper, he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.

5-year old girl starts fundraising

We just want to share with you how the 5-year old daughter of a friend helped us to raise money for the soup kitchen in Netanya, Israel.

Little blond Mara decided that a cupcake sale would definitely bring in some money for this new project that we decided to sponsor. And who would disagree with that? So she headed to the kitchen and, with a little help of her parents of course, started to make some cup cakes. She used colorful decorations to make 'm even look more yummy. Mara then walked the streets in her neighbourhood and sold her homemade cup cakes. Her action brought in 20 euro's, which is an awesome amount for a little girl like that, especially when you're saving up money for a Nintendo.

And you know what we did with the bag of coins she handed us? We prayed over it as Jesus prayed over the loaves of bread and the fish that later fed more than 5.000 people. Anything we put in God's hands will be blessed and multiplied. We pray that many people will receive food and clothing through Mara's act of giving. We are so honored to have supporters like her!

Birth announcement and Israel update

Last week we received news from Dejan & Renata Berginc (Slovenia) that they are the proud parents now of a brand new, healthy and pretty baby girl: Bianca. Dejan is a staff member with Teen Challenge Slovenia. Together with Matjaz Horjak he runs the new men's home in Nova Vas. Dejan used to be a drugs addict himself, he went through the program in Czech Republic, because at that time there was no facility in Slovenia. After finishing the program he had the growing desire to help others as he had been helped. He works in the men's home now and is happily married to Renata. If you want to surprise them by sending them a card or present, please e-mail us for their address at janandmarja@gmail.com 

As far as the Onyfrievka project is concerned; we are just waiting for all paperwork to be filed. As soon as we receive green light form the Ukraine, we will transfer the money. Please pray that all paperwork will be filed properly and in short time!

Last week we announced the new project we would like to sponsor in Netanya, Israel: equipment for the new to open soup kitchen where Brian Slater will feed the hungry, poor and lonely people of Israel. The first need for this set up is about 3,000 euro's. We are so happy to see that the gifts thermometer here in Holland is rising steadily. As of today we have already received more than 2,200 euro's and we are well on our way to present Brian with this love gift!

"In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive'."

[Book of Acts 20:35]

Project Netanya, Israel

Now that we have raised the 10,000 euro's (!) for Ukraine we will be introducing our next project. This doesn't mean the Onyfrievka project is a closed chapter, by no means! They are working out the official details and everything that comes with buying a house in Ukraine, so we will wait for the signal to transfer the money. Then, the real work can begin: renovation of the house. We'll keep you updated.

The next two projects we would like to support are a soup kitchen in Netanya and a home for abused women in Arad, both in Israel. We believe it is important for all Christians, as well as for Christian churches and organisations, to support Israel. God told Abraham (one of the patriarchs of Israel) that He would bless those who would bless Israel. Well, we all want to be blessed, right?! So, two projects in Israel it will be. Let's start by introducing the man behind the soup kitchen in Netanya: Brian Slater.

We met Brian a few years ago at a mission night in Jubilee Church in Camarillo, California. He presented a slide show and told the audience about his work in Israel. We felt an immediate connection with him and his work and we have been in contact ever since. Brian was born and raised in a Jewish family in Southern California and later moved to Israel where he met his wife Racheli. They have three children and Brian works through Chosen People Ministries (an American organisation). He manages soup kitchens and clothes distribution centers in Tel Aviv and Netanya, where he feeds hundreds of homeless, poor and lonely people (including Holocaust survivors) every week. He works with a team of volunteers who faithfully help him. We have been supporting him, not just financially, but also practically by translating his newsletters into the Dutch language and distributing them among his support group in Holland. We have visited him in 2008 and a year later, in 2009, Jan went to volunteer in his soup kitchen for a few days.

It is not allowed in Israel to evangelize in public, but behind the doors of the soup kitchen people can be prayed for or take books, bibles or flyers home. They also play worship music and show movies during the meals. In Israel it is as hard for Arabs as for Jewish people to live out their faith in the Messiah. They often experience persecution, criticism and sometimes exclusion from their families. Yet, the number of people confessing their faith in the Messiah (Jesus) is growing every day. Jan witnessed the reconciliation between Arab and Jew in person when he visited Netanya. Jesus is the only one who can bring real peace in people's hearts!

Brian just signed the papers for the rental of a store front building in the center of Netanya where they will open up a soup kitchen. we have asked him for a list of immediate necessities so we can purposefully start fundraising for this project. They are in need of tables, chairs, benches, curtains, coffee makers, banners and a wheel barrow as well as many other things. The most needed items can be purchased for about 3,000 euro's. So we will start all over again and try to come up with the needed funds as soon as possible. That way we will be able to bless the people in Israel and who knows we will be able to do much more in the near future. YES!

We are planning to visit Israel in October and we will certainly go and see Brian and hand him a helping hand in the new soup kitchen. You can click on the following link to see a slide show of the happenings in the soup kitchen in tel Aviv: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp0Ta4ljAIU


For those in the USA who would like to give, please click on the below secure link to give a TAX DEDUCTIBLE gift and don't forget to designate your gift in the special designation box to: The Slater Family in Israel.
https://www.chosenpeople.com/main/index.php?option=com_dtdonate&task=authorizenetonce
OR
By Pay Pal
https://www.chosenpeople.com/main/index.php/donate/index.php?option=com_dtdonate&task=pre_paypal&Itemid=261