Project news

Just before the end of the year, we would like to share several project updates with you. In recent weeks, donations have come in from here and there and everywhere, it seems. THANK YOU!

Let's take you on a quick tour of Europe  :)

We have been able to donate 2,000 euro to project Teen Challenge women's home in Romania. The proceeds in our 2nd hand shop Twinkeltje over November, combined with your donations added up nicely. We know for sure that this gift will be used for a good cause.

Safe place for girls

We can also donate 2,000 euro to project Pilgrim House in Moldova. The proceeds of Twinkeltje over December combined with your donations... again! Pilgrim House is the shelter for young girls who were trapped in human trafficking and/or other horrible conditions.

We do not have to emphasize what a blessing that amount will be for the work there!

And then project youth coffee house in Ukraine, some 1,000 euro came in already! Natalya will surely be happy to hear about your generosity. As far as we are concerned ... investing in youth work throughout Europe is a huge encouragement for the young people, the teachers and ourselves, of course!

Natalya (right) at the summer camp 

What a nice ending of a great year. Without your help, it would not have been possible. We really hope that you will continue to follow us in 2018 through this blog.

The Weissensee event 2018 is also coming up! More about that soon. What we can tell you now is that the Traveling Light ice skating team will skate the 200 km for ..... tatarata: project Bertine House in Poltava, Ukraine.

Donations are ALWAYS welcome at bank account St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht, IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275, BIC: RABONL2U. 

We are looking forward to a new year full of great projects

Project Pilgrim House, Moldova

Safe place to grow up...

The year is coming to an end and December is always a month in which we have various projects highlighted. The proceeds of our 2nd hand shop Twinkeltje this month will go towards the girls home in Moldova.

If you have it on your heart to add to that by giving a donation, please, feel free! We'll tell you a bit more about it ....

Charlotte & Johannes

In October 2015, Pilgrim House, as the girls' house is officially called, was opened. The name is derived from Pilgrim International, a non-profit organization founded by Johannes & Charlotte Petersen. They have been living and working as missionaries in Moldova for more than twenty years and they are originally from Denmark.

They have hope for the poorest country in Europe and, besides providing humanitarian aid (food packages and care for the poorest), they provide shelter for young women and girls who have been endangered by human trafficking.

Pilgrim House

They furthermore have planted churches, established children's clubs, a youth coffee house and a Teen Challenge rehabilitation center.

Our Weissensee 2015 event brought in a nice amount for Pilgrim House in Riscani. It is great to see and hear that girls and young women can live there in safety. Some were left at the side of the road by their parents (who are often addicted to alcohol) and others were victims of trafficking, rape or kidnapping. Charlotte writes:

HOME sweet home

'Our aim is always to reach out to the whole family and we have seen several mums come through our rehabilitation program. Some of our young girls have gone back home and are now reunited with their parents.'

For their work, Johannes and Charlotte are dependent on donations and we would like to encourage them to never give up!  Sometimes they may feel like their work is just a drop in the ocean... but what they do for the least, they do for God.

Girl's birthday party at Pilgrim House

Every life counts and Traveling Light loves to help those who make God's love visible and tangible... in this case in Moldova. Year-end gifts are most welcome at St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U. make sure to mention MOLDOVA.

At the end of this month we will add the proceeds from Twinkeltje to donations that have come in for this purpose. We expect to transfer a good amount to them; a blessing to start a new year!

THANK YOU SO MUCH!

Weissensee 2017 for Teen Challenge Georgia

Whether there will be any ice skating in the Netherlands this winter, we don't know. But what we do know is that thousands of brave Dutch skaters will travel to Austria for the 29th Weissensee event.

Our very own Traveling Light ice skating team is planning (after months of intensive training) to participate again this year.

Krijn Donk & Henk Swijnenburg

Krijn Donk (Papendrecht) and Henk Swijnenburg (Bleskensgraaf) are aiming to finish the 200 km ice skating race, which will be held high in the Austrian mountains. And who knows ... maybe personal records will be broken.

But more importantly, they want to raise funds for the new Teen Challenge women's home in Batumi, Georgia which is currently being constructed. The house will be a shelter and rehabilitation center for women who are victims of human trafficking and/or are struggling with addictions.

At least 4,000 euro is needed to buy and install all windows and doors in the building! A few few months ago we were there for a visit, and we were so impressed with the work already done.

Women's home under construction

The new women's home is an idea and initiative of Doug & Anna Boyle who have been serving as missionaries in Kazakhstan and Georgia for years. Most of the construction work is being done by staff and students of the Teen Challenge men's rehabilitation center in the capital Tbilisi.

You can sponsor the skaters as as a team or individually as follows:

• pledge a certain amount for finishing the race
• pledge a certain amount per kilometer accomplished
• pledge a certain amount no matter what the result will be
• pledge a certain amount for breaking personal records
• with whatever idea you have! We just LOVE to hear from you!

Kuanysh & Madina Akkuzov

Of course all proceeds will go to this project in Georgia. You can send your pledges by email to (krijncora@kpnmail.nl) or Facebook. 

We are in good contact with Kuanysh & Madina Akkuzov, the directors of Teen Challenge Georgia. They keep us informed about developments and needs. For the work among the drugs and alcohol addicted, the homeless and the prostitutes they depend on donations.

It would be awesome if the women's home could be opened as soon as possible, because the need is enormous. Will you help to make God's love visible to these women?

You can also donate right now by sending your gift to IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U St. Traveling Light in Papendrecht. Make sure to mention WEISSENSEE.

Click HERE for Weissensee actions in previous years.

Visit to Moldova

The Petersen's home

Last January we introduced Johannes & Charlotte Petersen for the first time on this blog. This Danish couple has been living and working among the poorest people in Moldova for over twenty years.

Last week Jan visited them on behalf of Traveling Light. It was our first trip to the poorest country of Europe.

Community living

Over the years Johannes & Charlotte lived in several different places in Moldova. Their home is a colorful trailer which has kept them mobile... fitting the name of their ministry: Pilgrims International!

They have planted several churches, a Teen Challenge rehabilitation home for men and a women's home which will be opened soon. They provide humanitarian aid and organize children's summer camps. On their website you can find more information.

Almost done, girl's room

For the first time in all these years they now, more or less, have a permanent lot where they have put down their mobile home; it is the piece of land where the Shelter is located... a home for girls and young women who haven been rescued from human trafficking.

the Shelter

Johannes & Charlotte truly share the pure Father heart of God with the people they help: the addicts, the poor, the lonely, the young girls (sometimes only twelve years old) that are offered up for sale by their parents, ending up in prostitution and human trafficking.

It is heartbreaking to see how much suffering there is. But it is also great to see that there are people who are not hesitant to obey the call of God's heart and humble themselves to help others.

Teen Challenge men's rehab

The gift we gave last August was used to buy a Frysian milk cow and two calves! That's a good deal :) At the Teen Challenge men's rehabilitation home they are now (if funding comes in) going to build a dairy kitchen which will enable them to process and sell the milk.

We are grateful for the gifts we received from you all for the beautiful but difficult work of Johannes and Charlotte in Moldova.

The new calves

They are letting their light shine in the darkest corner of Europe, and we certainly want to encourage them! It is great to see that much can be done with little money and that our gifts are being used wisely and practically.

Please, let us not forsake to do the will of God ... on earth as it is in heaven ....

Youth room in the church

Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 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, and your healing will quickly appear. (Isaiah 58: 6-8).

[PS: Click on the pictures to enlarge!]

Gifts are ALWAYS welcome at IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U St. Traveling Light in Papendrecht.

Greetings from Moldova

Charlotte & Johannes Petersen

With spring right around the corner we do not want to think about ice skating anymore. Yet, it is good to look back to the Weissensee sponsor event one more time

The final result was fantastic! 6,000 euro came in for the completion of a shelter for girls and young women in Moldova, who are being rescued from human trafficking.

The construction of the shelter is an initiative of Johannes and Charlotte Petersen, a couple from Denmark who have been living and working among the poor in Moldova for twenty years. They have set up a Teen Challenge rehabilitation center, children's work and activities, a church and they offer humanitarian help. You can visit their website www.pilgrims.mono.net and find out all about their work among the poorest people in Europe.

Church planting is also part of the work

Traveling Light would like to thank all sponsors, businesses and organizations for their support: the response to this plea for help was heart warming. Not too long ago we were surprised by another gift form Christian book store De Bouwsteen in Bleskensgraaf which raised the funds to a final 6,000 euro. The money will be used for the completion of the shelter. Johannes and Charlotte wrote:

"Thank you for your fantastic initiative… you just came in like that, as an answer to prayer. The money will cover a lot of ground in the reconstruction of the house for the girls.... The last frost is leaving and we will now get on with the job of finishing the repairs.  We are so thankful to God for people like you who have made this effort and given so generously. Please give all our LOVExxx to the two brave skaters."

German film maker Markus Haist made a short documentary about The Shelter, which is the name of the house that will be opened. Click on the link to view the film and KNOW that your gifts made this project possible. Please, continue to pray for the girls.

Results Weissensee 2015

Krijn & Henk before the 200 km race

We are looking back at an exciting skating event. Our project Weissensee 2015 has been successful in more than one way.

Both Krijn Donk and Henk Swijnenburg have broken their personal records on the 200 km speed skating AND they were able to raise a fantastic amount in funds for the completion of a shelter for girls and young women in Moldova, who are being rescued from human trafficking.

So far we have received more than 4,500 euro towards this project and gifts are still coming in.

Ice skaters in action

Krijn Donk did the 200 km in 7 hours and 21 minutes and crossed the finish line in 46th place on a total of 1372 participants. Henk Swijnenburg broke his personal record as well and finished the 200 km in 9 hours and 18 minutes! We are very proud of their athletic accomplishments and thankful that they can use their physical strength to raise awareness about the horrors of human trafficking of vulnerable girls and women.

We want to say thank you very much to every person who has sponsored Krijn and/or Henk with a gift, also on behalf of Johannes and Charlotte Petersen in Moldova and the girls they have taken under their protective wings. Your donations will ALL go towards their work.

Construction of girls home

If we have not yet received your pledge (or if you want to make a special donation) please do so as soon as possible. Within Europe you can make your gifts payable to: St. Traveling Light, Papendrecht IBAN: NL91RABO0118582275 BIC: RABONL2U. make sure to mention WEISSENSEE.

We will keep you updated on the construction progress in Moldova, which will continue as soon as spring time is around the corner.

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