Kirk and Christine

Praise is reading a book about island treasures, black dogs and Sea Dogs. I know a Sea Lion, Sea Horse, Sea Cow, Sea Oats, Sea Lettuce, even Sea Grapes but . . . what is a Sea Dog!? My father would ask each of us at dinner, “What did you learn today that you didn’t know yesterday?” It is such a great question! If we are not careful, life can simply pass by- one day at a time. In an attempt to challenge our family to “live conscious” I ask the same question. Thru Praise’s story book, we have learned that a Sea Dog is simply . . . an experienced sailor. Nine years ago on September 3rd Praise made his surprise entry into this world. Some of you know the story, struggle and miracles involved ... read more

Now that there are 5 teachers at the school in Apebouso, there's no need for me to spend so much time there so I homeschool Praise, Abigail in town. Being in town so much has it's own set of challenges - one being that Abigail and I get bored. Yesterday we decided to bake cookies to perk ourselves up. Abigail wanted to make cookies AND donuts. Of course, then Praise wanted to make his own batch of peanut butter cookies. Praise's made it thru their mixing stage and time in the oven. As I expected, the oven mouse JUMPED OUT when his little toes got too hot from the lit oven. We had cookies baking, Kirk & Praise chasing a mouse with brooms and Abigail standing on a little stool mixing her dough . . . ... read more

It has been over one year since my last blog entry. I wasn’t even sure I would still have access to the site. As we begin each new year we generally have a hope, idea and/or anticipation of basic events to come concerning family and work. The events of 2011 turned out to be very different from what Kirk and I had anticipated. In April 2011 my father informed me that he had been diagnosed with cancer - stage 4 - and asked if I would come home. May 8th Kirk took me to the airport and for the next six months he played the roll of “Mr. Mom”. Chemo treatments began within the month and continued through September. My father had a good summer despite the fact that chemo had no real effect on the ... read more

His skin has a little more color than what I saw in his pictures many years ago. The hair a little shorter with more of a tendency to curl. Now with a wife (who also has a lot of color) and young children. He’s not in Kansas or hiding in Cincinnati. How clever to hide himself in the center of this West African country. Nobody thought to look here … We met him at a teachers conference (of all places). He received his bible training in the same organization Kirk and I attended - Youth With A Mission. We are of the same mind, motivation and spirit. We look forward to working with him in the future. We found … Elvis! ******************************** The kids in our house have a strong desire to do evangelism. After a ... read more

“Tropical Blend” is something we generally relate to fruit juice. Kirk and I live and work in the tropical rainforest areas of Ghana. Our Ghanaian family is quite a blend of tribes, cultures and languages. African Tribes: Kusasi (from the north), Ewe (from the east), Wangalla (upper east), Ashanti (central Ghana), Fante (central coastal area). The nine of us come from EIGHT different families. 8 different families 6 different regions 6 different languages 2 different continents and 4 different countries Wow! All under one roof -- well that is … once we get a roof. That’s still a job in progress. The variety of people we have in our house took my mind wondering around our neighborhood. In our cluster of 5 houses (42yrd X 60something) I began to question; How many people actually live ... read more

Dear Friends I want to begin with a HUGE thank you to those who have so generously offered to help purchase and ship educational materials. Kirk, Praise and I are in the capitol city for a few days. Friday evening I meet with Christy - the 2nd grade teacher who has visited us in Apebouso a few times. I asked her advice on the additional materials so as to maximize your donations. Before leaving this “Wireless Network” zone, I hope to order and ship the best choice in resources. Thank you again. What life changing gifts you have given. If you have not received information regarding donation particulars, please let us know. ******************************************** … That evening, I overheard him say, “A What? I don’t know what to say … Excuse me, I’m picking myself up off ... read more