As time goes by it seems that the sights, smells, customs, experiences that all seemed so new and fascinating are now everyday occurrences. Even encounters with traffic police are a bit ‘ho-hum’. Not to be outdone, Viv got in on the act and was reprimanded for driving down the street the President lived in – definitely a ‘no-no’ so she found out. But no money changed hands – just a warning! I think they are a little gentler with the ladies!!
Since our last post (yes, we know – it was along time ago!!) things have been pretty ‘full on’.
Just over a week ago the Territorial leaders Commissioners Wim and Netty van der Harst and Colonels Alistair and Astrid Herring visited for about 5 days. During that time we had 2 full days of strategic planning workshops – one with officers, and the second with soldiers. It was encouraging to hear them speak passionately about Salvation Army mission in Moldova into the future. Of particular encouragement was the high number of young people really identifying with Army mission and wanting to impact their communities and villages. In the next 5 years the territory has 3 areas of focus:
The first is about consolidating our existing corps and moving into new areas according to need and the availability of resources. It is recognised that healthy corps means healthy mission. Just about all our evangelical, humanitarian and social work emanates from the corps, so we need to resource them as much as we can
The second focus is on leadership development of both officers and soldiers.
The third is to work toward financial self-sufficiency. Up until now all our work has been funded from outside the territory, so the aim is to approach government, businesses and individuals for assistance along with teaching soldiers about giving.
It was exciting to hear the ideas that officers and soldiers contributed in these areas.
Since our last post (yes, we know – it was along time ago!!) things have been pretty ‘full on’.
Just over a week ago the Territorial leaders Commissioners Wim and Netty van der Harst and Colonels Alistair and Astrid Herring visited for about 5 days. During that time we had 2 full days of strategic planning workshops – one with officers, and the second with soldiers. It was encouraging to hear them speak passionately about Salvation Army mission in Moldova into the future. Of particular encouragement was the high number of young people really identifying with Army mission and wanting to impact their communities and villages. In the next 5 years the territory has 3 areas of focus:
The first is about consolidating our existing corps and moving into new areas according to need and the availability of resources. It is recognised that healthy corps means healthy mission. Just about all our evangelical, humanitarian and social work emanates from the corps, so we need to resource them as much as we can
The second focus is on leadership development of both officers and soldiers.
The third is to work toward financial self-sufficiency. Up until now all our work has been funded from outside the territory, so the aim is to approach government, businesses and individuals for assistance along with teaching soldiers about giving.
It was exciting to hear the ideas that officers and soldiers contributed in these areas.
Another day was spent having a divisional review. Hours and hours of work had gone into collecting, translating and documenting a lot of information from corps and projects around the division, but it was a helpful exercise to sit together and identify strengths and weaknesses.
For a bit of light relief we visited the ballet –‘Romeo and Juliet’. We were given discount on the best seats in the theatre and only had to pay $6.00 rather than $8.00 a seat!! It was a great evening capped off with pancakes back at our apartment!
Corps visits on recent Sundays have been to Cahul, a good sized Corps over two hours south of Chisinau on the Romanian border. As often happens we were greeted in the traditional Moldovan style with bread, salt and juice, and then entered the hall. There was an enthusiastic congregation, and four soldiers were enrolled. They are in the middle of building a new hall which is being funded by one of the US territories.
On another Sunday we visited Cochieri, perhaps our smallest Corps, where the worship setting is fairly basic. We rent a house in the village, and use one of the rooms for a worship setting. Three young girls give oversight to the Corps while the Corps leader, a cadet, is away training in Moscow for two months. There was a good spirit in the place, and a new Adherent member was into the Corps. Even though the Corps is very small, it is a good expression of 'incarnational ministry'. Many children from the vilage find this a warm and welcoming place.
Guess what this is?? Typical of a number of our Corps.
One of the HUGE issues for Moldova is the problem of human trafficking. There are many agencies at work in the country endeavouring to address this. Many approaches are taken – some agencies focus on working with vulnerable groups, others work at education and awareness programs, others work with victims when they return to the country.
Every month Viv attends a meeting of these agencies, where agencies report on their activities and share information. At this time The Salvation Army is not a big player because there are many agencies involved, however, we are enquiring as to whether there are any gaps that maybe we can fill.
It was interesting at the last meeting of this committee to hear a presentation about organ trafficking. Once again people in the poorest villages are the ones who get caught in these schemes. It seems that it happens more often than the government is willing to admit – but just another indication of the lengths people will go to in order to get money so that their families can survive. The going price for a kidney in Moldova is about $3,000 and the recipients are usually ‘rich’ Westerners .
Have had a day at home today – spent the morning doing preparation for Sunday when we are going to Edinets, a town about 3 hours away over bumpy Moldovan roads. My back is always sore after such a trip. Also did some washing this afternoon – was unable to do it any earlier because there was no water for 12 hours. It just happens- unannounced – you wake up and there’s no water!!!! But we’ve survived. All a part of normal life here in Moldova.
There are many glaring needs that need to be addressed both within the Army and in the wider community. We are endeavouring to prioritise and keep chipping away in order to make a difference.
We are both well, and although there are still times when we feel the separation from family and friends, we have a sense of being in the right place at the right time.
Once again – a few random photos with comments…
A few of our DHQ staff enjoying Spring weather
The DHQ garden is coming to life!
A tiny Orthodox Church that has just been built entirely out of wood (apart from foundations) not very far from our apartment. It has been fascinating watching it being built.
One of our disappointments was not being able to attend Clare's graduation from Whitley with her Bachelor of Theology on April 3rd, to add to her science degree. She continues to study this year, and we are proud of her achievements. Megan, Andrew, Beth and Stuart , and of course MATT AND JOEL were there as part of her cheer squad on the night! (In our first edition of this blog, we unfortunately offended a family member who saw that his name was missing from the list of people in Clare's support team. Sorry about that, Joel!!!)
Hey!!! Just coz we can ok???
Until next time.... Ian and Viv xo
