Greetings from June

Dear Family and Friends,

Heartfelt greetings for Advent 2010 and hoping this finds you participating in the promise of joy and peace of the season. 

The past 3 years since 2008 have held some significant changes and challenges, mainly a divorce after 30+ years of marriage -as many of you know.  As Christmas letters are generally upbeat, it is sufficient to say the process has been painful, yet there have been countless moments of encouragement and hope for the resurgence of joy and hope for the future through the support of family, friends and a gracious God.   This experience has borne out the enduring wisdom that to be deeply shaken is often to be deeply moved.  I am grateful to be settling into a condominium in Oak Park and enjoying the prospect of furnishing and decorating it to feel comfortable and attractive.

Another loss this year was the death of my niece, Susan Gibson, who died at age 49 after many health struggles.  We miss her, but are comforted that her difficulties are ended now with our Lord.

A recent cause for celebration in the family occurred when Julia married Jeremy Ewing on May 23, 2010 in a beautiful outdoor wedding in Santa Fe, NM.  Although it never rains in May in Santa Fe, the late spring does kick up blustery desert winds- which made keeping flowers, hairstyles, hats and music stands in proper alignment a moment by moment challenge!  A local mariachi band at dinner added some local musical flavor and fun.  The newlyweds promptly moved across the continent to allow Julia to finish her MBA degree on an exchange program from University of New Mexico with Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia- which happens to be Jeremy’s birthplace. Next it’s off to the postponed honeymoon in Ecuador in December, and then moving to Philadelphia to search for new job prospects for both of them.

I continue to enjoy my work as an Advance Practice Nurse with the Pain Service at Swedish Covenant Hospital in Chicago.  The 11 mile commute that lasts 1hour by car (or 1hr, 20min by train and walking) is the least attractive part.  Singing w/ the church choir, community theater shows and some solo work enriches my free time.

Backtracking a bit, October 2008 was exciting as I traveled to Italy on a tour arranged by my Latin-teaching sister-in-law, Sharon.  We had a group of about 35 adults and walked and climbed the same routes on which Sharon had previously led many energetic high school students- through narrow Roman streets, historical ruins, ancient baths and up to the smoldering top of Mt. Vesuvius.  A 20 min swim in the Mediterranean Sea on the Amalfi Coast in October proved invigorating- although teetering on hypothermia!

However, my personal highlight was singing “O Mio Babbino Caro” by Puccini (which I had studied in my voice lessons) on site in Florence on the bridge named in the song, the Ponte Vecchio.  I did get a small audience among the other street performers!

Back home I tried my hand – or should I say foot- at cross country skiing in January ’09 in northern WI on the Birkebeiner trails under the instruction of my cousin, Paul Harris.  It is a wonderland of pristine snowy forests & balmy temps of zero!

  (Everyone knows about the Birkebeiner race in northern WI, and almost no one has heard of it in Chicago.  Check its historical folklore on Google!)

Michelle lives nearby in Oak Park, and works 3 different places as a licensed massage therapist-plus some hours as wait staff in a local restaurant.   She is currently a studying at University of Illinois in Chicago taking prerequisites to apply for entrance into the occupational therapy program.  She has a steady boyfriend, Jake, and is also an avid reader and a fan of poetry and “spoken word” events.

Christopher has kept busy in the last couple of years practicing an eclectic mix of jobs –including remodeling/carpentry, planting and digging on a tree farm in WI, and most recently assisting in the dental prosthetic lab at Rush Hospital in Chicago w/ Michelle’s boyfriend.   Note the picture of the outdoor stairs he built for my cousin who lives on a hilltop!  In his spare time he likes to try out new hairstyles- especially the Mohawk look!
 

So, that’s my (our) story in a no-so-small nutshell.

I continue to be grateful for all of you that I count as friends and family to share this journey of life together- and I pray for rich blessings and the advent of divine joy for each of you in the coming year.

Fondly –June

 (314 Wisconsin Ave, Unit 1S, Oak Park, Il 60302)

Christmas Greetings from the Wendlers

Merry Christmas 2010!

“And she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins.”  Matthew 2:21

Dear Family and Friends,

            We so look forward to this time of year when we hear from so many loved ones and take the time to reflect on our own past year!

            BRUCE continues his job with The Aerospace Corporation for which we are truly grateful!  His landscape-photography hobby provides him with many hours of enjoyment, both in the trips alone or with photography buddies to scenic spots and in the fun of “tweaking” his favorite shots on the computer.  His latest “toy” is a camera which takes 3-D pictures!  In late March, he and Marilyn visited Jeff & Kristil in Louisville, also seeing relatives in St. Louis and Springfield, IL.

            I, MARILYN, am still volunteering two mornings a week and working a few hours a month for pay!  Besides two trips to Louisville this year, I had the privilege to travel to several special reunions.  In July I attended a reunion of MK’s (missionary kids) in PA.  The majority of us had not seen each other for 50 years!!  The Carper Reunion followed in Salina, KS, but on the way I was able to see a high school friend in PA and other friends in Topeka and Wichita.  Then just last week I visited a couple friends as well as family on my mother’s side in Minneapolis/St. Paul.  I was just in time to experience their biggest snowstorm in 19 years!  I was so thankful to still be able to see everyone in spite of the weather conditions!  A huge thanks to all of them! 

            JEFF & KRISTIL and family are beginning their third year in KY and doing well.  JJ (6) began kindergarten in a “traditional school” and is loving it!  He is fascinated with words and letters and practices at home everything he learns each day at school!  KASSIE (3) and KATHERINE (1) keep Kristil busy at home.  In October, the Dalrymples learned that # 4 is on the way, due late June 2011!  Jeff keeps very busy in the event planning department for Southern Baptist Seminary and gets to meet lots of interesting people.  They came to CA for a couple weeks in May which was a treat for all of us!

            CARLAN is in the middle of his third year of emergency medicine residency at LA County/USC hospital.  It is a busy schedule, but he is beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel!  The medical school friends that he would like to work with overseas are looking into opportunities in Africa.  He was able to visit them all in Kenya in January where they are doing a 2 year program run by World Medical Missions (connected with Samaritan’s Purse).  In October he traveled to Chile with doctors from his residency program who were involved with an emergency medicine conference there.

            JOHN MARK & LAUREN are persevering with their schooling!  John Mark just received the good news that he has passed the final CPA exam and will soon be able to add those initials to his title once he has another year of work experience.  Lauren is moving into the final stretch of her accelerated RN program which will be finished in March.  Their hard work is paying off!

            We are thankful that our parents have had a relatively healthy year.  We were with Bruce’s parents at Easter this year.  They both are turning 89 and my Dad turns 86 next birthday.  He is still in Chula Vista, just 30 minutes from John Mark & Lauren.

            We wish you a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year!

Much love,

Bruce & Marilyn

News from Judy Gration

    

Christmas Letter 2010

It’s the time of year to wish Merry Christmas, to spend time with family and friends, and to send out annual updates.  Here is ours.  Like the rest of you, our lives have been in flux and very busy.  

Scott has been commuting between our home in New Jersey, his place in northern Virginia, and numerous hotels and guesthouses in and around Sudan for over two years.  He has been leading US diplomatic efforts in Sudan as the President’s Special Envoy.

Judy has been living up in New Jersey trying to sell our home.  She has been involved in church activities and started an Alpha ministry there last year.  Judy continues to mentor young wives and recently began to write her memoir.  This summer, she spent three weeks in Kenya with our son, Jonathan, and his wife, Julie, painting an orphanage in Nakuru where Scott’s sister, Barb, and her husband are missionaries.  It was fun travelling to Kijabe where we spent our youth and reconnecting with friends from many years.  To cap their “safari,” Judy, Jonathan, and Julie stayed at a tented camp on the plains near the base of Mount Kenya for a few days.  It was a delight to wake up in the morning and see giraffe at the watering hole with the magnificent mountain outlined in the morning light.

Jonathan and Julie are living up in Alaska where Jonathan flies the F-22 and Julie works as a legislative liaison officer for Alaska Command.  This summer, Jonathan raised over $4000 to buy solar cookers for the women of Darfur and traveled with Scott to Sudan to present these much appreciated cookers.  We made a quick trip to Anchorage to see them over the July 4th weekend and they treated us well with king crab legs, delicious salmon, and yummy halibut meals.  We had to do a lot of hiking to walk off all the calories.

Grandchildren

Jennifer and Brian are now living in Colorado Springs.  Brian graduated from Penn State with a degree in history and is now an Armor officer in the Army.  Jen is an amazing Mom and worked as a Pampered Chef consultant last year.  She also volunteered as a leader in MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers).  Brian and Jen recently bought a home in Colorado and are expecting their fourth baby in February.  We plan to spend Christmas with them and can’t wait to see our grandchildren—Natalie (5), Blake (3), and Evan (1).

David is still working in Orlando with Applied Industrial Technologies.  He travels all over the central Florida area and has become quite a successful salesman.  An avid sports fan, David doesn’t miss many opportunities to attend a college or professional basketball game or gridiron competition.

Katherine is living in the basement of our Springfield house and has started a full-time job as a nanny taking care of two little babies.  She loves it and is thankful to have a job in this tough economy.  She has many friends in the Virginia area, including her loveable cat, Edmond.

We keep hearing rumors of a possible overseas assignment that we’d enjoy, but we can’t talk about it until Scott’s current assignment comes to a logical conclusion.   As another year draws to a close, we are so thankful to God for good health, family, and friends.  We wish you a Happy New Year and a very blessed 2011.

                                                 Scott and Judy Gration

                                                      

                                                                                               8 Stanley Avenue

                                                                                               Nutley, NJ   07110

                                                                                               973-320-2917