Dear Christian friends,
Reports and phone calls from Albania indicate that only a few of the Kosovar refugee people being fed by Churches of Christ are returning home this week. We estimate that 10,000 people continue to receive food and other relief supplies from our churches in Albania.
We are beginning to discuss the possibilities of sending survey teams of Albanian speaking Christians into Kosovo to set up relief bases that will eventually help in spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We solicit your prayers for this effort.
Following are some quotes from recent relief reports:
A servant of Christ,
Don Yelton
Contributions may still be sent to:
White's Ferry Road Church of Christ (War Relief)
3201 North Seventh Street
West Monroe, LA 71291
We see many very thankful Kosovars, not only when they receive their boxes, but even when we walk down the street. This is a city of 1 million people now, but it seems small when a Kosovar recognizes one of us who are involved in the work and thanks us over and over again.
Many Kosovars are returning home now, especially those in the camps. Those living in private homes are taking a little more time to make sure that Kosova is safe. In some cases, one member of the family will go ahead of the others to check things out. Of the 800 plus families that we are feeding, only 20 have gone home...that we know about. In the meantime, we have signed up more families. Matilda reports that those returning home live in Gjakova because it is known to be safe. Many of our families are from this area of Kosova. The refugees are happy to be going home but not without gifts of thanks, hugs, and tears.
We are very happy to announce that the tract about Jesus which was taken from a beautiful sermon preached here last fall by brother Jim Cassey from Aberdeen, Scotland, has been printed. Matilda passes them out to the Kosovars while they are waiting in line for their food. She says they really enjoy reading them. More children's Bibles are on order now too.
Some of us went out to "Tent City" last Friday evening to do some follow-up with people we had met there. We enjoyed a very nice visit and Pam took on a new student who has been studying by correspondence with Doug Smith. He said it was difficult for him to study at the tents so now he comes to the World English Institute offices. We also signed up another man for the correspondence course. Several teachers at WEI have Kosovar students, but a few of them have missed the past couple of classes so we are wondering if they have returned to Kosova. Time will tell. Doris Lohry reported that one of her students completed the WEI beginner course and is returning to Kosova with the advanced course in hand. One of Emily Pownall's students came with his family to say good-bye and they were very happy to be going home. We are happy for them also, and pray that the windows of opportunity for us as a church have been opened wide!
This coming week the Richards will be going to Germany and will be purchasing a van for the relief work. Although the Kosovars are going home, the work in Tirana will continue for while. Not only will we be able to buy supplies and visit our families, we will have a vehicle that can be driven into Kosova when we continue the work in that region. The Christians in Stuttgart, Germany have been wonderful in their response to our need and are helping us find a van before we ever arrive. They are also trying to find out about the necessary documentation and customs fees. They are willing to help in any way they can and we are thankful.
We are thankful to all of you. Please continue to pray for peace in Kosova, the relief workers, and for open hearts to receive the gospel of our precious Lord and Savior...the Giver of all peace. God bless all of you.
For the Church of Christ in Tirana,
The Refugee Crisis Committee
Artan, Tom, Artan, and Randy
How times are changing. Daily now families are telling us that they are going 'home' to Kosova despite the warnings. Some are being more cautious, and are sending one member first to see what the situation is like, they will then return and take the others with them. There is no doubt that we will miss many of these people with whom we have built up some warm friendships. We will also be a little puzzled as to what we will do with all the spare time we will have.
It is ironic that at the time we are seeing the first families return to Kosova, we have more aid our warehouse than ever. World Vision gave us 9 tonnes of food on Monday 21st. two and a half tonnes of rice, two tonnes of beans, thousands of tins of sardines, and so on. It took five trips with the hired van to bring it all to our warehouse. We all stood there looking at this mountain of food and hoped that the refugees don't all decide to go for the next couple of weeks. And, we are told, there are more supplies to come this week.
We are so thankful that the war has ended, and that the Kosovars see a hope of returning to rebuild their lives. But, as I am sure you all have, we have been horrified by the stories of atrocities that are becoming known now. Many of our families are returning to these places that we often see on TV. Perhaps they will find their families and friends dead on their return. We must continue to pray for them, and to try and offer them encouragement.
We have decided that when we are told a family is leaving, that we will give them a week's extra food package so that they will not have to worry about that on their return. We are also looking at helping with the cost of their returning, either by paying for the petrol they need, or as we might do, hire a coach to take them to Kukes, in the north. One family I am looking forward to seeing leave are living in one of the groups. There are five of them, and they have a tiny Fiat Polski car, and the owner, Bujar, is a very large man. With all of their possessions, such as they are, and five people in the car, it should make for an interesting picture.
We received many offers of help, and we were in the process of following these through. But with the changed circumstances, and a reducing number of families, then we might not need this help. But we really appreciate your interest in helping. All of our team are feeling the strain, and Dulcie is particularly worn out. I am hoping that she will be able to take a well earned rest in the UK with our family in August. Those who are here will be able to undertake the distribution of aid with little problem. Please continue to remember them all in your prayers.
The current number of families we are dealing with is 340 consisting of around 2,900+ individuals.
In His service
Pete Hodge, Dulcie & the Team