In our August newsletter, we introduced you to Sis. Lonti and Sis. Jackie Shindano, who are the newest members of the CBMA/C missionary team.  The ecclesia in Avon, Indiana needed help welcoming the families of refugee brothers and sisters who had recently relocated to the area from the African continent.  The new brothers and sisters primarily spoke Swahili, which made things more difficult, but the biggest concern was the kids — the ecclesia wanted to ensure they were anchored in an active Sunday School and CYC.

Having experienced the same transition from life in Africa to an ecclesia in Seattle, Sis. Lonti and Sis. Jackie were the perfect team for the job.  Here is an update, in their own words.

An update from Avon, Indiana

We arrived in Avon in late August and really hit the ground running. Because our primary focus was the kids, the first thing we did was to kickstart a junior CYC program, which we now host every Friday evening. We usually hold a class (given by a local brother in person or by a remote brother via zoom) and some activities…oh and food, of course! During the warm and bright months of September and October, we were outside a lot, but now that the weather is cooler we spend most of our time inside teaching them all the card games we know.

For Sunday School, we take turns teaching the teens, which consists of one to three kids, depending on the week. Going through the Acts of the Apostles with the kids has been great as it serves as perfect preaching opportunity.

We also have been able to meet Sis.Faza and her wonderful kids who live in Kentucky (about 2 hours away). They bring much joy to the ecclesia whenever they are able to visit. We try and see them at least once a month. She has five fun and highly-intelligent kids who are picking up English very quickly. We pick them up on Friday so they can spend a weekend with us here in Avon, then we drive them back home Sunday afternoon.

It has also been a wonderful blessing to meet and get to know the brothers and sisters at the Avon ecclesia. It’s an ecclesia full of hoary heads, with wisdom to spare, and we are learning a great deal here.  We are ever so thankful that God has given us such an opportunity as this.