TEACHING AT NEW DAY

As retired teachers we assumed we would have some part in helping out at the New Day School.  We each stepped right into teaching two of our three grandchildren here-Ron teaching Caedmon sixth grade science and Dee teaching Cambree 5th grade Language Arts.  Dee also took over Laurie Wilcox's Language Arts class while they were in South Africa and will continue teaching these students until the Wilcoxes return from stateside in January.  After ten years of retirement for Dee and five years for Ron we find the return to teaching to be sometimes challenging, always fulfilling and truly a blessing to return to the call God placed on each of us so many years ago.  And what a treat it is to be able to help teach our own grandchildren!  In August we will head to Isoka and be able to assist Dawnya, our oldest daughter, begin their next year of home school with an 8th, 7th, 5th and 3rd grader.  That post will come later! You will notice there are just a few differences between school in the states and here!  The children have a morning devotion each day at 7:40 am led by a different staff member; they then gather at the school and a student leads them in the Zambian National Anthem and some light student led calisthenics before the bell rings at 9 am for class.  At 10am the kids head to the dining room for a nutritious snack and recess until 10:30am.  Two more one hour classes close the morning at 12:30 for lunch break until 2pm.  All students have reading tutoring/instruction from 2-2:30 and then it is homework and library time until 3:30.  Dee assists students individually and Ron is the library guy for that hour.  Children also have special classes like computer, music, art and PE .  The Zambian school year is made up of three terms with the second term over on July 29 and the third term beginning September 5 through November 25.  The new school year will start January 9, 2017.  Ron only has the Science class three mornings a week leaving him available to sub, but he loves hanging with the kids for their breakfast and morning break each day and calls this MBWA -- Management by Wandering Around. We have been in Zambia exactly one month today, July 17.  What a GREAT RETIREMENT!!  We will be in ISOKA during most of August.  Be looking for our next 2 blogs about Saturday's KIDS CLUB, and our worship experiences thus far.  This life changing Orphanage could not happen without the prayers and support of so many in America who understand GLOBAL MISSIONS.  Twalumba!

 First day of school (for us!)

 Student led opening

 school bell

 Teacher and student

 6th grade Science class with Caedmon in the Library

 Teacher LaLa with Lulu during Guided Reading class

 Language Arts Class

 Lesson planning and prep

 Afternoon reading time with Cason and Mweene

 Computer class with Lulu, Kefbert, and Mweene

 

 The School is the first place the donkey heads when he gets free!

School time for turkey, too!

FROM THERE TO HERE

It all started with a CHANGED LIFE.  Dee, Dawnya and Darbi, our daughters, started attending Immanuel Baptist Church in the spring of 1983 when I was dealing with the effects of two colon resection surgeries due to cancer.  In the spring of 1984, I invited Jesus into my heart as Savior and Lord; after making a profession of faith, we joined IBC on July 8, 1984 and I was baptized by Rev. Darryle Dunks on July 22, 1984.  God placed on my heart His call to bi-vocational ministry, and on April 12, 1986, I surrendered to that call. The next year of preparation and selling most of our possessions concluded with our move to Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth on June 1, 1987.  Dee and I both worked while at Seminary, she as a full time secretary and I as part time custodian.  We had the opportunity while at Seminary to serve as Minister of Outreach at University Baptist Church in Arlington.  God guided us to our first pastorate, First Baptist Church, Welch, Texas on December 20, 1989, seven months prior to my graduation with a MDivBL degree from SWBTS on July 13, 1990. Our next call was to First Baptist Church of Bartlett, Texas on July 12, 1992.   Dee graduated from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in 1994 and began teaching in Bartlett.  On October 1, 1997 God moved us to Taylor’s Valley Baptist Church in Temple, Texas.  It was from here God fulfilled the bi-vocational call on my life allowing me to pastor Ocker Brethren Church in Zabcikville, Texas on January 1, 2001 and return to teaching until May 2011; the last five years at Ocker was serving as full-time pastor.  The call to serve in our retirement years as volunteer missionaries at New Day Orphanage in Mapanza, Zambia came as a clear call after years of prayer, and culminated with our announcement to Ocker Church on May 31, 2015.  The year of preparation, liquidating our American assets once again, concluded with our retirement from Ocker on May 31, 2016.  We landed in Africa and began our volunteer missionary status at New Day Orphanage on June 19, 2016.  

Below are pictures of places mentioned above, but it is the people we encountered in these places that are so special.  There are too many names to mention of those God placed in our lives as spiritual mothers, father, brothers and sisters, even children and grandchildren, but we thank the Lord for each of you through the years and the blessing you have  been in our CHANGED LIVES...from THERE TO HERE.  2 Corinthians 5:17

Immanuel Baptist Church, Temple, Texas

1984-1987

 

Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Ft. Worth, Texas

1987-1990

                                          University Baptist Church, Arlington, Texas
                                                                  1987-1988

                                              First Baptist Church, Welch Texas
                                                                1989-1992

                                               First Baptist Church, Bartlett, Texas
                                                                 1992-1997

                                      Taylor's Valley Baptist Church, Temple, Texas
                                                                1997-2000

Ocker Brethren Church, Zabcikville, Texas

2001-2016