Elliott News Update
May 4th, 2005: It has been an amazing month, both Zana and Mark will be assuming new roles at the end of this month:
Mark has been chosen to assume the important role of Security Officer. He will be responsible for developing relationships and action plans between the ship and UN Military forces (UNMIL). He will also be working with the US Embassy to ensure that the Captain receives timely intelligence to make the critical decision necessary to keep the ship and crew safe. The team of Gurka guards will also be reporting to him. Mark will still be involved in IT as he has assumed responsibility for all the computer systems associated with ship security.
Zana will be assuming a new role on the ward. She will be responsible for the care of all the plastics and VVF surgical patients. This role will allow her to have a larger role in the day-to-day ministry that we perform. This role will also allow more time for Zana to spend with the girls after school.
YEAH!!! We are all excited in that we have found out that in July we will be moving to a bigger cabin. Our present cabin is the smallest family cabin onboard. We have no common space or table where we can eat or do homework with the kids. For the last 5 months the kids have eaten their breakfast while sitting on our living room floor. Thankfully this will all change in July. To those familiar with the ship we will be going from cabin 120 to 125 on B deck. The good news is that the toilet is capable of handling solids, so the girls won't have to find an open public bathroom to go number 2.
Mark has also been notified that he will be traveling the weekend of the 13th to go to the leprosy colony several hundred miles in country to Ganta. He is excited to have an opportunity to spread the good news of the gospel to this much ignored and reviled people. Please keep in him in prayer for safety and that God would use him during this outreach.
April 14th, 2005: Believe it or not there is a new Zana!!!! Pastor Samuel from Benin and his wife gave birth to a little girl today and they have honored us by naming her after Zana. We take great joy in welcoming this new life into the world and will lift her up with our prayers and blessings. We will publish a picture of the new Zana when we can get it.
April 12th-19th, 2005: The UN Forces (UNMIL) took control of our port this week. They used 700 armed Napalese, Jordanian and Irish troops with armored personnel carriers (APC) to secure and search the port for weapons and undesirables. In the end no shots were fired and over 400 individuals were detained and removed from the port. 400 armed troops have set up a camp right outside our dock's gate. This will go along way in providing increased protection for our ship and the crew. We thank God for everyone's safety and His provision to provide us with secure surroundings.
April 7th-12th, 2005: Security has been increased several times over the last week as the UN has been arresting port officials who have been skimming over a million dollars a month from the port. We are again asking for prayer as Mark tries to decide if he should pursue the Security Officer role on board the ship or assume the IT Manager position.
April 5th-6th, 2005: Mark took 29 hours to make his way back to Liberia from Boston. He was blessed with traveling mercies along his way. The airlines agreed to check his luggage all the way through and customs waved him through while they searched and confiscated goodies from other travelers.
March 27th - April 4th, 2005: Mark spent his last week home visiting friends and family in MA. and upstate NY. Unfortunately, Zana was still on the ship trying to keep her and the kids sanity in check as they faced the second month with no A/C. At night the room stayed in the high 90's with high humidity. Each night the girls would shower with a t-shirt on and go to bed wet to help them sleep. It seemed so unfair that Mark was enjoying sunny 55 degree days while Zana and the girls were roasting in the ship. The irony was that the A/C was finally fixed the day before he came home. Again, we want to thank all of you who were lifting us up in prayer during this rough month, we wouldn't have made it without you. Mark was able to attend Easter sunrise service with the TNT congregation and then attend Heaven's Gate first Sunday morning service before heading to his brother Scott's house for a family dinner.
March 20th, 2005: Mark was notified that his dad, Roy, had taken a turn for the worse and was not expected to last much longer. We franticly tried to get Mark on the next flight, but his dad died while he was in the air. We want to thank all of you for your prayers and support for Mark and his family during these last 4 months. It has been hard for Mark to be away during his fathers illness and it has been a comfort to know so many people had been praying for him and his family. Mark closed his dad's eulogy by quoting his dad's favorite line, "keep your powder dry and watch your top knot" knowing he would never here the appropriate reply, "and watch yourn" Goodbye Roy, we love and miss you.
March 19th, 2005: Zana got to take part in her first screening. This is what she has been waiting to do since we first started this adventure over 5 years ago. Zana was responsible for interviewing half of the candidates to ensure their meeting our medical protocols for treatment. It was a long but fulfilling day, as a husband and best friend I am so proud of her.
March10th, 2005: Well were here in Monrovia, here is a map and a PDF document describing the country we have come to serve.
Here is a picture of the intense sun:
March 7th - 9th, 2005: We sailed off for Monrovia today only to be awoken at 11:30 pm by the alarms that our ship was on fire and that we had to go to our muster stations. The fire was in our generator room and took roughly an hour to get under control. Zana had to treat several fire team members for flash burn and over heating. 2 nights later we were awoken to another fire in our main engines. All this while Mark was standing watch and the girls continued their schooling. We are reminded that God never promised us that this would be easy, so now we find ourselves better prepared for whatever comes our way.
February26th-March7th, 2005: While we have been in Benin trying to get the ship's generators fixed, our vessel has been rammed 3 times by large fishing boats and coastal freighters. Mark had to dive twice to check out the rudders and propellers to ensure that we had not been damaged by the other vessels. Mark had to dive a third time to clean (polish) the propellers of all the organic life that was growing on them. Unfortunately, the engine tests we performed earlier that week had sucked up some diesel from a fishing vessel that got rammed and sunk several weeks earlier. When Mark and the 2 other divers got under the boat they became engulfed in the emulsified oil. It was a tough climb out of the water up a 20 ft. ladder while covered in diesel. Diving in these water can be dangerous because of all the fecal matter and chemicals in the water, the diesel just added to our decontamination process.
Zana and the girls accompanied Mark to preach his last time at the church outside of Cotonou. The church had lost its building and the service was held in a outside cabana bar. Mark wants to thank Pastors Pat and Paul for their advice on bringing a message to these people that would encourage them during this time of trial. It was surreal to see Mark preaching while a Guinness banner flapped over his head and the girls made designs using beer bottle tops. We have really been blessed by this experience and thank God that He allowed us to meet these incredible brothers and sisters who are bringing light to a world of darkness.
February 25th, 2005: Our ship and crew are in need of some serious prayer. For the crew, we have been without A/C and hot water for 4 weeks now because our generators need rebuilding. We are scouring the world for spare parts and so far we have found some in China which we are trying to get here. We have already canceled our week of rest in Ghana and these parts may delay us in reaching Liberia on time. As we look at at least 2 more weeks without A/C in 95 degrees and 90% humidity, the crew is tired and our spirits are down as we complete tasks and say farewell to the locals who we have developed strong ties with.
Tonight, the entire crew was on the aft deck enjoying a speaker giving a message when all of a sudden we heard a bunch of yelling from the dock and then we saw the top of masts and then BUMP! We were rammed by a rogue ship...like we needed any more trouble! I went flying toward the back of the ship to see if we were taking on water, had to search every floor and found several noticeable dents inside our hull. I will be diving first thing tomorrow when it is light to check out the propeller, shaft and rudder. Let me remind you all that coming into the port in Benin this ship was went full speed into the dock and we ended up with a new nose job now it looks that other end will need some attention. The Captain promised us that we WILL NOT SINK TONIGHT! Always an upbeat message.
Have you ever gone to work to a safety meeting and heard a message on pirates? Well that's what happened at our safety meeting last week. Apparently, there are pirates in these here waters Maties! I can't help but laugh; rogue ships ramming us, pirates, and voodoo priests cursing us. Who needs Tom Clancy I'm living my own adventure here...although I sometimes wish I was allowed to have a decent weapon...I know I have God behind us and in front of us. He's a much better shot than I am.
February 20th, 2005: Mark went to preach again at the small bamboo church on the outskirts of Cotonou. Last week he called the congregation to be men and women like Gideon and do mighty things for their people and bring them back to God. This week he taught from Luke 16:19-31. Using the Jesus' description of the death of the poor Lazarus and the rich man. In the end, he called all those who were ready to make a stand for Christ in their families and neighborhood and country to come forward for individual prayer. He was shocked when every single person came forward including the children. Mark has never felt so used by God, this is the same man who couldn't speak in church without crying, now he has entire congregations coming forward to be prayed over. A visiting Nigerian pastor was so moved by Mark praying for the children to be raised up as prayer warriors that he fell to his knees and started beseeching the Holy Spirit to raise a nation of children to free this country from the devil and his voodoo. It is hard to capture the intensity of this moment in words, Zana was on call and couldn't go. Luckily a friend who went with Mark recorded a few short movies on her camera, along with some pictures. You can download them by right clicking on the icon and selecting "save target as"
When the service was done, a neighboring church's pastor came over and asked if Mark would give the same message to his church. This second church had already just completed their own 3+ hour service. Mark felt so moved by his first experience, that he agreed to speak 20 minutes. You have to understand the first service was 3 1/2 hours long in the heat and sun, so Mark was wiped physically and emotionally from the first service, so he abbreviated his sermon and at the end of the 20 minutes this new congregation all came forward and asked to be prayed over. Mark claims no credit with either of these services, it was truly a God moment for him. God was in charge and taking him on an amazing ride. The church is loosing its bamboo building this week, a voodoo guy saw how successful they were and took away the building. Mark has been asked to preach next Sunday, please pray for him as this will be the first week out of their church so he needs to encourage these people that God only has a better building waiting for them in the future.
February 17th, 2005: Cailin has been taking ballet for the last 2 months and tonight was a dance recital before our weekly community meeting. We were quite proud of her.
February 13th, 2005: Just a quick look at what life is like here. These motorcycles are everywhere! There are hundreds of thousands of these things, the kids are strapped to the mother by a sheer piece of fabric. The second picture is of a botchy court, but to the natives botchy sounds like butt cheek, check out the yellow sign
February 13th, 2005: Mark preached at a small church in the outskirts of city. The church was in a small grass shack attended by 30 people. Mark preached on Gideon and challenged the local people to find God's will in their lives and help defeat voodoo in their country. Mark and Zana were able to take the pastor and his family on a tour of the boat.
February 12th, 2005: We had Cailin's Birthday on the ship, Cailin lost another tooth the night before the party. It was a Tinkerbelle/Princess party. Zana made a castle cake and the girls made their own wands and crowns. Big thanks to Tara who helped get the party supplies to us in time. We also took several of the British girls who baby sit for us out that night the girls love the attention.
February 6th, 2005: We finally got rain after 2 1/2 months here. It came in a sudden squall and was a down pour that whipped up waves and almost killed a bunch of fishermen who didn't make it back in time. The rain turned the boat in to a water park for the girls. The slide became a water slide and the canopy became a waterfall. A good time was had by all...except the fishermen. We also got to see a local boat get rammed and sunk right in front of our ship, by one of the local tugboats. 5 days later, the boat's mast is still sticking out of the water and all attempts to refloat it have failed.
February 5th, 2005: Our family along with our friend Susan went and visited our adopted patient, Marie and her family. Praise God, she hasn't gotten any worse. Her large extended family lived in a small 2 room house which had pigs running allover the place. Her family was gracious to us, and treated us as honored guests. Unfortunately, there was some miscommunication and Mark was offered Marie's aunt as a bride. He had to graciously decline....of course
February 3rd, 2005: You may have noticed that Zana is missing from a lot of the pictures. The reason is that she is working her tail off! In the last month we have had a case of hepatitis, blood disorders, 8 cases of malaria, 4 accidental needle sticks (AIDS scare) and literally hundreds of cases of diarrhea. She not only diagnose these people and treats them, but also fights with the insurance companies to get them evacuated to Europe to get proper treatment. She is really blooming here and I am really proud of her!
February 1st, 2005: Life continues on ship in our small room. The girls have no table so we eat and do homework on the floor and it can get quite crowded when the girls have people over to play on the dance pad. We received our totes with the fishing gear. Sadly we have not caught anything yet...stay tuned for the fish stories. This week, Jessie and Cailin were recognized by the cleaning crew for helping to clean the ship over the weekend.
January 27th, 2005: Mark's father has had complications from his surgery and is intense pain and is obviously depressed over his lack of recovery. Please pray for him and Mark's family as they fight this disease and the complications from the surgery.
January 24th, 2005: We have adopted a new patient, her name is Marie Victore. She was brought in for a tumor on her neck that stretched all the ways to her lungs. Unfortunately, once the tumor was cut to be removed it began to spread like wild fire in her chest cavity. At this point her condition is beyond our surgeons abilities. We have placed her in God's hands and the whole ship is praying that God would spare this child. On February 3rd, Mark drove Marie and her mom home and met her family. It is unclear if they understand her the severity of her condition. Our family will travel to her home over the next couple of weeks so Zana can provide some hospice care and to pray with the family. Please keep Marie's family in prayer as they struggle with their daughter's condition and allow God's love to be evident and comforting to them. Also pray for our girls, this will be the first time a child they have known may die.
January 22nd, 2005: Mark took a solo road trip up to a town called Abomey. It is the Voodoo version of the Vatican. He took the local train up to the town and then visited the local museum. The ride on the train was unbelievable, at first we saw people literally living on the tracks. Then as we entered the bush we would see little villages sporadically. On a spiritual note this place was really dark, Mark was glad he saw it, but we agreed that we wouldn't take the family to the voodoo site. We hope to get the girls on the train before we leave so they can experience it.
January 21st, 2005: Mark had still more work to do that night, he was in charge of setting up the land rover's projection system to show the Jesus movie in the local tongue, fon, in a local slum . The lines above Mark's head were power lines and really required him to pay attention where his head was at all times. It was amazing to see 600 people both Christian and Voodooist show up, there were even some Muslims who cheered when Jesus was crucified. The scariest part was when a Nigerian pastor took a flash picture and all the voodoo guys (in the hundreds) got really upset that someone was trying to capture their soul. Local vendors were quick to set up impromptu stalls to sell food during the movie.
January 21st,2005: Mark had to dive under the ship as a member of the ship's dive team. He had to clean the salt water intake screens which gets clogged by organic growth. Mark's shoulders were stung by the small anemones that he cleared off the screens.
January 20th, 2005: Mark's father has been diagnosed with cancer in 4 parts of his body. Today, he undergoes surgery to remove a 20 inch tumor just below his stomach. Please pray for him and Mark's family as they fight this disease.
January 17th, 2005: Mark and Jessie took a trip to the African village, Ze, 90 minutes from the ship. This is a village that we have had construction teams at for the last 2 months. We got to see giant termite mounds. We have built a medical/birthing clinic along with housing for the staff. We got to see how they make bricks on site, no kiln is needed since it is so hot here. We dug a well to supply good water. The well is 8 ft in diameter and was dug by hand. We didn't reach water till we were 120ft down and then finished the well at 160ft. Jessie got a turn to haul water up, it wasn't easy! We then visited a local school where they all sang and recited their lessons, it was definitely cool!
January 14th, 2005: Mark chaperoned Cailin's class to a local Christian school in Cotonou. All the students came out to sing and dance to welcome us. They had 8 classes with 40-50 students in each. We had one disappointment in that we met a child with a huge cataracts; we had hoped to try and have our eye doctors see him, but their schedule was booked. I've kept his name should we get back here and be able to treat him.
January 10th, 2005: Our family adopted our first patient this week. Her name is Hurielle. She was born with a cleft pallet and had suffered 2 botched operations from local surgeons to correct it. The girls played with her the first night so she would bond with them. Then we visited her every day. It is amazing to see how much she would cheer up when the girls would show up. They would blow bubbles and color with her. We even painted her and her mother's nails one evening. The mother appreciated the time we were there so she could have a few moments rest. The mothers sleep in the same bed and help care for the children. We continued to visit with her every time she returned to the ship for post-op appointments. the last picture shows her completely healed and visiting the ship with her family on Feb. 3rd.
January 9th, 2005: We attended a local church that Mark has preached at twice now. It is located in a cement and firewood factory. They celebrated the new year with a feast in the church. We were treated to a plethora of local food including fish heads and fufu. Mark wore an African outfit that we purchased for him at the grand market on the previous Saturday. The market is called the Grand Market and is the largest market in West Africa.
December 31st, 2004: We spent New Years on the boat as a family, we played games till midnight then we lit some sparklers and roman candles at midnight. It seems so surreal that we are finally hear, we want to thank all of you for your prayers and support. We just want to say one more time, how much we are blessed to have such an awesome support team. Never think we don't appreciate all that you sacrifice for us, so God can use us.
December 28th, 2004: The 4 of us along with our good friend, Susan Blanchard went to the stilt village, Ganvie. The village was built on stilts in the water because the local slavers were superstitious about water and wouldn't enter it. The ship has already performed medical and dental out reaches to this community. This village like many in this country are steeped in voodoo both spiritually and historically. Many of the villagers had similar facial scars that looked like animal claw marks.
December 26th, 2004: Cailin finally lost the tooth that she broke when she was 2 years old. We have promised her a party once that tooth came out, so a party is in the planning stages as I write this. And as many of you would guess, this will involve brownies!!!!!
December 25th, 2004: Christmas eve we were told to leave our shoes outside our door. We woke Christmas morning to find the shoes were filled with all sorts of goodies. Including a variety of European chocolates that were so wonderful. The girls big presents on ship were scooters and binoculars. We had a simple brunch that morning, and had some fun with a rasta wig.
December 24th, 2004: The girls were involved in 2 different Christmas programs. They were in a play called "The Grumpy Child" and Jessie recited the birth of Jesus from Luke 2.
We had a formal Christmas dinner in the dining room where we hosted all of our Gateway companions at our table. We had Gordon and Lyn Tyler, Robert and Susan Blanchard, Corinna, David, and John, an engineer from Nigeria. It was a great evening where we enjoyed a turkey dinner with all the fixings.
December 23rd, 2004: We have been here 2 weeks now. Zana is just finishing her 7th day of being on-call. She is doing work in both the crew clinic and the patient ward. The girls are adjusting fine to their new school. Jessie's teacher and principal have agreed to move Jessie into the 4th grade for a trial period once school starts again. She is bored by the level of work at the 3rd grade level. The girls are learning how to have fun on the ship and have been busy with the Christmas fair.
December 19th, 2004: Mark preached at a local church. The church was located in the middle of a cement factory. It was very hot in the church and the service lasted over 3 hours. Mark's sermon was based on Gideon in the 2nd book of Judges. Below is a copy of Mark's sermon that he gave.
December 10th, 2004: Our journey through Charles DeGaul airport was terrible! Air France did everything in their power to make our life miserable. At one point the girls were forced to watch us throw away all their stuff including Christmas stockings because the airport Nazi's wanted to re-weigh all our luggage. We ended up not leaving the airport and the girls slept for 5 hours on the floor while we waited for our flight. We finally arrived in the Benin airport to only what can be described as complete chaos.
For those of you geographically challenged as to where Cotonou or even Benin is, below is a map of Western Africa.
December 9th-10th, 2004: We are headed to the airport with 8 bags, each one weighing as close to our 70 lb limit as possible. We will have a 10 hour layover in Paris, our hope is to take the kids to the Eiffel Tower while we are there. We will be in Benin, Africa by 6 pm EST on Friday night. Please pray for God's protection and traveling mercies for this leg of adventure. A special thanks to Peter and Sue Fantoni's who provided a home for us for the last 2 weeks.
November 21st - December 8th, 2004: The madness has begun!!! We have franticly packed totes to be sent to the ship and loaded our 8 suitcases into our van and begun the trip back home. We stopped with families and supporters in Louisiana, Atlanta, Maryland and finally back home on Cape Cod.
We want to stop and thank God for the 2 wonderful churches who have adopted us as their own missionaries. These prayer warriors remember us weekly and even daily as we step out of the boat and follow God's calling to our family
The first is The New Testament Church of Cedarville, MA. This is our home church and they have blessed us for the last 6 years as we began the process of sending Zana for her Masters as a Family Nurse Practitioner and then as they housed us as we gave up our home and belongings to go to Mercy Ships. They will always be part of our family.
The second church that God has blessed us with is the Victory Chapel of Waldorf Maryland. This body heard us speak for 30 minutes over 8 months ago and God moved them to embrace our family and the calling that God has charged us with.
We have been truly blessed by these ministries and we thank God everyday that He has blessed us with such great brothers and sisters in Christ.
November 20th, 2004: We have created 2 video's to celebrate our outreach. the first celebrates the 48 members of our Gateway outreach team and the second highlights our family's activities during this amazing month. You can play them by clicking on them or download them by right clicking them and select "Save Target As".
October 27 - November 19th, 2004: Our family is going to be split up for a majority of this outreach. Mark and the girls will spend a majority of their time out in the Haitian village building 2 new cinder block houses and going on food and clothing on ministries into other Haitian refugee villages. Here is a description of one Cailin's and Jessie's days in the village:
Zana spent a majority of her time in medical outreaches into Haitian villages and teaching future Community Health Education (CHE) teachers for the Dominican slums. The medical dilemmas she face here was very different from the work she was used to. Below is a description of one of her days:
Mark was asked to give his testimony to a Dominican church. A Christian testimony is always an emotional ordeal but this time it was surreal as he had to break his words and thoughts into 5-6 word blocks to allow the translator to communicate it to the local church. Here is a recording of that testimony:
October 27, 2004: Mark went to the Haitian village for the first time today. There are actually 2 villages that sit across a stream from each other. The first is a village that houses the Haitian work force that has been enticed across the Haiti/Dominican border to live in squalor while earning several dollars a day cutting sugar cane. The village is run by a Voodoo priest who acts as a landlord and sheriff for the Dominican government. He charges the Haitians rent to live in shacks and terrifies them with his supposed powers. The Voodoo priest also forces the women of the village to work as his prostitutes in order to live in the village.
When you see a naked child whose stomach is bloated from malnutrition sitting in front of one of these shacks you naturally think that this child is poor. But what you don't understand is the depth of his poverty. His mother has to face a life of prostitution and aids just so he can live in that shack. If he survives AIDS and the myriad of other diseases in this village he will work the rest of his life in the cane fields continuing the circle of poverty. He has no concept of a loving God, instead the Voodoo priest blames every sickness or misfortune on his power and demands payment to lift the curse. Please, pray for these people!
The second village consists of cinder block houses, church and school that Christians from around the world are building to help raise these women and children out of this den of poverty and demonic petulance. Here is a good friends description of the village and dump:
October 25, 2004: Today is a day we will never forget! While at our hotel's pool, a 5 year old daughter of a local pastor drowned. God used Zana and Mark to help bring about a miracle that restored this young girl's life, after she had been without a pulse for over 10 minutes. To read Zana's account of that day and the miracle that God brought about click on the link below:
October 23, 2004: On the first real day in the DR, Mark was able to walk alone in Dominican slum. The slums name is Aguas Negras, which means "Black Water" this is because the sewage runs openly through the streets and homes of this community every time it rains. Below is a description of his walk through Aguas Negras:
October 22, 2004: We are headed for the Dominican Republic! We flew from Dallas to Miami and then on to Puerto Plata on the North East coast of the DR. We are so excited to finally use the training that we learned in the class rooms over the last 2 months and see how God uses the gifts He has given us individually and as a family. It was hilarious to see how a third-world airport is run. Our luggage was thrown on to a large truck and a local man spread eagled himself across the top to try and keep the bags from flying off.
August 26, 2004: At the beginning of the 3rd day of class, Mark began to feel uncomfortable during our morning praise service. He went to the bath room and came back pale reporting that he had just passed a huge amount of blood while having a BM. We rushed him to the ER and he was treated immediately by that evening he had loss half of his blood volume. Zana sent out word to our supporters and prayer warriors that prayer was needed. Over the next 2 days the bleeding stopped! He had an upper and lower scope done and the doctors were unable to find the source of the bleeding. We praise God that He heard your prayers and Mark was restored to health and that this event would have no impact on our plan to serve as missionaries. The doctors struggled to explain his healing. They debated the improbable, that what ever damage he had would heal itself so rapidly and without medical intervention. We on the other hand believe in the impossible, that Mark was healed by the ultimate physician, that our Lord heard our friends and family's prayers and healed Mark in such away as to let there be no doubt that it was the work of His hand. With new blood and sense of divine purpose, Mark and our family can't wait to see how God will use us.
August 23, 2004: We have begun our missionary training. It will consist of 2 months of classroom training and 1 month of 3rd world training in the Dominican Republic working in slums and with Haitian refugees.
Last Week of July 2004: An electrical fire almost destroys the IOC's dining area, the Oasis. Mark was involved in securing the fire and base. He spent the next week, rebuilding the bases fiber optic network and restoring base functionality.
Late-July and First Week of August 2004: The girls headed out on a road trip to the east coast visiting friends and churches in Virginia Beach, VA and Waldorf, MD. They finished the trip by meeting up with the Tonello's in North Carolina
Mid-July 2004: Mark attended his second maritime training course, Basic Safety Training. This course concentrated on firefighting, survival gear, and First Aid/CPR.
July 2004: WE GOT ORDERS!!!!! We now know that we’ll be headed to the Anastasis for at least 2 years. They have a great need for Zana to fill the “Crew Physician” role and I will fill the role of IT Security and Systems Officer. We will return from our Gateway Outreach in Honduras the 3rd week of November and the have 2 weeks at home to say good bye to everyone before heading to Benin, Africa. From there we will travel Liberia, YES LIBERIA, for a 4 month outreach check out our news letter for the latest details. Please pray for us during our outreach in October and November. We have so little time home before we head to ship that we are praying that God will keep us from getting sick while in Honduras, specially the girls.
June 2004: We are now settled in to our jobs and living quarters here at the International Operations Center (IOC) in Lindale, Texas. Mark has assumed the role of IT Manager; his role over the next 6 months is to build the infrastructure, team and procedures to raise Mercy Ships IT Systems to a new level of professionalism necessary to support this ministry and its growing number of ships. Zana has assumed the role of medical evaluator for the Health Care Services (HCS) to ensure all new and existing crew meet the International Maritime Organization's strict requirements.
The kids are adapting well to their new environment, which includes sharing 2 small adjoining rooms with Mom, Dad and 2 lizards they have caught. They travel up to the Oasis dining area each meal and see what epicurean delight awaits them. If it is something "gross" they opt for a salad and hope the next meal will offer something better.
During the summer there are few kids on the base so we have been blessed with the opportunities to attend several VBS's. We were also blessed with 2 scholarships for the girls to a Christian Ranch Camp called Rockin C Ranch. It was a donation by local wealthy residents for kids serving in the 4 major missions programs in this area Mercy Ships, YWAM, Fathers Heart, and Teen Mania. The girls were blessed to have the opportunity to care for animals and ride horses. As parents we were proud that both girls were honored as the most helpful kids during their stay, and no animals were hurt during this week ;-)
The girls miss their friends very much back in New England, not a day goes by that we don't talk about them or wonder what their up to. We encourage any of Jessie's or Cailin's friends to drop them a line on their email, they would love it!!! jessie@theelliottadventure.org and cailin@theelliottadventure.org.
While at Congress in February, Mark was interviewed by the national Christian radio program for men, Man2Man Express. David Beguerie and Brian Doyle interviewed Mark on what called him from a successful career to missions. That interview was aired in two parts this month click below to hear them:
April 2004: Well the journey has begun!!! April 2nd and 3rd marked our last days of work. We loaded up the Aztek and Mark made a record fast run to Louisiana to leave that car and the goods. He returned to MA and we began the process of loading everything else we own into the mini-van and headed first to Zana's parents and then south to Pennsylvania. We sort of looked like a cross between the Clampets and the Griswalds with unknown object/person strapped to the roof of the car:
In Lancaster, PA we met up with Jehle's and the Schermerhorn's while we took the girls to see the stage show "Behold the Lamb" The show was the better than any Christian or Broadway show we had ever seen.
On Sunday the 18th we attended the Victory Chapel in Waldorf, Maryland with our friends the Dickinsons. What a great church! They allowed us to share at the end of the service and we were greatly blessed by their prayers and encouragement. We were also able to take the girls to the new Smithsonian Air and Space Museum Annex in Chantilly. It is free and has fighter planes from all of the major conflicts, I highly recommend it. We were surrounded by many kids and were blessed greatly:
On Wednesday the 21st we headed south to Chesapeake, VA; where we visited the Whatley family for 4 days. Kathy is a college friend of Zana's and is a member of the singing group "Daughters of the King" On Friday the 23rd, they held a benefit concert for us at the Chesapeake Baptist church.
On Sunday the 25th, the girls and Mark presented to the Deep Creek AWANA's group as guest missionaries. We were very proud of both girls as they presented what and why we were becoming missionaries to kids their own age. We were also blessed with the girls getting to spend time with an abandoned baby raccoon and Shit-zu while we were there.
On Monday the 26th, we took the 12 hour trip to Atlanta where we are staying with Kevin and Angel Sandlin. This family along with the Devin and Deanna Akin make up our Atlanta support group and have blessed us greatly. We will be with them till we head to Florida on Thursday the 29th.
March 2004: Mark attended a week long Lifeboat course to allow him to sit for the Abled Body Seaman exam. This course occurred during the week of March 15th the same week we were hit with a late season North Easter. It was fun but COLD!
February 2004: Mark and Zana represented Mercy Ships at this years Congress (Evangelical Convention) in Boston along with the Peter & Audrey Johnson and the North East Reps Peter & Kathy Connelly
Mark & Zana The Johnsons Peter Connelly & Steve Cushing
February 2004: While at Congress Mark was interviewed by the national Christian radio program for men, Man2Man Express. David Beguerie and Brian Doyle interviewed Mark on what called him from a successful career to missions. You can check the interview out at man2manexpress.com
