Selected photos from the iPhone

Not the best quality - more high res photos to come upon our arrival!

The Constant Call Home

Home is more than a place. Home is something that tugs at our hearts, pulling us towards God's calling for our lives.

For some on our team, stepping off the plane in Craiova was a step onto the welcome mat of home.

For most of us, Madison was never far from our hearts.

Camp was home for orphans that may never have experienced that kind of loving community.

The list goes on, but what I'm trying to communicate, is that the idea of home is powerful. We are excited to return to our friends and families, and to the place that we call home. But we return with the most important lesson that God taught us on this trip: That home and family can never be separated.

Because while we travel back to our earthly home, we remember that each one of us is on a journey to our eternal home with our eternal Father, to be His children and to allow Him to father us for the rest of our infinite existence. This truth is branded on our hearts and souls, and on this trip we witnessed orphans go through the beautiful transformation of realizing their identity as a Copilul lui Dumnezeu, a Child of God.

We are returning as changed people. There is a fire in us and we know that it can be hard for you to understand everything we have experienced. Be patient with us. Take time to listen to us and pray with us. We look forward to being near you as we continue the journey together. God moves like a mighty wind and all we can do hoist the sails of our souls and let Him carry us home as His children.

Message from Vali & Lavi Mitrache:

Here is Mitrache David Valentin (family, first, middle). He was 3,78 kg, 50cm (8.33 lbs & 19.68 inches) and he was born on 13.08.2012 at 9:25pm

In data de 13.08.2012 la ora 21.25, a sosit in familia noastra. Multumim Dounului pt binecuventare si voua pt rugaciuni.

(see text correspondence on bottom of last post)

Update from the Brady's

Greetings from Romania

We just got on the train in Brasov, Romania and are heading to Vienna, Austria. It is a 12 hour train ride and we will arrive at 8:00 in the morning. Everyone is fine, with a few being pretty tired and resting already.

The trip has been unbelievable. Craiova goodbyes are always rough but seemed to be extremely heavy for all of us this time. We left early in the morning with a huge send off party. It was nearly impossible not to shed a tear.

Everyone is in good health. Thank you for holding us up in your prayers.

I have been here a few times and my range of emotions this year has been more immense and close to what I think I can take.

Now, just after we left Craiova we received a text from Valentin Mitrache saying that his wife, Lavinia, who is expecting their first child, is at the hospital. He said “We are at the hospital. She's is ready.” (You may remember Valentin was featured in a Blackhawk “my story” that was show at Blackhawk two years ago.) It is such a blessing to see orphans who desire so much to have a family, to actually see how excited they are now that they are just about to become “a family.”

-Larry Brady

This is my sixth trip to Craiova, Romania. I rarely contribute to the blog because the thought of putting my thoughts down in a few sentences for all to read is really more than I can handle. But, here I go… (please keep in mind these are my thoughts and the rest of the team may not share my conclusions).

This Vision Trip has been amazing. I have seen God weave the dreams of our beloved Romanian partners together in a beautiful way. It seems that the ‘vision’ of these partners can be summed up in one word… “family”. The experiences we had every step of the way leads us to conclude that the best way to minister to those that have been orphaned is to create a sense of family.

The Retreat that we helped lead was for those that have been orphaned. We created an atmosphere of family by sharing family like situations which included cooking meals, cleaning, doing work and craft projects, hiking, touring, singing/worshiping, studying God’s word, discussing, and praying… together. We even had the opportunity to do a bit of conflict resolution! All of this in less than three days! It was truly amazing.

Of a total of 20 students who were with us (most of whom grew up in the orphanage) there were three guys, and a brother (19) and sister (17) (that just lost both parents) join us for the first time. One of the guys, Elvis, told us that he was afraid to come on the retreat. He feared that we would laugh at him, which had been his experience in the past. He was a great guy and we loved getting to know him. You could see and feel him absorb the love that was being poured into him. When we had to split ways with the students for a few days (as they returned to Craiova and we went to visit Livada in Targu Mures), Elvis' eyes welled up and burst streams of tears and his grip was so tight! If the retreat was just for this young man, all the resources & sacrifices were just to impact his life alone, it was well worth everything. We had two opportunities to reconnect when we got back to Craiova. These young people were there each time, ready to reconnect. When we left this morning, Elvis, had been waiting at the train station for over an hour and a half to say goodbye. I feel that God was confirming the thoughts we are having about the future direction of this ministry.

Our visit with Livada Orphan Care, in Targu Mures, further confirmed our thoughts about orphan care. The directors of that ministry welcomed us with open arms. They showed us every part of their ministry. They were honest about what worked well and what hasn’t been as affective. We learned so much. Daniel and Valentin made a great connection with the directors. These days were very valuable and insightful.

Saiza, an orphan that I have a close relationship with, was married to a wonderful young man, last Saturday. It was a joyous occasion. They told me this was something they wouldn’t even allow themselves to dream about. As we walked in the park to take wedding pictures I told them, ‘dreams really do come true’. God is so good.

As Larry mentioned, the text message from Valentin was the ‘icing on the cake’. “FAMILY” is the key word the Lord gave us… and now Valentin and Lavinia, both orphaned at a young age, are living their dream to become a family. Praise the Lord.

-Pat

***UPDATE***:

Text correspondence with Daniel & Vali regarding Lavinia throughout the day:

11:54am Vali to us: We are at the hospital. She's is ready

Lief to Vali: Vali!!!!! Wow! We are so excited for you two! Praying for Lavinia and for you, but especially for Lavi & David Valentin. God is good! Keep us posted!

Lief to Vali: We just circled up on the train and prayed for you all - we love you guys so much. Excited WITH you! Be present in the moment today- everything will be ok- God is present in the chaos. God's grace is you and Lavi bringing David into this world. You love him already & God has loved him since the beginning of time. We love you guys!

Vali to us: Thank you guys very much for this encouraging words. Keep praying for Lavi. She is scared. None of us are allowed to stay with her.

4:45pm Lief to Dan: We board our eastbound train in Brasov in 10 min. We miss you all already. How much I want to be waiting at the hospital with you all. Thankful for God's perfect timing anyway. We love you guys. Keep us posted.

Dan: I will. There is a problem: her water broke, but there is not contractions yet and this might not br good for the baby

Lief: Ok. We will pray. But please let Vali know that is very common- in fact it is exactly what happened with Emily & Eleanor. We were at the hospital 24 hours before contractions picked up & active labor (pushing) began. Is there a way to relay this information to Lavinia?

Dan: Yes. Dana is with her and will call her.

9:07pm Vali to us: She is going to do cesarean. Pray for her and for her recovery. She had some problems, and the doctor decided this.

Lief to Vali: - we are praying for all of you. Trusting God that Lavi will be taken care of & your baby boy will be born into the arms of loving parents! So proud of you two- continue to trust God - for to you a son will be born!!

10:10pm Dan to us: David is here! Praise God! Both Lavi and David are great!

Lief to all: Thank God!!!!!! We are so excited for you!!!! What a day! Welcome to the world Mitrache David Valentin! God is good. God is good. Amin.

Vali just texted this: Thank you guys so much. God is good. I saw him. I kissed him. He is so beautiful. What a great feeling. Keep praying for Lavi.

Looking Back and Reflecting on Livada

Friday, August 10 at 12:47 in the morning.

Buna! Michaela is here with the team on the train back to Craiova. These past three days have been an absolutely amazing opportunity that God has given us to dive into Livada (Orchard in Romanian) Orphan Care and observe their organization. On Tuesday Jeremy and Hunter gave you an update on the visit to the summer day camps in Nonsa & the gypsie community Ogra, but there is so much more to tell now.

Tuesday evening, we went to the group homes (they call them Home Groups!) which are part of the housing project that Livada has. These two houses provide a family environment with 9 kids in one house and 12 in the other (ages 5-17).  It was encouraging to see the kids growing spiritually, mentally, and physically in these environments. Thes Livada Home Groups affirmed Open Roads’ long time dream of opening homes similar to these – but instead of just starting at 18 (for the transition from state care to independence, possibly starting earlier by having kids join the homes at a young age). Having a family-like situation is the best thing for abandoned children to deal with their pasts and learn skills for the future. Valentin and Daniel said the other day that the word “home” is a personal and powerful word to these kids who have never felt like they belong somewhere. The homes that Open Roads’ wants to provide is a place they can finally learn to grow and live – this is the main objective of Open Roads. The leaders from Craiova and us also came away some ideas that may adapt certain aspects of the homes to be different than Livada, and we were able to dream and discuss what would that look like. What would make the best family environment where they learned chores chores and study habits (and etc.) and had a positive role model of relationship and love.

Wednesday, the group who went to the Ogra Camp and the other group who went to the Orpahan camp on Tuesday switched on Wednesday. Afterwards, we all went together to a children’s pediatrics hospital in Tirgur Mures to see how Livada has their hand in ministry there. From the moment I stepped inside the state run hospital, I could not believe my eyes. It was far dirtier than American hospital standards and the conditions for the children were by no means desirable. The babies were in metal cribs, with exposed bars separated with wide gaps. The two women who were with us from Livada told us that these children do not get the attention they need to grow properly, spending most of their days unattended to in their cribs. The nurses say they are too busy to attend to the babies, so the lay in their cribs for hours without any human stimulation. Livada’s ministry there is to take all of the babies outside to interact with them, and care for them. They  also do a some minor physical therapy with them since they do not have a lot of muscle. Georgiana, the little girl that I picked up from her crib upstairs, was the size in weight and height of an 18 month old, but I knew she was older from the moment I held her because of how her limbs were developed. I was told she was 3 years old. Another girl who was 4 looked and acted like she was 2. These things broke my heart, and worst of all was that we had to put them back in that dirty place and walk away hearing their screams. This is a picture of the brokenness in the world, and in the midst of this, it is more than likely for someone to ask, where is God? Why do these things happen? But from this hospital we were given a picture of hope in the Livada workers, Gabbi and Mira, who are working on improving the conditions of the hospitial, the care for the children and changing the way the state run hospitals are working. Also, our leaders were able to see the need of these kids, and begin to dream and hope to take kids into group homes as early as 3 or 4, or as early as possible. It is from conditions like these that people grow up with mental or physical disabilities and then have an even harder time struggling with their identity. So although this trip to the orphanage was heart wrenching, God is working in many ways through normal people all around. God is never silent, and He is always claiming these kids as His own.

Today, Thursday, we visited the Orphan day camp again during the morning, and after lunch we left. I think we still felt the same feelings about the day camp for the orphans that we did the other day. After the camp, we went to see some houses that Livada were given and are being fixed. They are pretty old and huge! The two houses are a blessing to the ministry and will do a couple of different things. They will basically fill an immediate housing need for Romanian children there is and to house teams that come to partner with Livada. Right now they are being finished, but they are being used for supplies, materials, and prayer and support cards for different children in the Livada ministry.

Afterwards, we went to see the offices of Livada, the tomatoes and pepper fields, and the group homes again. The greenhouse was very neat because it is Livada’s first steps in self-sustainable ministry and their first microbusiness (offering opportunities to the older orphans to harvest the field and learn agriculture and business). The greenhouses were just built this year, and they seem to have a lot of success with them.

And then we caught the train. We are very thankful to Livada for allowing us to observe and see all their programs, to learn from them, and to have a clearer image of Open Roads in our minds. From here, we all ask for your prayer over Open Roads and their future.

Well we are almost to Craiova, about a half hour more, and I am very tired. Talk to y’all soon.

Michaela

Hello from Targu Mures!

Livada: Day One

Ce Faci?

If you ever happen to stop by the Darina Laguna Hotel in Targu Mures, Romania, make sure that you refresh yourself at the restaurant and order the house specialty mixed platter (including 5 different kinds of meat!).  Lief and Jer destroyed a couple of those tonight… yum. Well, in other news, today in the beautiful city of Targu Mures, we were blessed with the opportunity of checking out Livada Orphan Care. Livada is a well established ministry that our team of Romanians and Americans are interested in checking out due to the fact that it is a good case study for what Open Roads may become in Craiova. Today, half of our team went to a day camp for orphans in the middle of the city, while the other half went to a school run by Livada in Ogra, a town just outside of the city that is almost entirely populated by an undereducated gypsy class.

The Orphan Camp in the city was quite an experience. Each team member was split up into a different group, which gave us some good time a part and a chance to make great new friends! We met a lot of amazing orphans that we played soccer with and made crafts together, although we were slightly disappointed in the small amount of the gospel that was integrated into the day. There were quite a few volunteers from Texas and a few other states that we were able to have great conversations about our similar experiences in Romania.

Everyone who went to Ogra, the school for the Gypsies just outside of Targu Mures, agrees that God is doing big things there through the English teachers and interns working there. We spent most of the day playing games and observing how English classes are conducted. Personally I believe that the coolest part of this Ministry is how the staff was able to incorporate the Gospel into pretty much everything they did. The English lessons involved bible verses.  The games taught good morals, like how to interact properly with others, and helped build community among the Gypsies and staff.  It was apparent that Ogra has build a strong community in that village and it seems like they are getting through to many of the kids that attend, which is SUPER exciting.

Tomorrow the two groups are going to swap what sites they are at so that everyone gets to experience both ministries.  We are pumped to have this opportunity and to continue seeing the ways Christ is moving in Romania.  YAYYYYYYYY GOD!

Hugs and Kisses,

Jeremy and Hunter Bashinos

Shout outs:

Lief and Jeremy: Shout out to God for making meat platters. They are what coax us out of our beds in the morning…

Brianna to the Mad Miss leaders: Good Luck! Hope everything is going well!

Michaela to Mom and Dad: Wow! Y’all have a whole week to yourselves! What in the world are you going to do?? Have fun without us!

Jenna to MegaWatt: I’ll be sure to give Irina and Brianna the biggest hugs ever from you as soon as we get back to Craiova :)

Hunter to Malachi: Dude, so bummed we’re not going to see you while your in town. :/

Hunter to Cassidy: It feels weird being in Romania without you.  Also, not hanging out with you everyday kind of sucks :(.  Miss you.

MEAT PLATTER!!!!

...and, we're back! (sorry for the delay)

Buna Ziua from the train to Targu Mures! It's Jenna and Taylor, and we'd like to start out this blog entry by apologizing for the long wait. We had no Internet at the retreat.. or running water for that matter... But that didn't seem to matter. The retreat has been deemed a great success.

Though all of the students at the retreat lacked earthly parents, we got the chance to tell them that they are passionately loved by their heavenly father. Each night we had sessions that focused on parent-child relationships in the Bible. We studied Abraham's relationship with his son Isaac, Naomi and her adopted daughter Ruth, and the parable of the prodigal son. These talks led to some really great small group discussions that went until at least 1am every night!

For the majority of the day on Saturday and Sunday, we took "field trips" to a nearby palace called Peles and on a hike up a mountain. Saturday's trip to Peles was quite a cultural adventure for us and for the students that had never before visited the area. We had to wear slippers over our shoes... it kind of reminded some of us of the skirts from the 2010 trip to the monastery at Voronet. Yesterday we hiked up to 2000 meters on a beautiful ski run mountain. The hike, though challenging, was full of great conversation and a wonderful view of the surrounding mountains. The best part was the trip down-- we got to ride in a gondola instead of killing our knees.

Throughout the retreat, we had an ongoing, friendly food-making competition (that would be part of our "Life Skills" component of camp - allowing teenage & young adult orphans - and us - learn things they never had the chance to learn in the orphanage). On our way to the retreat on Friday, we stopped at a grocery store to plan and shop for our meals. Dinner was an extravagant affair every night as we worked on the life skills of planning, shopping, cooking, budgeting, serving, teamwork and presentation. An offhand idea born out of our brainstorming session Thursday, the meal competition turned out to be one of the best parts of the retreat. No disgusting camp food this year! We had spaghetti, homemade sarmale (Lavina's recipe), apple pie, grilled "carne si cola" and fruit salad served in melon halves. In the end, everyone won (though Daniel still insists that his was the best..); we all worked well in our team and had three delicious dinners.

Last night after some pretty special small group meetings, we had a two-hour long worship jam session and a mafia tournament. The worship was incredible. It would have lasted longer, but 4am was a little to late to keep up the neighbors.

After a tearful goodbye (even though we'll see everyone in less than a week when we return to Craiova), we left the campers in the care of Cata and Claudia for their journey back home while we barely made our train northwest to Targu Mures.

...annnd it's time for a much needed nap after a long might of mafia. Noapte buna!!


Shoutouts:
Jenna to Catie: Lavi insisted on sitting next to me on the bus again just so he could keep me from sleeping. He misses his partner in crime.
Jenna to Hailey: I miss you!!! It's soooo weird being here without you!:( also: the palm tree pants man has been with us all trip. Just thought that you might want to know.
Jenna to family: I miss you all!!
Taylor to family: Hope Wyoming was fun! Have a great time with Z!
Taylor to Z: I hope the remaining time in WV was fantastic! I bet you are happy to be back home. Love you!
Taylor to momma: please don't forget to check my work schedule for those specific dates. Thanks!
Michaela to Hannah Smith; Brindusa keeps calling me Hannah!
Michaela to Charles: I miss you! And yes, we should buy matching sweaters.
Michaela to Thomas: Have fun at archeology camp!
Michaela to Meagan Smiley: I'm getting some viva for you! I miss you and I should tell you about our trip while kayaking.
Michaela to mom and dad: I miss y'all and I love your comments mom. I have been checking to see if I got into the sociology class, and I still haven't recieved an email, so I don't know.
Team to Emily Quandt: It was Hunter's fault. But seriously, we're really sad about it too!
Jeremy to Dad: The Romanians taught me how to arm wrestle. Prepare to lose.
Big Baby Koesh to *Da fanman swag on deck*: Good luck at Madison Missions! I was looking through my notes from Romania last year and in the note you addressed me as "Hunty Hunt Bar". Wish you were here, bro. We good. (twirling motion)
Hunker to T-Pop: Without you here, everyone tickles me. It sucks... #TickleTolly
Hunter to Caite and Hailey: I miss you guys a lot. Everyone keeps asking about you two. Camp doesn't feel the same without you here:/
Hunter to the Koeshall Clan: Hope all is good there!
Hunter (The Woug) to Kenzie: It's exciting to me that every time a Romanian asks about you I have great news to tell them! Stay strong and keep moving in the right direction. Love you!
Pat and Larry to April, Audra, Anna, Daniel, and Chisa: Hi! We love you and miss you. Sorry we haven't had Internet access at all. Remember you can text us at no charge. (hint, hint)
Jimmy to all the other Blackhawk interns: I miss you guys-- My family!
Jimmy to Lindy: I miss you.
Team to Madison Missions leaders: You guys rock! Good luck this week!
???? to Paul Staats: you're tall and dreamy.

ASO:
Team to Brendon: Where are your daily blog comments??? We're disappointed in you.

Our first day in Craoiva...

BUNNNNA! Hunter Bashinos and Me-HI-ale-a here. Well, some of us are a little tired because last night we heard rustling downstairs in the house we are staying at. Turns out, Jeremy was eating half of a pizza and making a video blog of himself… Someone had jet lag.

However, it felt good to sleep in this morning and start camp planning on a full tank of energy. We spent a lot of the day talking about the logistics involving the retreat. Needless to say, we found out that a little more planning before the trip would have been nice, but reminded each other that this is a vision trip and an opportunity to trust God while trying out different things  (we’ll certainly now know how to plan for a future retreat like this one).  We powered through the camp schedule, hammered in on some of the workshop activities that we will do with the students, and decided on the menus. It should be an interesting and amazing next four days that God is going to unfold before us. Also, Daniel mentioned to us last night that making relationships with these orphans means diving right in and getting in their mess. Looking back on that, that is exactly what our Father did for us. He sent his Son right into our mess in order to make us beautiful. It may not be always easy this week. In fact, it may be really challenging, but God is calling us to jump into their pain and struggles in order to find healing (and not just for them but for healing for every one of us) and make visible the kingdom of God. 

After planning, we met up with old friends and met some new ones at Parc Romanescu.  I (Michaela) have been nervous for sooo long to embrace our old friends. I’m not sure why, but it was weighing me down today. However, when we saw them, all my anxiety was lifted from my heart! Just to hold their hands and laugh at our communication was very uplifting, and I hold these moments dear to my heart. So we spent a few quality hours catching up, playing games, and rowing boats with the campers. 

What better way to end a fantastic first day in Craiova than shaorma at the city fountains?  Wait, there is none.  We chilled on the sidewalk of Ali-ba-ba for approximately an hour and thirty-seven minutes (Yeah, it took that long – they needed to kill a chicken when they saw our group of 30 show up) while our food was being prepared.  It was SO worth the wait.

So what is next you say? Yes the retreat as we already mentioned. But wait, in 4 hours? Yes, it is 1 a.m. and we have to wake up in 4:07:48 hours.  So Noapte Buna!

Shoutouts

Taylor to fam: Have fun in WY!

Taylor to her grandpa: HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Jenna to my 3 bros: Thanks for the little friend! I miss you all and I hope home isn’t too boring without me!

Jenna to Ben: Have a good time in St. Thomas!

Jenna to Jessie and Olan: I’m looking forward to the poem!

Team to 2011 Romania team: We love you all!

Michaela to Catie: Iazman kept talking about the burrito you are bringing him some day. I love you!

Michaela to Cassidy: Thanks for the other friend! Right now Jenna’s friend and ours are holding hands upstairs! I have a pic.

Michaela to fam: I love you! Thanks mom for all the comments!

Hunter and Michaela to the gang (you know who you are): Hope ya’ll are keeping it classy while we are gone! #GoBigOrGoHome #GassidySwag #<

Brianna to mom: HAPPY 29^th BIRTHDAY!

Jimmy to chipotle: Hope you are still in business when I get home.

Jimmy to parents: You are the best ever!

Jeremy to mom: LOVE YOU!

Jeremy to dad, little bro: good luck at all city swim meet!

Jeremy to eric: Have fun at Madison Missions AGAIN

Jeremy to Paige: Hope you don’t have strep any more!

Lief to everyone: How’s it goin?

Michaela’s lame joke of the day: “Lief, do you have your vision goggles on??? (long pause)… cause this is a vision trip…”. Proceeds to laugh for legitimately 5 minutes…

Craiova is close now!

The layover in London was easy... we even saw some olympic events out the airplane window (or at least we'd like to believe so). Now aboard our second leg flight. One short nap & we'll be hugging and catching up with old friends at Otepeni airport in Bucharest!