Martin | Slovakia | Christmas | 2021
PROGRESS REPORT
Dear Friends and Partners,
This Advent season, these prophetic words come to mind:
“Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem!
Lord, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he,
humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey”
(Zec 9:9).
The prophet Zechariah prompts his audience to rejoice in apparently difficult times. Some centuries later when Jesus entered Jerusalem as the fulfilment of these words, the times were not very happy either. Our present days are also far from ideal – COVID brings death closer to our doors and negatively affects our social life, mobility, and economy. However, whatever the crisis, the words of the prophet stay valid: not death but Christ is at the door, and that is the reason for rejoicing! With Him we can overcome our problems and worries and can help others to cope with theirs. Joy is much needed, and we ought to be its heralds for this world!
We teach our students this message of joy during Advent not by words, but also through social projects. One of them is to help children who have a combined disability: they are visually and hearing impaired. Our Lutheran church runs an institution where specially trained teachers and caretakers train them to communicate mainly by touching. We hope that finances and gifts which our students collected will bring joy to their darkness and silence.
Another social project focuses on helping a nearby non-profit organization called Good Shepherd. It is run by a devoted Roman catholic priest who managed to turn a ruined monastery into a shelter for people in need. The organization takes care of 600 men, 100 women and 20 children, giving them a chance to restart their lives and find again their place in our society. LAMS, together with two other schools decided to collect shoe boxes filled with items of everyday use as Christmas presents for them. This activity is an important way for our students to learn and to share with those in need.
Our school was awarded 30,000 € by the Slovak Ministry of Education for a project Modern School. With this money we were able to create relax zones in classrooms to offer an alternative space for teamwork projects, devotions, and sharing. We rejoice how this project created better conditions for personal interactions especially now when the virtual ones are so prevalent.
Our dear partners and friends, on behalf of CCE, all its workers, teachers, and students we thank you for all your support and help throughout this year. Have a blessed and merry Christmas! Let us share the Christmas joy, the one coming from the king Jesus Christ, with many so it spreads faster than COVID. Let us all rejoice greatly!
Yours in His service,
Adrian Kacian, Director of Development Bohdan Hroboň, president of CCE
| Ways to GIVE | Make your tax-deductible gift in one of these ways: | ||
| Vision Slovakia |
Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church |
New Heights Foundation |
| Paul Berge, Director St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church 900 Stillwater Road, Mahtomedi, MN 55115 (651)-762-9143 pberge@saintandrews.org || DONATE NOW || |
Kathy Clolinger, 815 S. Washington St., Naperville, IL 60540 (+1)630-281-4226, accounting@oursaviours.com |
Mark Johnson, Board Member 7913 NE 58th Ave., Vancouver, WA 98665 360-606-7505, mjohnson@traxxcorp.com |
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