Dan and Pris Gollan

We have returned! Our plane touched down on a dry Kiev tarmac at 05:20 Thursday morning. As we walked off the plane, many disapproving passengers and crew informed us that our children were not sufficiently dressed. "It is MINUS 10, not plus 10. You understand?" "Your children cold!" "Bus not warm." "Kholodno na ulitsa! Kholodno!" Yep. We were back! And it actually felt great walking out of the stuffy plane into crisp Ukrainian air. We were last through immigration and then customs... breezing through both. And then we finally left the hall to greet Cheryl and Bronwyn, Gaven and Bruce who had risen early to collect us. It felt good to be back.

The drive home was punctuated solely by a McDonalds stop - no cop stops this time - and we arrived home to a house undeniably Cherylized. She is a friend who loves to love through selflessly helping/serving and had done a beautiful job on the little touches which make a place feel welcoming.

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Greetings…

As Ukraine heads into some cooler weather, we find ourselves looking at the thermometer and wondering how long we can go without turning the gas furnace on! Those thoughts put us in the same category of about 90% of people in Rzhyshchiv. And with Ukrainian workers owed over $220 million in back-pay, the IMF insisting on a doubling of gas prices, and the government pushing ahead with that goal, many people are eerily eying the winter months. We’ll probably be able to hold out until late-October before turning on the heating.

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Greetings…

The longer I live, the more I appreciate Paul’s words for those he loved -

“Grace be to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

May these things be yours!

We have winter continuing to grace us with it’s presence in the form of snow and cold temps. Certainly, it is beautiful! I don’t recall any winter similar to this during my

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Greetings to you! August 2009

We are well and enjoying the warmth of summer and the joys that God, during the last few months, has brought into our family.

Jesse: Hello, everyone. I’m helping dad at the work site and that’s pretty fun. I guess I’m not really looking forward to starting school next week, but that’s ok. I’ve enjoyed summer holidays – playing with friends and going camping… even doing “nothing, (reading and what-not). It’s been a good summer, but strangely, I’m looking forward to the snow already. Bye.

Marie: Hi, everyone. I’m enjoying summer holidays – sleeping-in this morning, playing outside, and going to the beach. Some friends from America came over this summer. I really enjoyed that. We talked on Skype a fair bit before they came. Today, I made a batch of Congo-bars. I reckon I’ll do a lot more cooking over the summer. I love working in the kitchen.

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Hello once again…

I’ve just got back from a Bible study in Baleko Shuchenko, the village about 5 km away from us. We really enjoyed our time together looking at Matthew 5 after scrapping our study from John 5. It was good. On the drive home, we exclaimed at the pleasure it was driving on roads cleared of snow after a long winter. It snows now as I type, but it isn’t settling.

The family is well. The three older children progress well with their school-work and are filing information away at an energetic youthful rate. Elle will start next year and is waiting in high anticipation. Oh, to read!

Jesse is beating me at chess! Someone trained him too well!! He and the lads who live nearby are often seen gallivanting around the neighborhood and he is going to be a killer table tennis player in a few years. (Lookout, Uncle Jono!) His love for the Lord is a delight - much more so than his sporting prowess!

Marie is, at 11, becoming quite independent. This morning, she baked muffins for breakfast! Perfect. She relished the chance to do some shopping for us this morning down-town before school. Oh! This last week, she has enjoyed the interaction through “Skype” with a couple of friends from America!

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