December 2006
Dec 1st, 2006 by Jeff
HOLLIS COMMUNITY CHURCH AND CAMP &
JONES FAMILY UPDATE DECEMBER 2006 edition
We’re writing this as the snow is beginning to wash away and the temperature has risen to a balmy 36 degrees. When we returned home from our “family adventure†the kids were excited to find 16 inches of snow. Excitement grew as another 10 inches fell. Before we even unpacked the kids were dressing in their heaviest winter clothing preparing to play in the snow.
As many of you know our whole family traveled to Oregon in October. Jeff attended the Pacific Northwest District C&MA Pastor’s Conference and then we had a family vacation away from “the rock†– (that’s what the locals affectionately call Prince of Wales Island).
This was a road trip which means: we traveled 3 hours by ferry from Hollis to Ketchikan. Then we traveled 7 hours by Alaska Marine Highway ferry from Ketchikan to Prince Rupert, British Columbia in Canada. Next we began a 1200 mile drive south toward Washington State. We had a wonderful time together and enjoyed a little sunshine!
Two weeks later we began our travel back toward Alaska when we stopped for the night near Arlington, Washington. Our plan was to cross the U.S./Canada border the next morning. But that night in the hotel room Canaan, our 4 year old, had a seizure which required a ride in an ambulance and a few days stay in the hospital. He then needed a few more tests that had to be scheduled elsewhere. We were faced with a decision: should we go back to Hollis and wait 5 weeks for an appointment in Seattle, or should we go to Georgia? After staying up and praying all night we were assured of the answer. With one call to our pediatrician in Georgia, Dr. John D. Allen, both appointments were set up: One was shortly after our arrival and the other a week later. Our three week vacation turned into 2 months away from home! With many friends and family combining efforts we had a great home to stay in and a 15 passenger van to transport our family back and forth to doctor’s appointments and tests. Canaan is doing well and currently taking medication with the purpose of keeping him seizure free. Our current prayer request is that his next EEG (scheduled in February) will be all clear.
CHURCH NEWS
A team from the YWAM base in Salem, Oregon used the camp as a base for outreach during October and November. Thanks to that team, Bill Sharpes and others for helping with worship services while we were gone. We were excited to hear about visitors coming to church. Several families moved into the area while we were gone.
31 folks from the community attended our annual “White Elephant†Christmas Party (in a community of approx. 75). We are praying that many will attend the Christmas Eve service also. These are 2 prime evangelistic opportunities for this area. Our prayer is that community people would come out and be receptive to Christ this Christmas.
CAMP NEWS
We will be in Georgia from January 17 – February 28. If you would like to schedule Jeff for speaking please email or call now.
We have some major projects scheduled for this summer, one of which is installing a septic system for the camp. This is a big project. It doesn’t require a lot of teams, maybe none at all. This is something the state oversees and we’ll probably have to hire folks that do this for a living who are accustomed to the soil and rock of this island. This project alone will take approximately $10,000 to complete. This is also a must before we can become fully operational. If you, your church or Sunday school class, etc. would like to help build funds for this project please let us know. It actually needs to be completed before teams arrive this coming year.
There are also plenty of other projects: finish the new sanctuary, finish the bath house, begin a recreation building, begin 2 more cabins, finish the work shop, build a fire escape/deck on the apartment, stop an erosion problem behind the church, begin the commercial kitchen, mechanical repairs, etc.
OUTREACH
As always, we have the ability to place teams or individuals in other communities on the island for further outreach. From ministering to remote pastors, helping them with needs in their church, home or community; to teaching VBS; to having Youth Events; to performing or concerts …the possibilities are endless…What talent do you have that you could bring to the island?
WEBSITE
Remember to check out the website for photos, past newsletters, and other information. We will be working on getting Jeff’s Jan/Feb speaking calendar posted, as well as FAQ’s and other information that is pertinent for summer work and ministry teams.
“Thank You†to everyone on our support team – we couldn’t do it without you!
Serving together, Jeff and Rhonda Jones
P.S. Yes, that is a real deer standing behind our family on the front photo. It is a tame deer named “Tough Enough†that was raised by our neighbor. Photo 1 is Canaan in the hospital, and middle photo is sunset between cloud layers taken from plane landing in Atlanta.