Elliott Glen Jolene 1997 Ukraine

FROM: Roger H.
Schwartz, 74447,233
TO:
Joe Parker, INTERNET:joepark@aol.com
Sherman Pemberton, INTERNET:sspem@aol.com
Mark Phipps, INTERNET:PQA/F/Mphipps%PQ@mcimail.com

Bonnie Rennie, INTERNET:tworennles@aol.com
J Rosenback, INTERNET:jrossenbac@aol.com
Chuck Rosenback, INTERNET:crossenb@extremezone.com
Norm Weaver Mis. Serv., 102774,1772
Jim Smelser, INTERNET:jmsmelser@juno.com
Chris Smyth, 76161,245
Cheryl Trueblood, 76165,3246

Terry Wuske, INTERNET:Terry_^Wuske@WOW.Com
DATE: 1/2/97 10:22 PM
Re:
Glen's Weekly Report #40
Fgrwardeêssage
Fp6n: Glen Elliott, lt^RNET:glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua

Khôn Gtrategicârêrship
Glen's Weekly Report #40 Dec. 27 - Jan. 1,1997
HAPPY NEW YEAR
W Wish you all a wonderful New Year in the Lord. May we ail rejoice always
- no matter what befalls us in 1997. May we all pray without ceasing - in
order to see our God at work in every moment of this New Year. May we at!
give thanks in everything -for this is God's will.
Did anybody tape the New Years day bowl games? We (that is Brad and I) would
love to see the Arizona State - Ohio State Rose bowl!
VISIT TO MELITOPOL
Jolene and Wendy went to a city that is usually about 3 hours away by car.
Melitopol is the city where CMF missionaries Steve and Jolaine Wright live and
they went for a few days to visit. Sasha, a brother here, drove them there,
but it took over 5 hours due to icy roads. There were many accidents and they
stopped several times to help people. They returned by train, because fresh
snow had fallen making the trip by car impossible. They arrived home, Jolene
with a cold and Wendy smelling like smoke f rom the train. Travel is never
easy it seems. But they had a nice visit.
LAZARUS UPDATE #432
Lazarus, the van, was promised to be resurrected and running by New Years.
Well, I haven't seen evidence of it's resurrected body. I guess I'll need to
go to some faith healers as I'm losing confidence in traditional medicine

(OOPS, I mean auto repair).
Actually, the delay Is partly due to the fact that they are turning
electricity off in the village where the van is(supposedly) being repaired.
1 guess the wait doesn't' matter right now. in this weather (cold, snow, ice)
no one will be out buying a van anyway. Is this getting old or what? Keep
praying, please. Thanks for laughing with (at?) us and praying with (for?)
us.
COLD AND STILL FALLING
Last Sunday in the Sputnik theater where the KCC meets it was so cold that I
wore 5 layers, kept my gloves on and still froze. It was almost unbearable.
By the time Brad and I got home (Jolene and Wendy were in Melitopol) our feet
were so frozen we could hardly walk. I told Brad he had to take the dog out
and he just pleaded. "Please, let me warm my feet up first."
Our apartments were very cold until just the last few days. They finally
turned up the heat so I don't have to wear 4 layers (one less layer than In
the church - my heavy coat) in our apartment. But we are on a water schedule
-fun.
Weil, for two Sunday's in a row I have perfected my falling on ice

techniques. This Sunday, I got out of the car after arriving at the Sputnik
Theater, and hit my knee on the door. The pain was exaggerated by the cold
and I could hardly walk. As I limped across the street -1 fell, with cars
coming. I probably should enroll in the Tanya Harding school of grace.
OUR CURRENT CHALLENGE
There are many challenges here, but our biggest one we face now is with
Wendy. Wendy is in many ways extremely mature (in other ways she isn't - you
understand how 12 year old girls can be). Wendy doesn't complain to us about
being here. She doesn't throw fits or tantrums. But she's not happy here.
She's able to speak in very clear and concrete terms her frustrations, which
in most cases appear legitimate. Of course, the intensity of the emotions
come and go, but she deals with it in a fairly mature way. I think she can
"endure" the time here, but in her words, "I'm never really happy here." So
do we respond to the fact that she perceives that this isn't really "her
world" but daddy's and mommy's world? Do we prepare to return home, or do we
try some new approaches to helping her adjust and "endure?" I'm sure we are
not the first or last expatriates to deal with these issues, but that doesn't
lessen the reality of the circumstance.
She has friends, but she hasn't really found Ukrainian friends(esp. female)
that she has really connected with and there are no American or English
speaking children her age here. She is a very sociable girl entering her
teens and that means special needs that mom, dad, and brother just don't
provide. She says she wishes she could be like Brad who is a more introverted
type and finds his energy recharged by engaging in private play. It's hard to
put all this into words in a few short paragraphs. On one hand we are not at
a crisis level, yet on the other hand, we need wisdom in discerning how best
to respond to her.
We willing to return back to the States earlier than we had planned if it is
best for her and if we have a sense of God's guidance to that end. We also
desire to know how God might use this to develop some part of her character
and how we can best respond. Please pray for God's guidance and wisdom in our
family. We want to be both sensitive to each other and to the Lord's leading.
Gien
FROM: Roger H. Schwartz, 74447,233

TO:
Joe Parker. INTERNET:joepark@aol.com
Mark Phipps, INTERNET:PQA/F/Mphipps%PQ@mcimaiLcom
Bonnie Rennie, INTERNET:tworennies@aol.com
J Rosenback, iNTERNET:jrossenbac@aol.com
Norm Weaver Mis. Serv., 102774,1772
Jim Smelser, INTERNET:jmsme!ser@juno.com
Chris Smyth, INTERNET:gsmyth@one.net
Cheryl Trueblood, 76165,3246
Terry Wuske, INTERNET:Terry_Wuske@WOW.Com
DATE: 2/1/97 5:28 PM
Re:
Glen's weekly report #43
Forwarded Message
From: ^ Gien Elliott, INTERNET:glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua
Kherson Strategic Partnership

Glen's Weekly Report #43 Jan. 25-31, 1997
KHERSON CHRISTIAN COLLEGE or INSTITUTE or WHATEVER
The steering committee that is working to develop the Christian college here
has still not decided on a name yet. They have chosen to call it "Christian"
rather than "Bible" in order to reflect a long term goal of preparing not only
"professional" leaders for the church, but also servant leaders in the church
who may earn a living by means other than the church. But they are still
undecided about the first part("Kherson" or a wider region of the Ukraine)
and the last part ("Institute," "College," or so mething else). Stayed tuned
for the final decision.
The committee, chaired by Vlad Devakov, is now working on curriculum,

academic policies, finances and so on. They will be visiting other existing
schools in Ukraine in the coming month to learn from what others have done.
They have decided on the skeleton curriculum for the first two years and are
now considering potential faculty and further development of the curriculum.
Please pray for this group as they work toward developing a needed and
important tool for developing leaders for the church here in Southern Ukraine.
There is much work still to do.
TOWARD THE FINISH LINE
Judy Johnson is here and just returned from visiting the missionaries in
Crimea with Chris Alexander and Vlad Makarenko. Last week we had several
meetings with the Ukrainian leaders to determine the main tasks that I needed
to give attention before we could declare my part of the work here was
finished. We are still working on the time frame and the specific plans to
accomplish these tasks, but here are the main tasks remaining:
With the Kherson Christian Church:
1. Help get the Kherson Christian Institute operational.

2. Help develop and strengthen the small group ministry.
3. Help the ministers to grasp the big picture of the church and help them
identify the areas of need and develop a balanced ministry.
4. Help the ministers and church council to develop a plan to best utilize
the new building.
5. Help train and develop the church council (the future elders).
With the Dom Molitve:
1. Teach 3 courses to the new preacher's group: History of the Church,

Apologetics, and Comparative Theology.
2. Develop and teach a systematic series of sermons/lessons for the whole
church in the areas of false religions/cults, the Holy Spirit, lifestyle
evangelism, etc..
3. Develop and strengthen the small group ministry.
4. Help the leaders develop a balanced outreach and assimilation ministry to
be operational once they move into the new building.
With the Project:
1. Continue mentoring and discipling pastors from 3 of the 4 churches.
2. Help develop a Ukrainian liaison who will be the communication link
between the American and Ukrainian partners. This includes work with the
upcoming festival and camp.
There are many other details, but I share these with you asking you to pray
for God's wisdom and strength to be upon me as I develop the specifics with
the leaders here over the next few weeks.
REPORT #578 ON LAZARUS
The mechanic promised the van to be repaired and returned by next week. So
wait for the news next week. In the meantime - PLEASE PRAY. I guess we've
all kind of taken this light hearted, but I'm really tired of this and want to
put it behind us. Pray that we have a resurrection before Easter(OK I
realize that's a good time - but Ukrainian Easter is April 27!!!).
THE ELLIOTT HOUSEHOLD
We've had a lot of fun this week having Judy here. When we lived in
Cincinnati Judy was like an aunt to our kids. She stayed with them when we
got to go to Hawaii and other places. So we have had lots of fun playing
games and laughing at our life here.
The kids got their report cards. They are doing well. But Brad got his
first "C." It was in handwriting. I told him he needed to talk to his
teacher, Laura, and find out what he needed to do to improve. He does well on
the handwriting assignments, but becomes very sloppy with the rest of his
work. It is really hard for me to be too hard on him though. As a boy his
age most of my grades were "C's" and my penmanship was(OK... is)
TERRIBLE. According to my handwriting, I should have been a docto r. Maybe
we have a future doctor in the making
Jolene is getting ready for the big FOUR ZERO on Feb. 4th. Encourage her,
she's depressed about the gray hairs and, well
you know the
other traits of OLD AGE! She blames it on living here - not a bad line.
Judy brought video tapes of the football championships and some basketball
games so Brad and I have been engrossed in sports - to the chagrin of Jolene
and Wendy.
Today, the temperature was above freezing and we are starting to see the
thaw. Brad today said it gave him hope that summer would return!
Glen
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:
Joe Parker,INTERNET:joepark@aol.com
Hoppy Patterson,!NTERNET:HoppyNaz@juno,com
Mark Phipps, INTERNET:mphipps@prodigy.net
To: Norm Weaver Mis. Serv.,[102774,1772]
To: Jim Smelser, INTERNET:jmsmelser@juno.com

To: Chris Smyth, INTERNET:gsmyth@one.net
To: LennieSutton,[74634,2216]
To: Cheryl Trueblood,[76165,3246]
To: Terry Wuske,[74024,3301]
From: Roger H. Schwartz,[74447,233]
Date: 5/2/97, 1:44 PM
Re: Glen's weekly report #53
Forwarded Message
From:
INTERNET:glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua
r"

Glen's Weekly Report #53 April 24 - May 1,1997
MAY DAY
Today Is May 1st. This used to be one of the main holidays of the former r'
Soviet Union. It was a day celebrating the solidarity of the working class of f
the world seeking to develop socialism.
Today, it was holiday for the Kherson Christian Church. They held a baptism
today with over 30 people baptized. This is always a time of]oy and
celebration. But there were two almost unnoticeable differences that to me
were significant. First, this was the first baptism where other church
leaders participated. In the past, it was just the pastor and the American
missionaries (at the request of the pastor) who did the baptizing. Now,they
allowed other leaders to participate and it was only the Ukra inians who did
the service. Second, most of those baptized came to the Lord through their
small groups. This does not surprise me, but it is a significant indicator as
to the kind of evangelism that will likely be most effective in the future.
This is another reason why I am meeting every other week vi/ith those who are
leading in the small group ministry.
EASTER
Last week was Easter(based on the calendar followed by the Russian Orthodox
church). The KCC was asked by the city to hold a service In the center of f
town,across from the still standing statue of Lenin. The church held a 4 ^
hour service with various ministers preaching and 3 choirs singing. What is
significant is that the city asked the KCC to carry out this service. That
means there was some significant level of trust (that they would do anything
too wild, yet address the significance of Easter). M any people heard about
the true meaning of Easter.
THE LOCAL ECONOMY
News is reaching us of significant cut backs at the local shipbuilding plant.

We personally know of several older people who were laid off. They are not
1
old erK)ugh to be on a pension (and if they were the pension barely pays for
the utility bills), and too old to find work Of It was available). Reports
of suicide are not uncommon. It baffles me to see how things will improve and
be "normal." Please pray.
A NEW APARTMENT FOR LAURA
Today, we moved our teacher, Laura McKillip, to her new apartment. Her old
apartment(which also serves as the school) is being sold by the owners who
want to immigrate to Israel. The Lord blessed us with providing a larger
apartment in the same building. But of course, it is never easy to move and
"start over" in a new place and the burden of getting settled falls on her.
For those who would like to know her new phone number it is:
011-380-552-270679.
WARMTH
This week we finally got warm weather. Today it got up to 73 degrees! Yea!
I finally put my winter coat and boots away.
Glen
To: Joe Parker, INTERNET:joepark@aol.com
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:
Hoppy Patterson, INTERNET:HoppyNaz@juno.com

MarkPhipps, INTERNET:mphipps@prodigy.net
Bonnie Rennie, INTERNET:tworenntes@aol.com

To:
To:
To:
To:

Chris Smyth, INTERNET:gsmyth@one.net
Lennie Sutton,[74634,2216]
Cheryi Trueblood,[76165,3246]
From: Roger H. Schwartz, p4447,233]

Date: 6/14/97,10:04 AM
Re: Glen's Weekly report #57
Forwarded Message
From:
Glen Elliott, INTERNET:glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua
Gfen'sWeekfy Report #57, June 1-14,1997

FESTIVAL
The big news right now is the festival. The first evangelistic festival was
held here In Kherson In 1991 by Doug Lucas and Team Expansion, PIckerlngton
Christian Church and Clovernook Christian Church. Tonight we will complete
our 7th annual festival. It has become both an evangelistic outreach but also
a wonderful holiday for the churches here In Kherson. In 1991 there was one
evangelical registered church. Today we are working with 4 registered growing

churches and a 5th one is now being started by Sasha Muravskl.
There are 47 American guests here from Anaheim First Christian Church (CA),
Pantano Christian Church (Tucson, AZ), and Indian Creek Christian Church
(Indianapolis, IN). Concurrently, there is a festival being held In a nearby
city, where the KCC has sponsored the start of a new church. Twelve members
of the Community Christian Church (Florence, KY)Is assisting In that

festival.
Attendance has been good,though slightly less than last year. We have
rented the theater called the "Jublllnl" which seats about 2000. The first
night It was near full. The second night I estimated that there were probably
1500 In attendance (not counting the children's program). Flowever responses
to the invitation have been very good with around 40 people having responded
the first two nights and many people filling out response cards (to be used In
follow-up). Please pray for the follow up by our Ukrainian brethren - this
is a key part of the festival.
The large foyer of the theater holds the children's program. I tried a quick
count and realized I'm not a "counter" by trade - but I estimated around
175-200 children were in attendance.
The part that Is hard to report is the spiritual atmosphere that is present.
I have only heard Incredible reports from the Americans about the remarkable
1
bonds build between the Americans and the Ukrainian hosts(each American is
staying with someone from one of the 4 churches).

One of the Americans, Larry, Is staying with a family where the spouse is not
a Christian. The first night of the festival the American's host responded to
the invitation to accept the Lord Jesus. For the Larry, the whole trip was
worth Itjustforthat event alone. What is interesting here is that this
American was placed in the home farthest from Kherson (in a nearby village).
At first I thought this was a mistake, but I tried to follow my principle of
not second guessing the work the Ukrainians lea ders did (they assigned the
housing). I thought It was a mistake based only on practical issues (pretty
American huh!) of the difficulty of transportation. But what did I know! How
could we have predicted God would use this relationship to reach someone and
bring spiritual unity to a family. The first group of Americans depart on
Monday, and the newly made friendships between Americans and Ukrainians are so
strong that all are dreading the inevitable departure.
Also we are seeing several of the translators coming very close to the Lord.
With so many Americans here, we have had to hire non-Christian translators to
help. These translators are being Introduced to Christlanrty through this

"working" relationship. Please pray for the spiritual fruit to born from
these contacts.
Yes,there have been a few things that have went wrong. The bus we were
taking to meet the first group of 43 Americans, broke down about 3 miles from
the airport. The driver tired to fix it a couple of times, and finally he
realized the problem was serious and he couldn't go any further. We were
already late and by the time he hitch-hiked and walked, we arrived to the
airport with the whole American group waiting. We had to scramble to rent
additional vans to get everyone to Kherson. So we got to Khe rson much later
than anticipated. But the attitude of everyone was GREAT!
Also the city canceled one of our already "approved" main publicity events in
the center of town. Scheduling 47 Americans with 4 churches is a daily
challenge. But all in all, things have gone well.

Thank you to all who helped support and send the participant of the
festival. It may only be In heaven that you can fully appreciate the impact
of this time on the lives of so many.
BELLS
One of the highlights of this year's festival has been the Anaheim bell
choir. Pacific Christian College(FCC)donated a set of handbells to the '
Tavriski Chrfstian Institute. The Anaheim bell choir brought these bells and
they have been a hit. Bells are a rare musical venue here. The Anaheim bell
choir will teach Sergey Turkach, assistant pastor of the DM, how to lead a
*
bell choir and the new institute will have an very unusual musical outreach
for years to come.
Last night several representatives from Pacific Christian College (partners
with the Tavriski Christian Institute) presented the bells to the TCI
administration. I started to dream about the incredible outreach that the
students could have in the years to come. A TCI bell choir could travel to '
nearby villages and hold performances In the houses of culture (there Is one ^
in everyvillage) and ministerto the churches. The very nature ofthe bells ,
would attack a crowd of people. Thanks PCC!
TRAILS AND DEATH
The Dom Molitve is really facing some heavy trials this month. On Saturday,
June 7th, Olga Ivanova passed away. This was fairly sudden. There is still
uncertainty of her death (I hope to report more later). She was just 20 years
old, a faithful and loved Sunday School teacher and youth leader. She is
often described by others as a true angel. The news of her death came minutes
before we were to start a wedding at the Dom Molitve creating a strange mix of
emotions. Many of you were contacted for pra yer and I thank all of you for
upholding her church and family in prayer.
Early reports were that Olga contacted an infection from the river at the
site of the summer Christian camp(June 21-30). However there is some

evidence that she had a chest infection. 1 am still waiting to hear official
word on her cause of death and the health departments analysis of the water
near the camp. All this has created great confusion and fear among the
churches here and the leaders of the camp are trying to ascertain the safety
of the water at the camp site and determine where to hold the camp.
Water is not the only consideration regarding the camp, but safety is
foremost. If the water is safe,the leaders would like to hold the camp in
LVova because the camp leaders have been working with the village church in
preparation for the camp since November. The camp is primarily to help the
church do evangelism in the village. In fact, the very preparation for the
camp has helped the village church to grow. So both the village church and
the camp leaders very much want to conduct the camp as plann ed. Please pray
for them in understanding how God would lead them, especially for Yuri Mark,
the camp dean.
Then, a few days after Olga's death, Lena and her 7 year old daughter were
hit by a car. They were pedestrians and it was a hit and run scene. Lena is
not expected to live and Angela (the 7 year old) is in serious condition.
Please pray for the Valenchenko family and the DM church as they minister to
them.
KCC BUILDING UPDATE
In Ukraine there is still no law that allows for the private ownership of
(and. One can own the apartment they live in, or buy a building, but the land
stiff belongs to the State. The KCC bought their building in December and
remodeling Is advancing at a very good pace. However,there is now a dispute
with the city over the land. The city is contending that the church does not
need all the land that was once a part ofthe kindergarten and wants to take
(re>zone) part of the land, f^lease pray that thi swill be resolved,
preserving the territory of the church.
The architects are working on the plans for covering the courtyard which will
become the main meeting area. There lots of work going on now. There will be
a youth camp in July to do remodeling and the Community Christian church will
work several days at the building next week. There's lots to do.
CHANGING OF THE GUARD
It seems there has been a change in the city government and the early
indications are that they are not being particularly favorable to the
Protestant churches. Many major questions will soon be going to them
regarding registration of TCI, approval of plans to cover the KCC courtyard,
and so on. Please pray for a spirit of peace and cooperation.
SALARIES
We are on a process with all the churches here to work toward financial
Independence. This is not an easy process given that the deteriorating
economic system and reality here. However, the salary support for the KCC
ministers Is on a diminishing scale and our new Kherson Strategic Partnership

budget takes effect July 1st. So the KCC church leaders have been wrestling
with how to support their ministers with less US support. They agree with
the goal of financial independence, but the fact is that they are broke (all
extra money has gone to remodeling the building) and giving is not sufficient
to pick up extra salaries. They have had to make a difficult decision not to
add a needed staff person (they had planned on adding a minister of
involvement this year) and releasing one part-time staff person. Next year's
reduction will be even tougher for them to deal with. Please pray for wisdom
and guidance for the KCC church council.
FURLOUGH
Well, In 10 days we depart for a short furlough. We depart on June 24th and
arrive in Cincinnati (via Indianapolis) on June 25th. We depart Cincinnati on
August 7th to spend a little time in Arizona. I'll return to Kherson around
Aug. 13th and Jolene and the kids will return on September 3rd. There are
several matters relating to our furlough.

Email. Please dont send e-mail to our Ukrainian address
(glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua) after, say, June 23rd. Yau can re-start sending

mail to this address on August 10th. Mall will be saved, but I'd prefer not
to return and have 250 pieces of mall waiting. Thanks. I will get on
CompuServe in the States and will pass the number on to all. You can also
send e-mail to us via the Clovemook mail address: 73141.3366@compuserve.com t
Contacting us in Cincinnati. We use Clovernook Christian Church as a
permanent mailing address in the States for snail mail: 1373 W. Galbraith
Rd. Cincinnati, OH 45231. We will be living near the church. The phone
number where we will stay is: 513-521-1679. The church number is
513-52-7707.
I plan on sending one more report before we depart, but due to all the
activities going on, I won't promise It. Thank you all again for your
wonderful prayer support. We look forward to seeing many of you In a couple
of weeks or so.
Glen
The Elliott Family

LOOKING BACK
Wow, a lot has happened since I first set foot in Kherson with
Doug Lucas of Team Expansion back in March of 1991. In 1991
there was one church, called the Dom Molitve ("house of prayer"),
that was asking for help. There are now four registered churches
that are growing and have their own leaders. We have been active
in training leaders: preachers, elders, small group leaders, and
ministry leaders. Two new churches are being started right now one more in Kherson and one in a nearby city. Two Ukrainian
families have been sent by the Kherson Christian Church to do
work among an unreached people - the Crimean Tatar.
The Dom Molitve is nearing completion of its new building.

The old building was too small and not functional(no classroom
space). The Kherson Christian Church was able to purchase a

closed kindergarten and is in the process of remodeling it. These
were only possible through the sacrificial gifts given by many of
-f Four "official" churches and
two more being started

f Leadership training for
elders, teachers, deacons
and preachers
4- Two families from the
Kherson Christian Church
living in the Crimea,

preparing to begin
evangelizing among the
Tatar people
4 Two large church building
complexes underway
Outreach begun to
Ukrainian Jews and
you as partners in this mission.
villagers
It is so difficult in such a short space to recount all that has

happened. The churches are now active in reaching out to
Ukrainian Jews and helping evangelize the rural areas of the
Kherson region. They have active ministries in the hospitals and
orphanages and have begun a camping ministry. They've started a
Christian newspaper and a ministry to the deaf community in
Kherson. A satellite of TCM International (Indianapolis, IN, and
Vienna, Austria) is now functioning in Kherson to allow students
to get the equivalent of a master's degree. There's so much going
on that sometimes it's a bit overwhelming. That's how it is when
God is powerfully at work - it's a bit dizzying.
Active ministries in
hospitals, prisons, and

orphanages
Publication of a Christian
newsletter
4 Preparation for "Tavhski

Institute,"a Bible college to
begin this fall in the building
owned by the Kherson
Christian Church
Where We are Now

Our family is back in the States. We are on our regular
furlough schedule, but decided to make this a short furlough, sfl
-ffc"
|
gK ^
more like a vacation. The kids really wanted to go to camp,
get involved in some service projects, and be with their
^.
71
friends for the summer. We came back the 25th of June. 1
y1
will go back on August 12, and Jolene and the kids will go
f I
back on September 2. We needed some rest as the period of
j !
time since our last furlough has been the most intense and
busy that we've spent in Kherson.
-pSEfc SL m
-
When I return, I will be busy helping the Ukrainian

leaders get ready to open the Tavriski Christian Institute.
"Traveski" is the old name for the southern part of the Ukraine. It is an "Institute" because in Ukrainian
culture, "Institute" equals our "College." If we called it a "College," that is equivalent to a high school level
in Ukraine. This institute will be one of the key building blocks for a long-term plan for church leadership
development.
By the time we departed Ukraine,44 students had already applied to the Institute. Two majors will be
offered the first year: Church Ministries and Christian Education. Seven courses will be offered each
semester. Most of the courses will be taught by Ukrainian professors. However, Pacific Christian College
(Fullerton, CA)will provide two professors a semester.
In addition to working with the college, I will also continue to focus on training the small group leaders,
future elders and preachers, and ministry leaders of the churches in Kherson.
Pictured left - two views of the Dom Molitve building;

.3:
above - the former kindergarten being remodeled to

house Kherson Christian Church and Tavriski
Institute; Jolene and Brad at summer camp.
Looking Ahead
One of the main goals of this mission was to equip and empower Ukrainian leadership to fully assume the
work in the churches, in cross-cultural missions and in on-going leadership training. When the field team (the
Alexander and Elliott families) went to the field, the goal was to work effectively and efficiently to prepare
leaders and "work" ourselves out of a job. We wanted to complete the work of the American missionaries in
five years. We are on target for this goal. The Alexander family will return to the States in early November,
1997, and we will return the beginning of April, 1998. The project will not be fully completed in April, 1998,
but it will mark the beginning of a new phase of the work.
The Kherson Strategic Partnership can be pictured In the following phases:

Phase / Date
Activity
Life Development
Analogy
1 Mar. 1991 - Mar. 1993
II Mar. 1993-Mar. 1998
111 April 1998-Dec. 1999
Research, investigation,
recruiting field team
Birthing the
partnership
Field team in Kherson,focus:
Childhood &
leadership training, mission
Adolescence
Interdependence, reduced
involvement and financial support,
on-going consultation
Young adulthood
KSP concludes on Dec. 31,1999
IV January 2000-
Friendship focus, KSP partner

churches and groups Involved
as they desire / plan
Adulthood
God has been so good. All the work is not done of course, but the foundation has been established so the
work can continue. Praise God for the wonderful supporters like you, who have made this possible, for those
who have worked in Kherson, and for other advisors who have guided this project.
What's next for the

You might be wondering what we'll do after we return in April, 1998. We will continue to work with the
KSP into the summer. We'll report to the partnering churches, finalize the transition to phase III(see above),
take a short vacation, and prepare for the next chapter of our lives. That chapter, of course, hasn't been
written, so we are not sure where God will lead us yet. We would appreciate your prayers regarding that. I
will hopefully be able to continue to visit Kherson several times a year for the next couple of years to consult,
guide and encourage the Ukrainian leaders and provide additional training as needed.
After we return to the States, the following fall Wendy will start High School(Jolene and I can't believe
it!) and Brad will start sixth grade. Brad wants to be a missionary and professional basketball player. I am
excited about his dreams because if they come true I can retire and live off his millions! Wendy has a wide
range of interests including music, law, and sports. She might be a lawyer who specializes in representing
musicians and athletes!
We need your prayers

Please pray
> for governmental registration to be completed for the Tavriski Christian Institute.
4- for the completion of the new Dom Molitve building. They are still thousands short in cash
needed to finish the project.
4 for the completion-of the-FÊiodeling of the Tavriski Christian Institute. Half of the Kherson
Christian Church (a closed kindergarten that was purchased in December, 1996) is devoted to
the Institute and it will cost $20,000 to finish the remodeling.
4 for the missionaries working among the Crimean Tatar (a Muslim group). Their work is
demanding and difficult and they are experiencing spiritual warfare and discouragement.
4 for the Alexander family as they finalize their work in Kherson and prepare to return to the
United States in November.
4 for the Ukrainian leaders, ministers, and missionaries to be fully prepared to effectively lead
the work in the coming absence of American missionaries.
4 for the Elliotts as they make decision regarding their next area of work.
Ifyou'd like to send a note to the Elliotts, you may use the mailing labels below. After August 14
you can reach Glen via e-mail at INTERNET:glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua
UKRAINE
UKRAINE
UKRAINE
YKpauHa
YKpawHa
325021 r. XepcoH
XKpaMHa
325021 r. XepcoH
yji. riaTOHa fl. 5 kb. 208
3/inMOTT, rBeH
325021 r. XepcoH
yji. naroHa fl. 5 kb. 208
3/uimott, rjieH
yji. naroHa fl. 5 kb. 208

3BJ1M0TT, rJieH
ClVOWfllj Oh DERMS 08/06/91

NON-PROFIT ORG.
U. 8. POSTAGE
Clovernook Christian Church
PAID
1373 W. GALBRAITH ROAD
CINCINNATI. OHIO
CINCINNATI, OHIO 45231
PERMIT NO. 8178
lôinvdn Weaver
The Elliott Family

Newsletter
August 1997
Mission Services Msn.

^
TM 37901
III......ilnl.l,ll..l,li.l.,1.11,..1,1,1.1
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:
Joe Parker,lNTERNET:joepark@aol.com
Mark Phipps,INTERNET:mphipps@prodigy.net
Bonnie Rennie,.INTERNETitworennies@aol.com
J Rosenback,INTERNET:jrossenbac@aol.com
Chuck Rosenback, iNTERNET:crossenb@extremezone.com
Craig Schwarting,[75110,1700]
To:
To:
To:
To;
Norm Weaver Mis. Serv.,[^ 02774,1772]

Jim Smelser,INTERNET:jmsmeiser@Juno.com
Chris Smyth, iNTERNET:gsmyth@one.net
To: CheryiTruebiood,[76165,3246]
From: Roger Schwartz,[74447,233]
Date: 10/28/97, 9:39/Wl
Re: Glen's Weekly Report#67
Forwarded Message
From:
INTERNET:glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua, INTERNET:glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua
Glen's Weekly Report#67 - Oct. 20-27,1997

UPDATE ON THE NEW DM BUILDING
The Dom Molitve(DM)church had hoped to open their new building on September
28th, but that didn't happen. Then they hoped to open in December of this
year, but that will not happen. The earliest it would open would be May,
1998, but it looks like there is serious consideration to have it open a week
or two before the summer festival which is June 25-27. The thinking is that
they could combine the opening of the building with the festivai (which is
planned to be held at the new site) to maximize publi city to the immediate
community and allow for more Americans to visit. Stay tuned.
The progress has been slowed mostly due to a shortage of finances. This week
we calculated that they need about $31,000 to finish the building. So close,
yet so far for these people.
TCI - A PRACTICAL INSTITUTE HELPING CHURCHES NOW
The Tavriski Christian institute is somewhat unique in it's emphasis on the
practical application of classroom information. Each class is three weeks

long. The first two weeks have classroom lecture and discussion. The third
week is devoted to practical ministry and application. Students, as part of
their final grade, are required to do a minimum of4 specified practical
projects that incorporate what they learned in class. They might have to
prepare a sermon or lesson and deliver it, interact with s omeone from a cult,
do a specific service project, teach someone some skill they've learned, take
an opinion poll, and so on. These projects force them "out into the real
world" and help them to personalize and integrate what they've learned. We
also find this helps raise personal spiritual issues that need to be addressed
which can easily be avoided while sitting in a classroom.
Yuri Mark, who Just received his MA,is overseeing the practical program.
Yuri has recruited mentors from the local and village churches who work with
and guide the students and evaluate their practical assignments. This has the
added benefit of bringing service to the church and involving the church
directlyîrr the preparation ofthe students. Thus, both the church and the
student benefit and a stronger bridge is built between the Institute and the
church. The practical aspect of education is the mos t difficult to oversee
and that is why Yuri is giving specific oversight to this aspect.
Yuri is already planning on some short term mission projects involving the
students for this summer and the following summer(1999 - possibly to Muslim
central Asia) He's also planning to meet with the various pastors of the
Kherson region to see how the students can help them in ministry more. Please
pray for Yuri as he leads In this ministry.
CHANGES IN THE FIELD TEAM
Chris Alexander and his family leave in Just a week. It hardly seems
possible that the time has come so soon. Chris has already closed down the
office. All the office equipment and furniture have been moved out. Most
went to help TCI. However, after the Alexander's leave on Nov. 3rd,the
computer that Chris uses for e-mail will go to the new KSP liaison - Yulia
Lubenetz. I will give you her new e-mail address once we get that established
after Nov. 3rd.
The fax machine is in our bedroom (which is also my office). Jolene is
thrilled! Anyway,the church and Institute only have one phone line now but
they have ordered additional lines. So until the additional lines are put in,
the fax will stay at my apartment. Therefore If you need to fax information,
the number is; 011-380-552-270934(which is also our voice phone). If you
are sending a fax and someone answers the phone,Just let us know that you
want to send a fax and we'll turn it on and we'll enj oy a short chat with you
tool
JOLENE'S REPORT
Last week I told you that Jolene would write after she got over her cold.
Well the cold is still with her, but she'll write anyway. Heeeeerrrrrrisss
Jolene
About a year ago, a friend of mine, Olga, asked me if I could be a support

person to her in a new Job she'd started. She was trained and hired by a
mission's organization called Co-Mission to work with school teachers. The

goal of the mission is to teach school teachers curriculum based on biblical
morals for them to use with their students. I attended Olga's first meeting
and it seemed to go well - about 10 teachers attended. However,the second

meeting, no one came back. She was discouraged, but di dn't give up hope.
During the last year she changed her strategy and began meeting with
kindergarten teachers at their work place right after work. She now meets
with groups in different areas of the city, and she invited me to come to one
and speak on Christian parenting. I was delighted to see how these ladies
look forward to the weekly meeting, love Olga and her devotion to them, are
eager to have their own Bibles and learn how Biblical principles can benefit
their lives, and some have already begun to attend church. Olga's persistence
was an example to me to be creative with different strategies in ministry
before giving up. She is one of the many young people in the Kherson churches
who are active In their commitment to evangelize their city.
God bless you all,
Glen and Jolene

To: Sherman Pemberton, INTERNET:sspem@aol.com
To: Mark Phipps, iNTERNET:mphipps@prodigy.net
To: Bonnie Rennie, INTERNET:tworennies@aol.com
To: J Rosenback, INTERNET:jrossenbac@aol.com
To: Chuck Rosenback, INTERNET:crossenb@extremezone.com
To: Craig Schwarting,[75110,1700]
To: Chris Smyth, iNTERNET:gsmyth@one.net
Date: 10/20/97, 9:54 PM
Re: Glen's Weekly Report #66
Forwarded Message
From;

Glen's Weekly Report #66 - Oct. 7-19,1997
WEEKLY REPORTS?
OK, I haven't exactly been punctual with WEEKLY reports. Life has been a bit
hectic. I finished 4 straight weeks of teaching here in Kherson - two weeks
at the Tavrlski Christian Institute (TCI) and two weeks with the MA students
of TCM. But things are getting a bit less hectic so I hope to catch up on a
number of things starting this week - starting with this report.
SICKNESS
Well, I guess it's the season for sickness. Ryan Alexander, Brad and Jolene
are all sick currently. Maybe its the change of seasons. But always it's a
bit challenging here to diagnose and treat and find the proper medicines.
They would appreciate your prayers.
FIRST PROFESSOR FROM HOPE INTERNATFONAL UNIVERSTTTHERt
Charles Boatman is the first professor fi^ Hope International University J)

(HIU), formerlv called Pacific Christian Cêae. uhucK is leachinu New"
I estament 1 and he is the first of three professors from HIU who will be
teaching here for this school year. HIU is a partner institution with TCI,
providing personnel, financial, material (books, etc.), and consultation help.
The Ukrainian students have taken a liking to Chuck and he's been a terrific
teacher. Oh, Chuck has been able to catch a Ukrainian co Id along with others
in our families. We wanted to feel "right at home" with the rest of us!
Chuck was late to his first day of teaching at TCI. But it wasn't his fault.
Just as we were leaving my apartment to drive to the Institute (usually about
20 min. drive), and a huge rain storm hit and everything within minutes was
flooded. 1 wasn't sure we were going to make it to the Institute at all. The
car did make it within a few hundred feet of the Institute before stalling PTL! Well, things have gotten better since then!
DM LEADERSHIP TRAINING RESUMES
Next Sunday we will start our second year of training for ttie leaders of the
Dom Molitve. Last year the topics were preaching, principles of Bible study
and church history. This year we will deal with pastoral theology and
practice, comparative religion, and apologetics. Please pray for pastor Ivan
Gerasamovich and myself as we co-teach this two hour weekly course.
AN NEW DAY DAWNING
Tomorrow,the pastors of the Kherson churches will meet for the 2nd time this
year to plan for next summer's festival. But this will be the first time
that they will meeting without Chris or i being present. Yulia Lubenyets
will be present,functioning as the KSP liaison (she assumes this role full
time Jan. 1,1998). We see this as one of the steps in preparing for the
departure of the American missionaries over the next 5 months. Please pray
for the pastors and for Yulia as they begin to make this transition and for
the 1998 festival planning.
By the way,the dates for next years festival are June 25-27. Start planning
now about participating. The festival is a real holiday and effective because
it is a celebration of our international friendships made possible only in
Jesus Christ.
REAL PEOPLE - REAL CHANGES
Today at the Dom Molitve, a man came fon/vard at the end of the service to
repent. He knelt down and asked God to forgive him and to accept him. After
he finished praying, he wept and shed many tears. As I stood near him and
watched, I gave thanks to God that another person has found hope and life.
This man is a real person who has been changed by the good news of Jesus. And
he is just one of many others. Thanks for making a real difference in real
people's lives. Oh, by the way, you'll get to meet him someday - in heaven!
COLD
I guess that's the summary word for this week. The weather has turned cold
(especially accounting for the wind chill). We had hot water for awhile, but
now it cool. They haven't turned on the heat and today i read that natural
gas reserves are critically low. That may mean that we won't have much heat or
hot water this winter. The gas pressure on our stove is very low - cold meals.
Several here have colds (sickness). And so it begins!
OFF
The second word for the week is off. They are starting to turn off the
electricity on a regular schedule in parts of the city. The Institute is in a
district where there is no gas,so the kitchen stoves are electric. However
they are turning off the electricity each day in the morning so the cooks are
having a terrible time preparing lunch on schedule. I'm not sure what we'll
do when the computer class starts - it's a bit challenging to teach computers
without having electricity! Also today in the DM ,the electricity went off
during the worship service. No electric piano or microphones! Flexibility is
the name of the game around here!
REPORT CARDS AND OTHER THINGS OF IMPORTANCE
The kids got their 1st quarter report cards this week. They got mostly A's
with a few B's. But more important is that they have shown really good
attitudes toward school - PTL! We are proud of our kids. They know they have
given up some wonderful "things" by being here, but they have managed to keep
good attitudes about it. Please keep our kids in your prayers. In two weeks
the Alexander kids depart for the States. This will be a real "let down"for
our kids. They wiil loose their classmates,thei r basketball and playmates.
and some of their closest friends. And this happens just as we head Into the
gray and cold (there'sthat word again) of winter.
We are so thankful for Laura our teacher. She's more than a gem,she's been
a wonderful teachers and a good friend. We are blessed to have her here. And
she doesn't have a cold yet!
JOLENE
Next week Jolene will write about her ministry experiences in teaching
teachers here in Kherson. Jolene not only keeps a sense of sanity and warmth
(our only source these days)in our home, but she's been a real help to my
ministry and has a ministry of her own. Actually, she was to write this week,
but she need to get over her cold (that word pops up again).
Bye from the "cold" and "off' world and looking forward to the day when we
are in heaven that's "warm"from the presence of God and "on" vy^h life
everlasting.
Glen
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:
Reggie Hurdley Mis.Sen/.,[102774,1772]

Joe Parker, INTERNET:joepark@aol.com
Mark Phipps, INTERNET:mphipps@prodlgy.net
To:
To:
To:
To:
To:

Chris Smyth, INTERNET:gsmyth@on8.net
Cheryl Trueblood.[76165,3246]
Terry Wuske,[74024,3301]

Date: 11/13/97, 2:01 PM

Glen's Weekly Report #68 - Oct.28 - Nov. 8,1997
FESTIVAL
Now is the time to start planning. The 8th Annual Ukrainian-American

Christian Festival will be help June 25-27,1998. It will be held at the
building site of the new Dom Molitve in order assist them in reaching their
new community. Lord willing, the opening of the new DM would be shortly
before the festival so this will be a huge evangelistic blitz in a very
populous and unchurched part of Kherson..
The brothers and sisters from all 5 churches planning this festival want to
invite anyone who can come to participate in the pre-festival publicity, the
festival and/or the post festival follow-up. Your participation makes this an
effective outreach and a real holiday for the Christians. But in all honesty,
you'll gain the most and leave a changed person.
Let us know if you or anyone you know is interested in participating this
year. It's not too early to start praying and talking about this.
ALEXANDER'S DEPARTURE
Monday (Nov. 3rd) of this week was a difficult day for us in saying our
"good-byes" to the Alexander family. They are already missed. The churches
here gave them a wonderful parting, but I'll let them tell you about that.
Please remember them in prayer as they adjust back into American life and deal
with a very busy schedule right now.
NEW EMAIL ADDRESSES
Wrth the departure of the Alexander's the computer that belonged to the
project that was in Chris' office was moved to Yulia Lubenetz - the KSP
liaison. She is now set upon email:
Yulia Lubenetz - yulia@yl.clvrn.kherson.ua (for CompuServe users you need
to add "INTERNET:" before the address, without spaces).
Yulia has had some trouble with messages from the States being bounced back
and we are tying to remedy this. If that happens, you can forward the message
to me and I can forward it to her until we get this "bug" fixed.
1
Zhenia Siney also has his computer up and running and is now on email. I
would recommend that if you want to send a message to him that you sent it to
him AND copy it to Yulia who will translate it for him. This will speed up
the translation part. Zhenia can read some Engiish, but a full translation
will assure accuracy.
Zhenia Siney (pastor of the KCC) - es@es.clvrn.kherson.ua
And finally, Chris and Donna are on line in the States. Their new email
address is;
Chris Alexander - CAIex4Him.aol.com
Be sure to erase Chris' old Kherson email address(chris@ca.clvm.kherson.ua)

- this is no longer working.
YURI MARK'S NEW ROLE
Yuri Mark has been coordinating the practical ministry of the students at
Tavriski Christian Institute (TCI)on a part time basis and serving as youth
minister of the KCC part time. It was recently decided that he would work
full time with the Institute as he is working with 37 students and about 15
church mentors. Plus he has responsible for short-term mission trips, the
student exchange program with students from Hope International University
(formerly Pacific Christian College), coordinating student* s involvement in
the village churches and teaching 2 courses a year at TCI. This has become
full time work.
Yuri will continue to serve with the ministers of KCC in leading worship
services, preaching, etc. And this move also gives him the wonderful
opportunity of working with the mission's committee of KCC in the role of a
consultant and guide.
Yuri and I also just completed a week of co-teaching a course on worldviews.

It was a real pleasure to co-teach with him. Next week he teaches Ethics by
himself. This time together was an opportunity to do some modeling of the
teaching process and method.
Sasha Gultz will become youth minister and also v\nll direct the student
campus organization. Please pray for Yuri and Sasha as they both make this
transition.
TCI AND MISSIONS
The faculty and administration of TCI is very committed to world missions.

Currently, in it's first year, TCI can only handle two majors: church
leadership and Christian education. However,several students are seriously
considering missions. In the future we hope to add missions and other majors
to the curriculum. But the lack of a major wont hinder preparing
missionaries.
A student group is being organized to focus on missions. Special meetings
will be held with visiting missionaries to better acquaint the ^dents with
missions.
The first three classes that have been taught at TCI have all had a strong
emphasis on missions. In the Life of Christ class that I co-taught with

Zhenia (the more correct spelling of Genia - from now on I will type it
correctly) Siney we hit very hard the eternal plan of God to reach the nations
- the plan announced to Abraham, made a reality in Christ and given to the
church in the Great Commission.
Charles Boatman (from Hope International Univ.) in NT 1 hit hard the role the
early church in Acts played in bridging the cultural gaps in order to insure
that Christianity was truly a world faith. He discussed the how prejudice
hinders the will of God. One of the practical projects of the students was to
make contact and serve someone from another culture. Many made contacts with
Vietnamese, Gypsies, and so forth.
The Worldviews class focused on understanding the worldviews of others in

order to be able to communicate cross-culturally. There are three additional
courses specifically focused on missions in years 2 and 3. But our primary
concem is to integrate missions into all of our classes and practicums.
Yuri is planning a short-term mission trip for each summer. In 1999, he
hopes to take a group to Islamic Central Asia.
Please pray that God will raise up missionaries from among the students who
will go to others who desire to hear good news!
HOT WATER AND A BEARD
What do the two have in common - not much really. "They"(whoever "they" are
remain anonymous for good reasons, I'm sure) have again turned off our hot
water - this time indefinitely. There is a shortage of natural gas in Ukraine
so they have decided that they need to save gas supplies for heating and have
turned off the hot water. But we still have to pay our utility bill as if we
were getting hot water - don't try and figure this out. So I decided that if
I couldn't change the system or the situata'o n, I'd at least try and find some
solace to my frustration. I decided I needed to find a way to protest(after
all I'm a child of the 60's and 70's)that didnt hurt others or our work and
witness here. So I decided that if we didnt have hot water, I didnt want
to shave with cold water,so a beard would be my form of protest. Actually, I

have never personally like wearing a beard,so this will be the first time in
my life to wear such a thing. Whether you ever see me in a beard or not will
largely d epend on when we get hot waterl Many here have said that I'll have
a beard that will reach my knees or the Lord will return first!
Enjoy your hot bath or shower today - don't take it for granted! Also dont
take your electricity for granted. This week I was printing my notes for
class and half way through they turned off the electricity. They turned it on
just minutes before I had to leave for class with my notes for class. Then
on Friday, we were preparing the test for that afternoon - but without
electricity, the copier didnt work very well. They finally turned on the
electricity but the test started late and the students didnt get to eat lunch
until 3pmI Who could ever be bored here!
Glen
To: Reggie Hurdley Mis.Serv.,[102774,1772]

To: Sherman Pemberton,!NTERNET:sspem@aol.com
To: MarkPhipps, INTERNET:mphipps@prodigy.net
To: Bonnie Rennie, INTERNET:tworennies@aol.com
To: J Rosenback, INTERNET:jrossenbac@aol.com
To: Chuck Rosenback, INTERNET:crossenb@extremezone.com
To; Chris Smyth, INTERNET:gsmyth@on0.net
To: Terry Wuske,INTERNET:V\/uske@aol.com
Date: 12/3/97,10:03 PM
Forwarded Message
From:
Glen's Weekly Report #70 - Nov. 19 - December 1, 1997

TCI BOARD MEETING AND NEW PRESIDENT
Tavriski Christian Institute (TCI) had their first board meeting since
receiving official "incorporated" status in August. There was lots of
business to catch up on, but probably the most important was the selection of
a president - the only remaining administrative position remaining open.

The board has selected Pavel Smolyakov to be the president elect. Pavel is a
deacon at the Dom Molitve church and Bible school superintendent. He retires
from a governmentjob in August. His current job will not permit him to work
another job until he retires. The board will meet again in August to confirm
his selection.
The board affirmed my role as interim president until March, 1998. From now
until March,they have asked me to work with Pavel to prepare him for his role
as president. Pavel has administrative experience, but lacks experience in a

Christian college setting, therefore the board asked me to help him during
this time of transition.
Praise God for answering this important prayer. Please keep Pavel in your
prayers as he prepares to become president of TCI.
BIRTHDAY,ANNIVERSARY AND THANKSGIVING - WOW!
November was "party" time at the Elliott apartment. I turned 42 this month.
Ukrainian tradition has the birthday person planning their own party. Well, I
was too tired to plan one and I was asked to preach at the KCC that day. KCC
has 3 services so I was there from 8:30AM to 3:30PM. Afterward I was ready
just to go home and rest-which I did.

Jolene and I celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary. Can't believe it was
18 years ago we committed our lives together. Well, there's not a lot to do
here so I took her out to one of the few affordable and nice restaurants for
1
lunch and then we just walked for a while together. Nothing fancy, but
enjoyable.
We had a fairly traditional Thanksgiving meal. We had 10 people crowded
around or living room table and had the usual turkey, cranberry sauce,
stuffing, yams, and pumpkin pie (thanks to Jim Smelzer who brought some of
these things to us). After dinner we watched a short video called "The
Han/est," reminding us of the real spiritual harvest that lay before us. The
fields are "white unto harvest."
ONE YEAR OLD!
The new church meeting in a house of culture called "DKS" was one year old on
Sunday, Nov. 30th. This new church,the 5th church in Kherson,is being led
by Sasha Muravski. Please pray for Sasha and the new work.
KCC PRAYER REQUESTS - NOV.30TH
Each week, Yulia Lubenetz(our new liaison) prepares an announcement and

prayer bulletin for the Kherson Christian Church (KCC). I thought you might
want to read some of their prayer requests for Nov. 30th.
Please pray for...
1. the Lord to bless the construction workers and help them to fulfill their
work remodeling the kindergarten for use by the church. Also pray for the
financial need for the building.
2. the festival - June 25-27,1998.
3. the children's choir and their director Tanya.
4. the beginning of churches In two villages and one region of Kherson.

Evangelistic work has already begun in these 3 locations.
5. the starting of a Christian school and for the group responsible for
forming this school and for the Lord to provide a financial sponsor.
6. finding new ministers for the church.
7. the children's puppet theater.
8. the mission's committee.
Please Join your brothers and sisters of the KCC in these prayer concerns.
RUSSIAN LESSONS AGAIN
Weil, I've taken a 6 month break from formal Russian lessons. But actually,
I've probably progressed more in the last 3 months than any other period of
the same time duration. I've been doing most of my meetings without a
translator, which has really forced me to use more of what I have learned in
the past. I still rely on translators for teaching and preaching, so as not
to frustrate my listeners and insure accuracy.
However, I decided I wanted to again expand my vocabulary and grammar

competence,so I'm back to twice a week lessons - at least for December. I'm
preparing another sermon in Russian and this will be the focus of my lesson
time.
JOLENE - THE DR. RUTH OF KHERSON
Jolene as asked by the Dom Molitve to talk to the women about communication.
I noticed her notes the night before she was to speak and observed that she
was going to talk about
, well you know the word that begins with "s"
and ends in "x" and has only one vowel in the middle. I cautioned her that
the Dom Molitve was a bit conservative and she should be careful how she
addresses this subject. Unfortunately, I unintentionally undermined her

confidence with my comment. So much for being a model of communication!
We were both at the DM the day she was to teach. I was teaching the leaders
while the women's meeting was being held. Before Joiene was to speak,the
women were watching a video. The topic of the video was
, well, you
know the word that begins v^h "s" and ends in "x" and has only one vowel in
the middle. We both just laughed! Needless to say, her topic was very well
received and there was lots of discussion. PTLI I'm not sure that Joiene is
in danger of becoming the Dr. Ruth of Kherson, bu t God did use her!
KSP NETWORKING MEETING IN CINCINNATI
On Nov. 21 and 22 there was a KSP networking meeting in Cincinnati. Most of

the KSP churches located in the Midwest were in attendance to Join Chris
Alexander who has recently returned to the States from Kherson. I was asked
to send a report for the meeting. If anyone would like to get a copy, please
contact Valerie Schwartz(email; 74447.233@compuserve.com).
God bless you,
Glen
The Elliott Family

December 1997
The first Christmas was a time ofgreat rejoicing, for God had come to live among men. And what a pro
found difference that first Christmas has made in our lives. Today, we continue to see the Lord working in an
amazing way here in Kherson. So it seems appropriate to rejoice with you during this Season for the great
things He has done and is doing. Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
INTRODUCING TAVRISKI CHRISTIAN INSTITUTE

This Fall was the opening of the Tavriski Christian
Institute (TCI) here in Kherson. It is a three-year col
lege which focuses on preparing church leaders and
ministers. In its initial year of operation, it offers two
majors; Church Leadership and Christian Education.
Commission to reach out cross-culturally. TCI is a
training institution that will help prepare leaders for

incredible opportunities to expand the Kingdom of
God in Ukraine and the former Soviet Union.
TCI shares home with KCC
"Tavriski Christian Institute"
carefully named
"Tavriski" is an old name for the southern area of
Ukraine. TCI is a regional institute that will reach

the southern Ukraine and includes cities and regions
like Kherson, Nikolayev, Odessa, Melitopol, Kharkov,
In December, 1996, the Kherson Strategic
Partnership(KSP) was able to raise funds to purchase

a kindergarten building to house the Kherson
Christian Church (KCC)and the TCI. The kinder
garten has six wings. Three wings will be used by the

church and three wings will be used by the Institute.
and the Crimea.
The Institute is called "Christian" because the goal

of the Ukrainian leadership is, over years, to add addi
tional church-related majors(Uke missions, church
music) and majors that can be supportive to the
church (like teaching, business, computers, etc.).
Currently, the Institute is similar to an American
Bible college in nature.
TCI is called an "Institute" because this word best
represents the nature of the school in Ukrainian cul

ture. In Ukraine, the word "institute" is parallel to
the world "college" in American culture. In Ukraine,

"college" is parallel to a high school level education in
America.
One of the greatest needs in Ukraine now is the

need for equipped church leaders who will lead grow
ing churches, start new churches and fulfill the Great
Of the six wings that belong to the Institute, two

wings have already been remodeled into a dormitory
for out-of-town students(ten students), two class
rooms, and computer lab. We still need to complete

three more dormitory wings and a wing for offices,
but we are short on funding to continue with these
projects. The four wings left will cost about $6000
each to remodel. (If you would like to make a gift to
help finish the remodeling, we would greatly appreci
ate it.)
The same building space will also serve as the

meeting location for TCM International's satellite MA
program in Kherson. TCM professors and students
will utilize the living quarters, classrooms, and
library. The TCM MA program is vital for us in
preparing professors for TCI.
isters a full salary due to a very poor economy.

Therefore English will be offered each semester for the
three-year program. English skills are necessary for
on-going education, as most Christian and En^sh
biblical reference books are still only found in En^sh.
Also En^sh provides a number of opportunities for a
student to find work Computer skills will also be
tau^t.
It was a grand opening!

The opening convocation was held on September
20,1997, with classes starting on September 22.
Thirty-seven students were accepted for the first
freshman class. Students are equally divided between
the two majors. About 12 additional students had
applied but were not accepted this year. The first
dass has students from Kherson, Nikolayev, Melitopol,
Kharkov, and the villages ofthe Kherson region.
U.S. College offers partnership support
Practical goals Included In focus

TCI places a hi^ priority on preparing leaders to
serve the church as paid professionals, as "bi-vocational" or "tentmaking" leaders, and as volunteer servants.
Practical ministry in a church context is a focus of
every course. Each course is three weeks long(4 hours
a day). The third week is devoted to practical applica-
TCI is a partner with Pacific Christian College

(PCC), a school of the newly renamed Hope
International University(HIU)in FxiUerton, CA. HIU
is providing professors for up to four courses a semes
ter. However,the msgoiity of the TCI faculty will be
Ukrainian. The long-term goal is to develop more
Ukrainian professors. HIU has provided some techni-
îon-j
Students work with mentors in local churches to fulfill
their practical assignments.

Ilie Institute program is designed to give balance
in developing the character, knowledge and ministry
skills of the student. TCI will be continually develop
ing ways to help provide its students with wage-earnirig skills. Most churches are unable to pay their min
HIU has formulated a group on its campus to provide

prayer and financial support for the Institute. The
college is also helping provide resources(books,com
puters, etc.)for the TCI library.
I am serving as the interim president of TCI. A
permanent president has been selected but he is not
able to begin serving until September, 1998.
This year^ C^stmas was giêted and cslsbrated b;^five chmHês^fiiat we work With hefsInlêrson^ In ^
1991, we were invited to work here by one ofthese churches. Since then,four more have been started. Each
church hîts oM.minlst^Wd leaders. Each oftheehi^^
.
in sev-
an unreached Muslim people group'living in the Crimea.
PHAStHlfTHE-BRIDGE TO
UKRAINIAN CHURCH INDEPENDENCE

Currently we are still in Phase II of our mission work. Phase II is when American missionaries are present in
Kherson and involyed in training and equipping Ukrainian leaders. (Phase I was the initial birthing ofthe mis-
.îon.)
We believe we are in a very healthy position to move into Phase III, which will begin April, 1998. In Phase III
rWe remove all American missionary presence from daily involvement in the work of the churches here. By the end
ufPhase HI we will also conclude our on-going funding of salaries, etc. in the churches. At the end ofPhase III we
pope to find a fully independent and indigenized work within the churches. This will be Phase IV, which begins on
December 31,1999.
^ During Phase III we will still provide some financial support, guidance and consultation, but at a mucheduced level. I believe the Ukrainian churches and leaders are ready for Pheise HI and have a few reservations
%bout entering this stage. We believe this is the sign of a healthy and mature mission effort.
P We will still need financial help during 1998 and 1999. I will be reporting on these needs when we return
in April, 1998. We will remain on salary with the Kherson Strategic Partnership(KSP)imtil July 31st, 1998.
We'll use the four months after returning to report to churches, go throu^ debriefing,take a vacation, and finalize
t^%ahsition. If you have questions, please use a label to send a letter or use our e-mail address.
Up close and personal

AN ELLIOTT FAMILY UPDATE
' ^
JOLENE - What can I say! She is an incredible missionary
wife and mother. I thank God every day for her. She seldom j
complains about the hardships here. She loves, serves and'sacj
rifices for all of us. She serves many others here in large and j
small ways. She makes it possible for us all to live here (not
just survive) and to be effective.
WENDY- She's a young woman now. It's hard to get used!

to. Wendy is in that age of remarkable mood swings of adoles- i
cence. She is a very sensitive girl(who can sense the needs of
others), a very creative person who's willing to try new things,
and a person who has learned to see past the superficiality of
life at a young age. We see a beautiful woman of God develop
ing. By the way, we've seen some impressive changes since her
baptism this summer. She has mixed feelings about departing.
Just today as I write this, she asked if we could stay here longer
as she hates to think about leaving her Ukrainian friends.
BRAD - His passion these days is basketball(and sports in general)- normal for an 11 year old. Brad is a car
ing boy who is sensitive to spiritual matters. I look forward to seeing how he develops into a young man.
GLEN I think I've already included enough about myself. I'm growing a beard. It started out as a protest
against not having hot water. Now I think I'll just see if I can get used to it and how it looks. You may or may not
see it next Spring. (Editor's Note: We don't have a picture of"The Beard," so feel free to draw one on the picture
above.)
I love working here. Every day I thank God for this opportunity. We are not suffering nor are we sacrificing
being here - even though it may be tempting to have you think that. We have good friends, we love the work and
God has blessed us in every way.
WHAT 1998 WILL LOOK LIKE FOR THE ELLIOTTS

The Elliott clan plans on returning the beginning of April, 1998. Our plan was to finish our work in five years
or less and we are ahead of schedule. Our goal has been to equip and prepare Ukrainian leaders for the work so
they will no longer be dependent on American Missionaries. God has blessed our efforts.
We are not yet sure of our schedule once we return (where we will be, when, and for how long). I hope to work
on that this month. However, we will move to Tucson, AZ,in July, 1998, to begin a ministry with the Pantano
Christian Church. I will serve as mission's pastor there. This will allow me to serve in the area to which God has
been consistently calling me. It will also allow me time to visit Kherson a few times a year during Phase III.
Wendy will start high school next year so this is a good time for our transition.
u/t
ama a
We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year in the Lord!
We want to say again how appreciative we have been for your care, support, prayers,friendship and love. I
have heard missionaries complain about how they have been ignored and forgotten by their supporting churches.
We have NEVER had that sense and are grateful for the wonderful ways in which you've invested yourselves in
the work and in the people here, and in our lives. "Thank you" seems like such a poor way of expressing our
deepest appreciation, but I hope you can get a sense of how your care has not only made a huge difference in the
mission here, but in our lives as the missionaries you've sent and supported.
We need your prayers

Please pray for the leadership in the churches as we plan for the time when there will be no direct
involvement of American missionaries except on an occasional basis.
4- Please remember the Chumaks and Shtikhnos (missionaries to Crimea Tatars) and the Missions
Council of the KCC as they also enter a new phase of ministry.
4 Praise God for the progress on the building for the Dom Molitve congregation. They are within
$30,000 of finishing in time to hold the Festival there in June, 1998.
4 Praise God for the Institute and all it can mean in the coming years as it prepares men and
women for leadership roles in churches in Kherson and Russia, and missionaries for worldwide
service.
4 Pray for the young new churches that have been started in villages around Kherson. They face a
variety of problems: developing leadership, finding ministers, locating suitable places for wor
ship, etc.
Ifyou would like to write, please use the labels below. Ifyou use e-mail,
the address is: glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua
UKRAINE
UKRAINE
UKRAINE
YKpawHa
325021 r. XepcoH
yji. riaroHa r. 5 kb. 208
OnjiMOTT, rJieH
YKpauHa
YnpawHa
325021 r. XepcoH
325021 r. XepcoH
yji. naioHa fl. 5 kb. 208
3/ijimott, rJieH
yn. DaioHa fl. 5 kb. 208

Ojuimott, rJieH
NON-PROFIT ORG.
Clovernook Christian Church
U. S. POSTAGE
1373 W. GALBRAITH ROAD
PAID
CINCINNATI, OHIO 45231

CINCINNATI, OHIO
PERMIT NO.8178
Noiman Weaver
Mission Services Assn

Box 2427
The EMiott Family

Newsletter
December 1997
Knoxville, TN 37901

Elliott Glen Jolene 1997 Ukraine

Diunggah oleh

Informasi Dokumen

Hak Cipta

Format Tersedia

Bagikan dokumen Ini

Bagikan atau Tanam Dokumen

Opsi Berbagi

Apakah menurut Anda dokumen ini bermanfaat?

Apakah konten ini tidak pantas?

Hak Cipta:

Format Tersedia

Elliott Glen Jolene 1997 Ukraine

Diunggah oleh

Hak Cipta:

Format Tersedia

FROM: Roger H.

Mark Phipps, INTERNET:PQA/F/Mphipps%PQ@mcimail.com

Cheryl Trueblood, 76165,3246

Glen's Weekly Report #40

Fp6n: Glen Elliott, lt^RNET:glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua

go to some faith healers as I'm losing confidence in traditional medicine

COLD AND STILL FALLING

Weil, for two Sunday's in a row I have perfected my falling on ice

FROM: Roger H. Schwartz, 74447,233

Glen's weekly report #43

From: ^ Gien Elliott, INTERNET:glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua

Kherson Strategic Partnership

The committee, chaired by Vlad Devakov, is now working on curriculum,

1. Help get the Kherson Christian Institute operational.

1. Teach 3 courses to the new preacher's group: History of the Church,

we have a future doctor in the making

To: Norm Weaver Mis. Serv.,[102774,1772]

To: Jim Smelser, INTERNET:jmsmelser@juno.com

Re: Glen's weekly report #53

Kherson Strategic Partnership

News is reaching us of significant cut backs at the local shipbuilding plant.

To: Joe Parker, INTERNET:joepark@aol.com

Hoppy Patterson, INTERNET:HoppyNaz@juno.com

Bonnie Rennie, INTERNET:tworenntes@aol.com

Chuck Rosenback, INTERNET:crossenb@extremezone.com

To: Norm Weaver Mis. Serv.,[102774,1772]

Jim Smelser, INTERNET:jmsmelser@juno.com

To: Terry Wuske,[74024,3301]

From: Roger H. Schwartz, p4447,233]

Re: Glen's Weekly report #57

Glen Elliott, INTERNET:glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua

Kherson Strategic Partnership

Gfen'sWeekfy Report #57, June 1-14,1997

evangelical registered church. Today we are working with 4 registered growing

of the Community Christian Church (Florence, KY)Is assisting In that

staying with someone from one of the 4 churches).

help. These translators are being Introduced to Christlanrty through this

challenge. But all in all, things have gone well.

TRAILS AND DEATH

site of the summer Christian camp(June 21-30). However there is some

KCC BUILDING UPDATE

ministers Is on a diminishing scale and our new Kherson Strategic Partnership

several matters relating to our furlough.

(glen@glen.clvrn.kherson.ua) after, say, June 23rd. Yau can re-start sending

The Elliott Family

The Dom Molitve is nearing completion of its new building.

space). The Kherson Christian Church was able to purchase a

-f Four "official" churches and

two more being started

living in the Crimea,

you as partners in this mission.

It is so difficult in such a short space to recount all that has

hospitals, prisons, and

4 Preparation for "Tavhski

Where We are Now

more like a vacation. The kids really wanted to go to camp,

get involved in some service projects, and be with their

friends for the summer. We came back the 25th of June. 1

back on September 2. We needed some rest as the period of

When I return, I will be busy helping the Ukrainian

Pictured left - two views of the Dom Molitve building;

above - the former kindergarten being remodeled to

Institute; Jolene and Brad at summer camp.

The Kherson Strategic Partnership can be pictured In the following phases: