November 18, 2008

Dear Family and Friends,

The Bronkemas have served the Moscow Protestant Chaplaincy for over two years.

The biggest advance we’ve made recently is opening a medical clinic with a licensed Russian doctor and an American doctor. The head doctor from the U.S. Embassy and his wife want to get involved. (His wife has a Ph.d. in nutrition.) This issue really touches us because of the tragic experiences we have had over the last couple of years. Two of our members died because they were refused medical help. Many of our members suffer from lingering and untreated illnesses because they go to the hospital and are refused because of lack of money. We’ve been shocked to discover how many of our members from Africa have hypertension and need to make changes in the way they live. The clinic is currently open three hours a week. We hope to get to be open five days a week. Our prayer is that this center will save the lives of those to whom we minister.

We had the grand opening of our parish center on November 17. Representatives from eight denominations, two religions, five embassies, and 30 or so other members of the church were present. We all fit somehow, and the volunteers of the church did an amazing job of setting up. We continue our normal programs as we take up renewed efforts to report racial violence and attacks. The center is needed now more than ever for its ability to provide safety and programs to refugees and people of color. We’re grateful to the U.S. embassy, the Evangelical Lutheran Church, the American Baptist Church for their donations, which allowed us to remodel our parish center.

We are also grateful that two more refugee families that we referred to the U.S. Embassy have been resettled. One is a young man from the Congo who was chased out of his house by government troops. He ran to his church for protection. The pastor of the church came out and told the government troops that if they wanted to take the young man they would have to take him as well. The troops backed down long enough for him to escape. He eventually found his way to Moscow.  The other young man is a Sikh from Afghanistan. He still lives in Moscow as he waits to be processed.

At a recent retreat by the church council, we discussed the possibility of opening a shelter for those who have no place to spend the night. The shelter in Palatka, Florida, is our model. This as a pressing need, since so many of our people sleep at Internet cafes or parks. It is an issue that we deal with often, so why not solve the problem by creating a shelter? Please pray for this initiative.

We are pleased to welcome a new development director. Lydia Troncale, who was a student of Bob’s brother David at Eastern, has come to Moscow to work with the Moscow Protestant Chaplaincy. In two months she has been instrumental in opening the new parish center and is on the committee looking into the feasibility of a shelter. We are blessed to have her.

We have lost so many of our regular families, who have moved to other countries, that we were afraid it was going to create a gap in our programs. Fortunately, those who have stayed have poured themselves into the life of the church. We are sending our youth this year on a mission trip to the slums of Naples to do a vacation Bible school like what we did in Palatka in 2004. We have expanded our high school Bible study to include middle school students. Last Sunday there was an influx of young families and new people who want to join our worshipping family.

Bob returned to the States to renew his visa in October.  While there, he spoke at Brick Presbyterian in New York, at the Faith and Life series at Harvard Memorial Church, and at Nassau Presbyterian Church in Princeton. The trip was longer than expected, and he is glad to be back. Now Stacy and the girls are with Bob’s brother John getting their visas.

We had hoped to move and consolidate both soup kitchens into one, but this didn’t happen. At the last minute, the building’s owners changed their price, and we decided to stay in our old location. One of the clients of our soup kitchen died last month. He died at home with his family, and some of his last words were thanks to the soup kitchen for their help over the last 15 years.

After a wonderful summer, we have settled down for another school year. Rachel has a wonderful group of friends and continues to enjoy all that school has to offer. Naomi is enjoying fifth grade with her favorite teacher, Mr. Hayes. Her favorite subject is still history, but she is doing well in the others as well. Bethany loves third grade and is looking forward to the Christmas program. She misses her best friend who has recently moved back to South Korea and is thankful for the emails that he friend sends.

We end this letter with Advent greetings. May the anticipation of the coming Lord Jesus Christ fill your lives with a desire to serve him more than you ever have before.

We are your servants in Christ,

The Bronkema family:  Bob, Stacy, Rachel, Naomi, and Bethany

The 2008 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 158