April 2001

Dear Partners in Ministry,

Greetings to you in the name of our wonderful Savior and risen Lord! Hallelujah! It’s hard to believe that Easter is already here and yet, in other ways, it feels like we’re already in the middle of summer—the weather here in Thailand has already become very hot and humid. Now we’re feeling some urgency to prepare for our first home assignment this summer. As soon as the children complete their school term, we are planning to come to the U.S., so we’d like to let you know what we’re thinking. If you could, would you please give us your comments, requests, etc. as soon as possible?

As for our school, the Bangkok Institute of Theology, the school year will have already begun in June, so we have been trying to arrange for a substitute during our absence.

Home assignment itinerary: June 12 to August 21, 2001

• June 12 we will depart Bangkok for San Francisco. After arriving in San Francisco we will pick up a rental van that will later be dropped off in Chicago. We will unite with Fujii/Coles family in Castro Valley. We will also be available to visit with Bay-area churches or supporting churches in Oregon.
• June 19 we leave for Los Angeles, staying overnight in the vicinity of San Luis Obispo. Then, on Wednesday, June 20 we arrive in L.A. and will be available to visit with L.A. area churches.
• June 21 we depart L.A. for Los Alamos, New Mexico, overnight in Flagstaff, N.M. June 23 arrive in Los Alamos to visit Hamada family (Carol’s brother Mike’s family and parents).
• June 28 depart Los Alamos toward Dallas, stay overnight in the vicinity of Amarillo, Texas. Arrive in Dallas June 29.
• July 2 depart Dallas toward Washington D.C., staying overnight in the vicinity of Memphis and then on July 3 we will then be in North Carolina.
• July 4 arrive in D.C. where we will be able to visit with churches in the D.C. area (and throughout the northeast and/or mid-Atlantic states).
• July 14 depart D.C. for Chicago, visit with Chicago Presbytery and Chicago-area supporting churches.
• July 28 attend the missionary sharing conference in Louisville until August 4.
• August 9 depart Chicago to Bangkok via San Francisco (Carol, Joy, Karin, and Lani). Mark will attend Summer Conference of Church of Christ, Presbyterian, from August 12 to 19.
• August 19 depart Chicago to Bangkok via San Francisco (Leith and Mark.)

We want to see as many of you as we can, so we’ve tried to schedule ourselves at different locations to be accessible to you. If you would like to have us come and visit, please let us know as soon as possible. The Worldwide Ministries Division (WMD) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has suggested that we give you a standard notice about how arrangements for our visit should be made, so what follows is as WMD suggests, but please know that we are willing to flex and be creative as necessary to get together with you. The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) pays our salary while we are on interpretation assignment, so we do not expect any kind of honorarium. However, our travel expenses are not covered; those expenses are expected to be covered by the inviting church (or churches). When we arrive at your church, we will give you a letter that indicates our travel costs. If we drive, it will be at a rate per mile set by the Presbyterian office in Louisville. If we fly, we will divide the cost of the flight among the churches we are visiting in the area. If we have made a special arrangement with you in advance, we will remind you of that arrangement in our letter. If you would like to invite us but cannot afford to pay for our travel, that is OK too, but please let us know ahead of time. Some churches give us more than our travel expenses and we can save that for such occasions. Please note we cannot accept cash.

Well, all that having been said, may we simply reiterate that we have so appreciated your support during our term in Thailand, and we look forward to being with you and sharing our joy with you. If you are at all interested in having us visit, would you please just give us an indication now, even if details are sketchy? It would help us to plan wisely and make the most of our resources and time with you. As time is critical, it would be best if you could let us know by e-mailing us directly or by phoning the WMD and asking them to relay your message to us. Call Peter Kemmerle, Associate for Mission Connections at (888) 728-7228 x5612.

May you know the presence of the Lord in your times of meditation and worship, and may God refresh and renew you in the knowledge of His Wondrous Love in Christ. Hallelujah! He has risen, indeed!

In the Love of Christ,

Leith and Carol Fujii

The 2001 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, page 171