Rome at Easter

Everyone said we were crazy to go to Rome between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday! We wanted to celebrate Josh's last Spring Break at home and Rome is where he wanted to go. It is such a Biblically historic city filled with outstanding works of Christian art - not to mention the largest cathedral in the world! The crowds were not bad at all - although we were there Monday and Tuesday of the week. I'm sure the closer it got to Good Friday, the more crowded it grew. It was a fun time for us both.
This picture is me (Tammy) and Josh in St Peter's Square in front of St Peter's Cathedral in the Vatican City.

Easter Traditions

Easter is a major holiday in Hungary. We have a large Catholic population so a large number of religious activities are held. Culturally the Magyars have special activities to celebrate this occasion too. On Easter Monday men of all ages dress in their finest clothes and call on the ladies in their lives. They ring the gate bell and say a little poem that has been handed down through generations of Hungarians. The men then sprinkle the head of the females with perfume. In response the women are to give the men a red egg. Through the years the dyed egg has evolved into a chocolate egg with fancy wrapping or in some cases the lucky fellow gets money! Many Hungarian children also receive chocolate bunnies and have an egg hunt in the yard. It's a fun time for the children.

Missionary Moms Having Fun

What's the saying about "All work and no play"? On the last weekend in February most of the community of the International Christian School of Budapest (our son Josh's school), which is largely missionary, puts aside their work to have fun at the annual basketball tournament. It is a great time of relaxing, watching basketball, eating junk food, and being together. We are grateful for all the work that goes into making it happen.

This year I helped organize some of the entertainment - a group of moms doing a routine with mops in a spoof of the drill team or flag corps. To see the routine click on the this link- www.youtube.com:80/watch?v=CbFqAYuQSVk Or you can search You Tube for ICSB Mopping Moms. Thanks to our friend and colleague, Glen Adkins, for immortalizing us on the web!

It was also a time of mixed emotions for our family. This was Josh's last basketball game and Ralph's last time to coach the team. There were nine seniors on the varsity team! It was a tear fest for the moms when the last buzzer rang. Now we're marching on to graduation.

Gypsy Smith School to Celebrate 10 Years

Dear Gypsy Smith School Faculty,

How many years do you think the Gypsy Smith School has been serving Roma church leaders? I’m sure many of you who were involved from the very beginning could answer this question very quickly. Others may not be so sure. Well, the answer is 10 years!

This March we will be celebrating 10 years of the Gypsy Smith School. We wish all of our GSS faculty members could be physically present at this special event, but we realize this is simply not possible. So, we would like for you to be present with us in two ways. One way is to intentionally pray for the Gypsy Smith School every day during the month of March. In this way you’ll be present with us in thought and spirit. The second way we would like to request your presence is through a simple statement. We’d like for you reflect on your time with the Roma students and send me a statement about your most memorable/significant moment with them. We plan to share some of these memories at the celebration and in this way you’ll be present with us through sharing your special memories. We also may use these statements for the newsletter and/or webpage.

You can send the statements to wcraig@thefellowship.info.

Thank you for your prayers, statements, and continued support of the Gypsy Smith School.

Pace,
Wes