Dear Team Members,

Time sure does fly with so many doctor appointments, BUT here we are again thanking the Lord for each of you for your love and prayers!
It seems that a good portion of our emails consist of sharing our journey this past year and a half. It has been a journey we would not like to go through again, BUT looking back we would not want to miss all the Lord has done in our hearts and lives, and the way He has used our journey to encourage others. Even last Friday, we were blown away at God using our lives in the lives of two business men we individually had in depth conversations with us about our God and our Savior!!!!!!! Mark shared how his 65-year-old father has just been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and has to retire. Then Michael shared that he is soon getting married. In talking with both of them we found out their faith was also in Jesus Christ as their Savior. Both men kept asking questions about our lives. Mark said at church, missionaries share, but he had not ever talked with one personally like we were talking. Please be praying for Mark and Michael. We personally gave them both an invitation to contact us if they would like to talk more!

HOW THANKFUL WE ARE FOR YOU!

This is Cherrie writing, but all that is said is from Charlie also Almost 54 years ago we started our journey together in June of 1963. Along with my cancer journey this past 17 months, we both have so much to be thankful for!!!!!! I love writing down parts of our life and journey, so this letter is on THANKFULNESS!!!!!!

Dear Team Members,

We thank and praise the Lord for you! Together, we are Team Members reaching out to others!

LOTS TO PRAY ABOUT, so this Update is mainly Prayer Requests:

Dear Team Members,

WOW time flies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We had a GREAT time out in Kansas over Christmas and New Year’s visiting Ray and Janelle, our grandchildren and their spouses, and our great grandchildren!!!!!!!!! Even saw snow – not much, BUT enough for us Floridians going from 85 degrees to 0 degrees  We also both got colds and Charlie had bronchitis. BUT the warmth of family and friends helped to keep us warm in heart 

MERRY CHRISTMAS TEAM MEMBERS, 

WOW, YOU ARE ALL AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you SOOOOOO much for standing with us ALL YEAR and THROUGH THE YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We have an urgent prayer request: Our grandson DiMaggio, who is only 2½, has had chest problems since he was only a few months old. The last three winters and even when it is not winter, he has problems. He was in the hospital with pneumonia and high fever over the weekend. They call it RSV – Respiratory Syncytial Virus – scary when your little one (any one) cannot breath properly  Please be praying for his body to heal completely and the medical team caring for him, and for our daughter Esther and husband Ricky during this time, and ongoing times!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dear Team Members, 

WOW, where has this year gone? Even though it has been a hard year physically and emotionally, God has been good and encouraged us each step of the way. We thank you sooooo much for journeying with us, and continuing to be there for us in soooo many ways 

We want to wish each of you a VERY SPECIAL THANKSGIVING DAY! How we THANK the LORD for HIS GIFT of ETERNAL LIFE when our faith is in Him as our Savior, and for each one of you, who He has brought into our lives!

Dear Team Members,

This Update comes with our Love and appreciation for each of you. Your love, care, and prayers for us mean so very much!

The past few months we have had computer problems and about a month ago both of them died, with us only being able to be online a few of those days when we had access to a visitor’s computer. Please feel free to resend us emails you may have sent this past month as we really love hearing from you!!!!!

Dear Team Members,

FINSHED! Yes, my radiation treatments are FINISHED! The radiation burns were no fun, but have healed well. Thank you so much for your prayers. Now, we just go to Orlando every three weeks until December 1st for one treatment, then we are FINISHED, except for the occasional check up with my oncologist. I have started on a medication I will take for five years – a type of hormone blocker.

Dear Team members,

WOW, TIME SURE DOES FLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We can’t believe it has been 50 YEARS this month that our missionary journey started!!!!!!!!! So here is a bit of a History lesson In July of 1963 Charlie entered the Air Force. We lived three years in Biloxi Mississippi. It was there, our lives changed all because of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Charlie got an early discharge from the Air Force to pursue becoming a minister. So, 50 years ago, in August of 1966 we started Bible School in Chattanooga Tennessee. While there, our future was redirected and our hearts were challenged for overseas ministry to work with the unreached in places like Papua New Guinea where so many language groups do not have any of the Word of God in their language, some who have not even seen a white person. Well, our direction later changed a bit, as after our Missionary training with New Tribes Mission in Ontario Canada and then our Language School Training in Missouri, we were asked to consider going to help in the New Tribes Language School in Australia for two years. Well, that ended up being 34 years, with five of those years being in New Zealand as the Language School moved there for a few years. Charlie was a linguist, and though we did not get to serve in Papua New Guinea, we did have a part in training folk from Australia, New Zealand, Korea, England, Germany, and Fiji, who themselves have been used of the Lord around the world. I often laugh, as Charlie was the one with a proper degree, Graduate of Theology, and I had a PHT Degree – Pushing Hubby through Degree  WELL, we did do it together!

Dear Stretcher Bearers, July 5th, 2016

We trust this finds you encouraged in our Precious Lord and Savior, in the midst of sooooo many discouraging issues in our world these days.

I can’t believe it has been almost nine months since my cancer was found, then diagnosed, and chemotherapy started December 17th, 2015. I remember the first time we went down to Orlando to see my Oncologist, Dr. Molthrope. It was a shock to my system, seeing folk in the hall bald, or wearing caps to cover the baldness, walking with canes, then to see a lady in the hall sitting on a bench, wrapped in a blanket, but sitting all alone. It broke my heart to see someone facing their journey all alone. I am so thankful for Charlie and his daily care for me. My chemotherapy treatments ended the end of March – they lasted twelve weeks. During that period of time it was hard to get folk to talk about the Lord, possibly for a number of reasons with the journey they were facing. Recently, after sooo many months, one lady, we had not seen since earlier this year, came up to us and gave me a big hug with a BIG smile on her face. It has been worth it being part of the journey of so many. We are not finished with our journey, and probably will never be until we go home to be with our Lord and Savior. Our lives will never be the same!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Things that use to seem sooooo important are no longer important. Material things do not have their hold on me like they used to. People are more important, and of course Jesus is more precious than ever!

June 22, 2016

As we were driving to see the radiologist this afternoon for the first time, this verse was in my mind: Philippians 4:6 & 7 – “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication WITH THANKSGIVING, let your requests be made known UNTO GOD and the PEACE of GOD, which passeth all understanding, shall KEEP YOUR HEARTS and minds through CHRIST JESUS.” We were VERY impressed with Dr. Lester and his explanation as to why I still need radiation treatment. He was thorough and explained that even though there was just one lymph  that showed the cancer and a trace of cancer in the fat surrounding that lymph node, this means I still need to have radiation treatment. I have God’s peace, in the midst of my human emotions! I have an appointment on this Thursday morning at 11am to start the next segment of this journey. Once I start the actual treatments they will last six weeks, five days a week (each treatment lasts about 10 minutes)- give or take days off for holidays and machine breakdowns which require repairs. So sometime in August I will be finished, with only my every three weeks infusion of Herceptin until the end of the year with the oncologist. Thank you soooo much for your prayers and we covet your continued prayers. Knowing YOU are HERE IN MY HEART MEANS SOOOO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Please continue to pray for my younger sister Lynda. She has a doctor’s appointment early July regarding the two blood clots – one in both lungs, and her heart condition which includes a new murmur and a left bundle branch block. She tries to walk a little each day which is good.

Trusting the Lord to encourage each of you day by day.

With our Love,

Cherrie & Charlie

___________________________________________________________________

June 16, 2016

How THANKFUL we are for your continued prayers for my cancer journey 

Current prayers requests are:

This coming Tuesday the 21st at 2:15 I have an appointment with a Dr Lester here in Sanford. He is a Radiologist and he will be looking over all my reports to determine if I need radiation treatment or not. There is a good possibility I won’t!! We have been told he is excellent and will not do it if it is not necessary. If it is necessary, the treatments will be here in Sanford, not Orlando, we think five days a week for five weeks. Sounds like the sessions are not long at all.

Dear Team Members, 

Where do we begin? Lots has gone on in recent weeks: 0n Thursday, May 12th I had a mastectomy and all seemed to be going well, until in the early evening Lynne, who was my nurse ( my angel watching over me) had to phone my surgeon as there was undue swelling. I was taken back to surgery as there was internal bleeding and a blood clot  Got back to my room around 2am. Then on Friday I had a unit of blood, and was discharged later that day. This past Wednesday the 25th, staples were taken out and the two drains removed. Today the surgeon put me back on an antibiotic to help with the inflammation. Trusting I will be able to get comfortable and start sleep better – not only me, but that Charlie will start sleeping better also! We believe the chemo has done a job on my feet, legs, and hands, as neuropathy and pain has settled in them. We trust this is not permanent! I don’t see the oncologist until June 23rd, so at this point in time we don’t know if I will be having radiation treatment. This is a long journey, and without you walking it with us, we would not cope. THANK YOU EVER SO MUCH FOR YOUR LOVE, CARE, AND PRAYERS EACH STEP OF THE WAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!