Grandparents

Joe's parents were able to come over from Mali where they are stationed.  This is the first time in a long time that we have been able to spend time with them.  The boys loved it as they were able to show Grandpa their "BIG" Muscles.  It was also one of the few times that we have all been together (Amy's parents on the left, Joe's on the right)

Their main reason for making the 3 day trip was to bring us the rest of our outfit that we had sent in one of their containers two years ago.  However, it probably wouldn't have happened without a little Grandkid time bribing
We had a wonderful time and even made a trip to Benin where Dad Marine installed cabinates and electric, Joe worked on plumbing, and Dad Marshall welded up trusses for the housing at the clinic
There were a few minor truck problems, but nothing that couldn't be fixed on the road.  Mom and Dad Marshall left just before Thanksgiving and made it safely back to Mali.

Getting back to Benin!!!

We had the opportunity to get back to Benin for a couple weeks to do some work on the Clinic property.  We were able to take a look at our Future Home, though it is still in the early stages of construction.  Amy wanted to get an idea of how the Doctor's home was laid out, so we did that and also did some work on the Doctors home.  We will probably move into the Dr's home for a couple months in December while ours is completed.  Currently the Butrouses are still in language study in France.

While in Benin, we found out that the Container  with all the solar for the clinic, medical supplies, as well as some of our things was at the port, and headed our way.  Here is a short Video on receiving the container.

Hope you enjoy it!!!!

We are back in Niger for a Month before I (Joe) will be going down to help install the solar and continue working on our future home.

Finally in Africa

We have finally made it to the Continent of Africa, and we are so excited to see what God does in the next several months.  All of our baggage made it, and we are getting settled into the temporary mission housing where we will be until we make our move to our permanent ministry location.

One of the first things Amy did was to have some African cloths made for us.  She had fun picking out material with her Mother and then found a good Tailor to put it together.  Fun thing is we can have cloths made for us cheaper than buying them, so no guessing on sizes anymore.

Paris part 2

So we spent an entire day examining some of the battles of WWI and some of the reasons for that war, as well as saw the site where the French Revolution started.  As well as the location were Louis XVI was stopped and arrested while trying to escape the Country.
But now we are in Paris, and Amy is eager to show the boys some of the French Revolution Landmarks here.

 This is the castle where Marie Antoinette was imprisoned.  It served as one of the last stops before the accused were tried and executed.  We also saw the place of the Bastille and some other spots of Historical note. 

Of Course no trip to Paris would be complete without viewing some of the other Iconic Tourist attractions.

Paris

We have been in France for 8 Months now and have really not done any site-seeing.  We decided to take the kids to Paris and see some of the historical sites before leaving the country.

 First Stop:  Uncle Don Marshall took us to see some of the WWI trenches and the Crown Prince of Austria's Bunker during the war near VerDunn.  We later say the second largest US military foreign Cemetery where at one time 48,000 Us military service men were buried.   The boys learned about the first World War as well as some about the second.

Here is a US WWII tank that was left behind while the Allies pushed Germany out of France.
From here we are on our way to Paris to learn more about the French Revolution.

Bit of a Switch

This Month will prove interesting as I (Joe) stay home with the kids and continue their home schooling while Amy starts her classes at the French school.  Granted the kids will have a reduced workload, but I get to be Mr. Mom for about 3-4 weeks and keep the home running.  Should be fun.
Amy will be working on speaking now that she has a good foundation of the language.

Her Tutor has done very well at working out the Grammar and developing her Vocabulary.

Nearing the End

Well, this is the last Month of Class for Joe.  Amy will begin her three week speaking course next month right after exams for this last semester.  We are at the level that the Field asked us to be at, and are looking forward to moving to Africa by the end of this Summer.

Devotions in French

This last week I had the opportunity to do the Devotional time at the school.  Each week one of the students gives a short 15 - 20 minute devotional.  The video and audio is not the best quality, but I am posting this for those who are interested in hearing our progress.
Devos in French

Exams

Things have been a bit crazy here as we have been taking our unit exams.  These will determine whether or not we move up to the next level in French.  Though my grammar and spelling leave something to be desired, I am happy to announce that both Amy and I did very well, and will be starting in a new level of French this next week.
Amy's parents are coming to visit, so we are looking forward to spending time with them.
Sorry for the delay on the boys latest video, I was wrapped up with French and couldn't help them with final editing... you can find it under the boys videos.

The Boys

The boys have been looking for a way to stay in touch with their friends.  This gets especially tough for MK's as the weeks turn into years.  Typically by the time furlough rolls around so much time has passed that it is difficult for their American friends to relate to them, much less maintain any type of relationship with them. 
We decided that one way to bridge the time and cultural divide is to put out videos of what the boys are up to and some of their adventures.  Hopefully it will help you keep in touch with them and you will get to know them even better instead of loosing touch with them.
This is the first video, and we hope to post a new one each month. 
In this first video the boys are visiting a medieval city located just out of our town of Albertville.  It actually overlooks the town and is about a 5 mile trip from our home.
Hope you enjoy it, and we hope to add a section for the 4MK'S videos as we have more to add.

Life in Albertville

 This is the house that we share with the Landlord.  It is actually 4 levels, we get the ground floor and basement, which translates into a nice 4 bedroom home for us.  They have the second floor, and they have a small apartment in the upstairs that they can rent out as well.  Amy will be able to homeschool the boys in the front office, and it is only a 10 minute walk for me to get to language school.

 Grocery store is right around the corner... Literally!!!

 

Behind us is where the '92 Winter Olympics were held, and the Alps surround us.  Will and Logan went on a walk with me and decided to pose for pictures!

Flying to France

We were able to spend a day of much needed rest and prep in Montreal before boarding the plane to Geneva.  Our plane left in the evening, and by that time we were rested up reorganized and ready...

Of course we needed to help Logan as there was lots of walking involved.  The boys were troopers and helped carry the small bags.

Traveling at last!!!

Well, our traveling always seems to include a healthy amount of Drama.  We enjoyed a quiet Christmas morning, headed over to the Camp to finish cleaning up... that lasted until Midnight.
Of course we weren't quite finished so I had a great plan on getting up early and finishing while Amy got the boys ready.
5:00am came early, but I was running on adrenaline, and had a mission to complete.  I worked steady until I realized it was almost 9:00.  We had to leave no later than 10:00am in order to make it to the train.
Jonathan and I left with the baggage, and Amy had the boys, Reagan (a friend who we met at camp over the summer as a counselor), with the Van.  Jonathan and I made it too the train in the nick of time, but it became apparent that Amy was not going to make it.  With the help of the ticket agent we redirected her to the Saratoga train station so she could still make the same train.
Praise the Lord all worked out and we made it to Montreal with all our baggage... and 4 kids

Here are some pictures that we managed to get...

 

Amy catching some shut-eye

Boys watched a movie on the train after it got too dark to enjoy the scenery

Visa part 2

The second trip for visa's was today, and it was not necessary for the entire family to make the trip to NYC.  I arrived with the additional documents in hand and hour before my appointment, and of course had no trouble with the traffic.  Everything went very well, and I am headed back with Visa's in hand.  Good thing too, we have tickets for the 27th.

Visa's

We are getting ready for our Visa interview's tomorrow, it should prove interesting.  We have only one FBI background check on Joseph, and a local background check on Amy.  Lord willing all will go well, and we will have only to return to pick up the visa's after our Indiana trip.

Thursday we plan to leave for Indiana.  It will be our Commissioning in our home church, Bible Baptist.  In addition to the Commissioning service, we want to take the time to visit with friends that we may not see again for the next four years.  We should be in Tipton Indiana, as well as Russiaville to say bye to friends.

We are beginning to Pack, and the job is a little overwhelming.  In Gods Strength we should be on our way Soon!!!

Mission Conferences

We are back on the road with more Missions Conferences.  We have just finished up some meetings here in New York, and will be heading south in November.

Please pray for safety on the road, the ability to articulate the burden that God has given us, and the right people and churches to present this ministry to.  We are excited to see what God will do.

We are preparing to leave the United States in December, and we are very close to meeting our Financial requirements.  Please pray the the remaining funds will come in quickly.

Progress in Benin

We just received word that the foundation for the home that we will occupy for the first couple years, has been started.

The soil is moist, so it makes the work with a shovel a little easier.

Since everything is done by hand, it takes quite a while to get a building up.






Though the foundation is being laid, not all the funds are in for the houses.  We have been asked to help raise some of those funds.  Please pray that the needed funds are raised.  This house will be used for medical teams once we have moved to a permanent location in the years to come.

Fall in NY

The days are turning colder, and it is one of my favorite times of the year.  What is not to love, pumpkin pie, apple pie, cider, cider donuts, I could go on, but i would need a snack.  Suffice it to say that I will be happy to take advantage of the season while we are in the US.

Some friends invited us to make cider with my Grandmother's apples.  We had a blast, and it was educational as well...

Will and Josiah washed the apples we had collected.

They were then instructed on how the process worked.

Then they started crankin' out the cider.








Did I mention I love this time of year?

The Medical Clinic

We are excited with the progress made on the Clinic.  For some of you who don't know, Global Dental Medical, a partnering mission organization, has helped to build a clinic to aid the people of our area.  Incidentally, the nearest hospital is 4 hours away.

Why does this excite us?  Well, we are burdened for the Fulani people, a nomadic people group who are starting to settle in the area.  This clinic draws them to the village to seek medical help.  This allows us the opportunity of meeting and developing a relationship with them.

Our temporary home will be located near the clinic, and we will be in close proximity to a Fulani village.

The clinic should be open and operating soon.

VBS

During our time at camp we have been able to get to several of our churches in the New York area.

 A huge thank you to the Baptist Church of Northville as well as Broadalbin Baptist for inviting us to participate in their VBS this year.  The boys had a blast, and Amy and I were honored to be included in the program.

The money that was raised will go to help the Benin nationals.