CELEBRATING A CENTENNARY OF MINISTRY
On July 24 and 25, the Salem Mennonite Church near Tofield, Alberta, (about 42 miles southeast of Edmonton) celebrated one hundred years of life and ministry in rural Alberta.  In 1910, several families from Nebraska, settled in the Tofield area and began the congregation as part of the Western Amish Mennonite Conference. It later affiliated with the Alberta-Saskatchewan Mennonite Conference, and today is part of the Northwest Mennonite Conference. The first meetinghouse was built in 1911.  Facilities were enlarged in 1915 and 1926, replaced in 1954 with an extensive addition added and opened in 1981.  Since its beginning, the Salem Mennonite Church received its insurance coverage from the Mennonite Aid Union and subsequently from MAX Canada.  The congregation's dedication to mutual aid insurance is much appreciated. 
 
Approximately 600 participants, from seven US states, from as far away as Florida, and from Ontario to British Columbia in Canada, came "home" to celebrate God's goodness and faithfulness to the congregation.  A special blessing was the attendance of Carl and Vera Hansen, who served the congregation from 1975 to 1984 and today are missionaries in Kenya.  The event was blessed with perfectly beautiful weather, allowing people to comfortably gather under a large tent erected on the grounds for worship and celebrations.  An eighty voice choir, formed from past and present members, under the direction of James Boettger of Salem, Oregon, added greatly to the celebrations.  Mal Braun and Ray Landis, present and past conference Ministers were keynote speakers for the gathered community event.  The first copy of a centennial history book, written for the occasion, was sold by auction for an amazing $1,500.  The event was planned with no registration fees, in faith that a free-will offering and some sponsorships, including one from MAX Canada, would cover expenses.  Final revenue and expenses have yet to be determined, however organizers feel most costs have been covered.  We celebrate with deep gratitude the century of ministry provided by the Salem Mennonite Church and the thousands of lives impacted over those one hundred years.
 
THROUGH A DEEP VALLEY OF ILLNESS
The journey began on July 11, when 22 year old Austin Hochstetler from Goshen, Indiana, began experiencing flu-like symptoms which continued to worsen. By July 14, he was experiencing severe abdominal pain and was admitted to the Goshen Hospital.  Extensive testing determined that Austin had ulcerated colitis.  Furthermore, his body had taken on toxicity with some form of bacteria in the blood system that most likely originated from the colitis. The rare condition required intensive treatment and a series of plasma transfusions in order to remove the toxicity from his blood, which was attacking his liver and kidneys. In critical condition, Austin was transported to Saint Joe Regional Medical Center, Mishawaka, Indiana, for further treatment.  After several very worrisome days, much prayer and intense complex treatments, Austin's body is beginning the process of shedding toxicity and restoring itself to normality. 

 

Austin is the son of Char and Ritch Hochstetler of Goshen and the grandson of retired pastor Lester & Carol Bauman, also of Goshen.  To allow friends and family to better follow Austin's progress, the family has established a blog at http://austin-hochstetler.blogspot.com. The family offers these words of gratitude; "Thank you for your continued prayers and also for the encouraging words that have been shared. We are continually reminded of God's love and the blessing of community."  A sincere thank you is also offered to the communities of East Goshen and Waterford Mennonite Churches for their support, care and concern for Austin and the family during this difficult time.  As Austin has reflected on his journey through this deep valley of illness he comments,  "I used to ask, 'why am I in the hospital?' I was frustrated. Now I am realizing just how sick I really was and that I needed to be here - even if I would rather be any other place but here. I also realized just how fragile life is and that we cannot take even one day for granted. It's definitely evident that I am not alone. Thanks for your continued support and prayers!"
 
POTENTIALLY FATAL FIRE CAUSES INJURIES & FINANCIAL BURDENS
A devastating fire in a MAX insured two storey four unit apartment building in Elkhart, Indiana, left two brothers, one 23 and the other 25, with serious injuries and extensive financial burdens.  A tenant in a ground-floor apartment was cleaning and painting and unwisely used gasoline to clean grease from a gas kitchen stove.  Inevitably, gas fumes ignited and the building caught fire and burned rapidly.  The two brothers, Eric and Josh McCreary, living in a second storey unit, were forced to jump out of a window to escape the flames.  Eric received two broken wrists, a broken heel and a compression fracture of his spine.  Now home from the hospital he is "doing as well as can be expected."  He cannot walk, must ride in a wheelchair and has casts on both wrists.  Josh continues to recover from smoke inhalation and suffers significant emotional trauma associated with such an event.  The brothers had neither renter's insurance coverage nor any medical insurance.  Due to a poor local economy, both had lost good manufacturing jobs and have recently worked only part time.  The McCreary family is most appreciative of the assistance provided initially by the Elkhart Red Cross and subsequently by God's Warehouse, a clothing distribution ministry operated by the local Hope United Methodist Church.  The MAX Share Fund is also exploring a grant to assist the brothers with the financial burden this event has created.

 

BRAIN SURGERY PRODUCES OPTOMISTIC RESULTS
Short term memory loss led to brain surgery within a few weeks for Jay Nissley, pastor at Kauffman's Mennonite Church in Manheim, PA.  The evening before surgery, Jay and wife Elta asked to be anointed with oil.  "That very meaningful service happened at our home.  All of us in attendance were blessed," reports Elta.  The July 7 surgery removed a tumor from Jay's right temporal lobe, identified by the pathologist as a grade 3 astrocytoma which will require six weeks of radiation treatment and a pill form of chemo.  Thankfully, Jay recovered quickly from an unanticipated and unwelcome virus infection on Sunday, July 18.  Hopefully, after a consultation with an oncologist and radiologist at Johns Hopkins in the near future, Jay will be able to return to near-normal activity.  In an email dated July 20, Jay and Elta wrote, "The news we received today (prognosis) was not exactly what we wanted to hear but neither is it devastating to us.  The Lord has carried us this far and he will continue to carry us on this journey."   Give thanks for an optimistic prognosis for Jay and continue to pray for a full recovery to wholeness of health as he returns to his ministry.
 
UPDATES
Richard Schiedel (June 28, 2010):  It is with sadness that we inform our readers of Richard Schiedel's death on July 3.  Richard, a respected Cambridge, Ontario businessman, had been convalescing in hospital since a horrific head-on traffic collision on May 30.  He died unexpectedly from complications.  He will be greatly missed by his wife Shirley and four children and their families.  Let us remember them in our prayers.
 
Mennonite Disaster Service:  Please uphold the many Mennonite Disaster Service volunteers and staff in prayer as they respond to the numerous disasters besetting our countries.  Remember MDS leadership as they investigate and respond to multiple cleanup and assistance requests.  Canadian leadership reports that this has been one of Canada's worst disaster/extreme weather summers on record.