November was a busy and full month!  So much praise to begin with –

My beautiful Ioana passed her exam for her medical degree!!  Praise God!!!  She was tested over everything she had learned in her six years of medical school.  She is now D-na Doctor Arbanas (Pirvu) Ioana.  I am so proud of her.  It has been a joy to watch her on this journey – to watch her depend on the Lord – and to give Him the glory and honor for every step.

This following is an update from October –

Praising God that I made it safely from Brasov to Norton on my flight home October 4!  It was a little rough over the Atlantic, but otherwise without incident.

Update from the month of September –

3000 kg. of potatoes were delivered to Barza Mica, along with 700 kg of carrots and 700 kg of onions.

Nineteen boxes of beautiful clothing arrived from some precious ladies at First Romanian Baptist Church of Atlanta – and were warmly received at Albina and Barza Mica Orphanages

It has been a wonderful – fruitful – fruitless, at times – joyful – heart-breaking – interesting past month in my beloved Romania.

Risking sounding like a broken record, I am thrilled to be back here in ‘the other land that I love’ once again – that the Lord has allowed me to be His hands and feet, eyes and heart among these people whom He planted in my heart seventeen years ago.  I praise God for a safe and uneventful trip all the way from 19 Berry Street in Norton, MA to Str. Frasinuilui , Nr. 1, Bl. D2, Sc. B, Ap. 6.  In Brasov, Romania.  (How’s that for an address?!)

I am excited to be returning to ‘the other land that I love’ (Romania!) on July 6 – landing in Frankfurt, Germany on the 7^th – and then, to Bucharest – and finally up into the Transylvanian Alps to Brasov.  Lord willing, I will be hands-on in the work until the first week of October.  I can hardly wait.

I am so excited to be headed back to ‘the other land that I love’, Lord willing, on July 6.  I miss my babies!   I miss my kids!   This summer will mark seventeen years in Romania – and I truly feel after all this time that I am their ‘Mama Dawn’.  In a couple of weeks, or so, when it begins to warm up, the big kids at Barza Mica sit on the little rock wall outside the orphanage and stare up into the sky looking for planes.  Every time they see one, they say, “I wonder if this is the one that is bringing ‘Mama Dawn’?  Oh, I can hardly wait to get there – and love and hug them all.  And to be able to minister to our little Severe/Profound ones at Albina!

It has been a busy first month back in the States –

Thirty-nine year old Alina, who has non-Hodgkin’s’ lymphoma for the second time in her face endured days of painful stem-cell removal in preparation for cancer treatment. The doctors couldn’t find enough healthy stem cells to set aside and freeze, so Alina had to have a complete blood-transfusion. Her test results have been sent to a medical center in the States for a second opinion. As of this writing, there is no word from them. Please keep praying over this precious godly woman for God’s best for her and her family.

Six weeks in my beloved Romania passed like a flash before my eyes.  That was a result of being extremely busy at both orphanages, Barza Mica and Albina, and also, without having even one day off.  I arrived in Brasov in February just in time to help with some dire financial needs at Barza.  Praise God for His perfect timing.  More reconstruction needed to be done on the building in order to pass inspection – and only  five days after I arrived!!  We – that’s you and I – were able to provide financially what needed to be done.  And, Barza passed inspection!  We prayed – pleaded with the Lord to give us at least a three-year approval.  We’d worked so diligently towards this for two years.  And then He surprised us, as only He can.  He gave us a five-year approval!  Praise God from Whom all blessings flow!!  Also, I have such respect for the director who never gave up the fight to keep the casa for ‘our’ kids.  She is an amazing lady!

On a personal note, I was so blessed to be able to spend two months in Georgia to be with my 4 beautiful grandchildren there – Isabelle, Noah, Lily and Rowan.  It was the first time that I had felt like a real grandmother, and not just a guest or a visitor.  I love being Mammie!  It was also great getting out of the snow and bitter cold in MA.   I then, spent two weeks with my little grandsons, Liam and Jace, in Michigan.  I am blessed.