Joe & Jeanie Stucky
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2002
A rainy evening (02/13/02
Thanks (01/05/02)
Task Accomplished (03/19/02)
Up and running (05/06/02)
Changes (05/28/02)
A room for each class (06/09/02)
Semester Break (06/30/02)
Just the 2 of us (07/19/02)
It's been awhile (08/22/02)
Almost ready (09/10/02)
On the Road (09/23/02)
In Washington (10/08/02)
Back Home (11/15/02)
Christmas Blessings (12/15/02)
Dear Family and Friends,
School's out! We finished our 3rd school year at Alpha on Thursday. Classes ended at noon. In the evening we had our
closing program and kindergarten graduation. The program was well attended by parents and other people from the
community. The kids, under Lori's direction, did an excellent job. It was a blessing to see how confident the kids were as they
presented their parts and the obvious enjoyment they got out of participating in the songs and spoken parts.
Friday we ladies prepared a special Christmas dinner for our staff and their spouses. Eighteen of us enjoyed this meal and time
of fellowship at Ron and Ranelle's home. One of the highlights was watching the video of the program presented the day
before. Tuesday and Wednesday the teachers will report in to clean up their rooms, hear about some plans and changes for
the coming school year from the administration, work on a project or 2 and have a little time for relaxation together before
officially beginning their vacation.
Some of our students are moving away or not coming back for other reasons. Pray with us for 70 students for the new school
year beginning in February. We are still lacking one or 2 teachers as well. Times are bad economically. We've heard of several
private schools in town that are closing down, we assume because of financial difficulties. Pray that God will continue to
provide the finances for us to be able to keep going and have a positive influence in the lives of children, their families and the
community. Kids club had their closing session yesterday. They had games a snack and a swim time. They will be taking a few
weeks break.
We are so thankful for Lindomar and Antonia who are heading up this program and for all of those who are working with
them. They have from 50-60 attending each week.
We have Christmas program practice at church this afternoon and next Sunday the program will be presented. Pray for many
unsaved people to come. Pray also that as they hear God's wonderful plan of salvation explained their hearts will be touched
and their understanding will be opened and some will accept the marvelous gift of salvation.
We wish you and your family a blessed Christmas. Our prayer for you in the new year is "And may the Master pour on the
love so it fills your lives and splashes over on everyone around you, just as it does from us to you." I Thes 3:12
Our love,
Joe and Jeanie
Dear Family and Friends,
Thank you for praying for our trip home. We left Atlanta at 8:40 PM Monday and arrived in São Paulo at 9:00 AM Tues. We
went through immigration and customs in less than an hour and were able to catch an earlier flight to Fortaleza, leaving at 11
AM and arriving about 2:30 PM. (We were scheduled to arrive at 9 PM) We are grateful that we didn't have to open any of
our volumes for customs inspection. They looked at the laptop computer and instrument we were carrying in our handbags and
asked a few questions about the other equipment that we had declared as well as the other things we were bringing in and then
said we could go on. It's wonderful to be back home. The grandchildren had made welcome home signs for us and greeted us
with many hugs and kisses.
Here is a little trivia about our trip:
Miles traveled in the car: 8,200
Different beds slept in: 25
Churches we reported in: 9
Home meetings held: 4
Schools: 1
Other homes in which we visited: lost count
Do you know how many different ways there are to turn on a shower? We don't either, but here are a few of the types that we
encountered in the homes we stayed in. Turn left for on and right for off, turn right for on and left for off, pull for on and push
for off, tilt up and to the left for hot and up and to the right for cold, turn all the way to the right to start and then gradually turn
left to adjust the temperature. Then there are the showers over the tub, that's a different story. Usually one turns the water on
and gets it running in the tub to adjust the temperature then comes the hard part, getting the water to come out of the shower.
Here are a few we encountered: pull a little deal up to start, push down to stop (some automatically drop down when you turn
the water off and the next time you turn the water on it runs in the tub again, others don't. It's usually when I'm not planning to
wash my hair that while I'm bending down to get the water temperature adjusted, it suddendly comes spraying out of the
shower right on top of my head instead of running in the tub.) Others have a a button underneath that you eather push up or
pull down, some have a button to turn left or right. Usually when there is something to read, I have left my glasses in the room
so have to just guess what it says. If you know of any other ways let us know so that next time we come to the states we will
know how to do it.
Now that we're back home, taking a shower doesn't take any thought we do it the same every day, except more often
because of the heat. This morning when we got up the temperature in the house was 82 and the humidity was 66. Now at 11
AM the temperature is up to 87 and the humidity is down to 60. I am sitting at my desk with my little fan running and feeling
very comfortable. I'm sure it's quite a bit hotter outside!
We enjoyed many wonderful meals in homes as well as restaurants. It shows to and now we will have to really cut down on
our eating to see if we can get back to our pre-furlough weight.
Tomorrow is a holiday - the proclamation of the republic. Our church is having an all day outing with another church. We're
looking forward to seeing everyone again. Next week it's back to work! Pray for us to use our time wisely and be used for His
glory. We appreciate your prayers for us as well as your notes of encouragement. Let us know any special requests you would
like us to pray about.
Back in Mossoró,
Joe and Jeanie
Dear Family and Friends,
We are in Washington now, enjoying gorgeous fall weather. The trees are beginning to turn colors, the apples are ripe, the
temperature is pleasant, we're visiting with family, and we're having a great time!
We have driven over 3,000 miles, visited with a lot of friends and relatives and met a lot of new people as well. We are
enjoying the fellowship and we have been encouraged as we see what the Lord is doing in the lives of His people. We have
learned some things that we plan to implement in our ministry when we return to Brazil. We're never to old to learn. We've
picked up some books to help us and also some videos and other helps for teaching English at Alpha.
Many of you have prayed for Jeanie and the problem with a pinched nerve. She is still having some pain, but has improved
greatly. Thank you for praying and please continue to pray for her complete healing and also for protection on the roads as we
travel. Pray also for us to be an encouragement to the people with whom we visit. We are hearing good reports from
Mossoró. Pray for Alpha and plans for the coming year. We have just hired 1 new teacher and need to hire 2 more before the
new school year, which begins in February.
We'll be leaving Washington Friday and heading across Montana and plan to spend a couple of weeks in the Midwest before
starting back home to Brazil. If you want to get in contact with us call us at (217) 553-0171.
Yours for Brazil,
Joe and Jeanie
Dear friends, and family,
Just want to send you a quick note to let you know what we're up to. We had a safe, uneventful trip from Brazil and arrived in
Atlanta ahead of schedule Sept. 13th. Gil Busenitz picked us up and took us to their place. We rested for a day and then
started our trip by car in the car they loaned us. The car is working well and we have enjoyed visiting with friends and family in
Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arizona so far. The roads are excellent, the weather is lovely, the fellowship is
warm and we are having a good time.
I, Jeanie, have been a bit disappointed because I had intended to do some shopping these first couple of weeks, hitting the
summer close out sales to get some clothes to take back to Brazil. Instead I have been sitting around in chiropractor's offices
and using my shopping allowance to pay them for their services. They tell me I have a pinched nerve in my neck. It is affecting
my left shoulder blade and arm down to my elbow. It is extremely painful, but is beginning to ease up. Some of you have been
praying for me and I deeply appreciate it. Please continue to pray for the pain to go away and for me to learn whatever lessons
the Lord wants to teach me through this situation. Joe has had to do all the driving.
Here is our schedule for the coming days.
Sept 24 Fresno, CA
25 Potter Valley CA
26 Brookings, OR
27 Salem, OR
29 Monroe WA
Oct. 06 Ephrata, WA
12 Glendive MT
15 Elgin, ND
17 Pierre SD
18 Huron, SD
28 George, IA
29 Omaha, NE
Nov. 02 Henderson, NE
03 Central City, NE
04 Springfield, IL
08 Madison GA
11 Heading home
Call us at (217) 553-0171
Lovingly,
Joe and Jeanie
PS We don't have a computer with us so don't answer this note. Ron is sending it from our computer in Brazil!
Dear family and friends,
This will be our last note to you before we leave for a 2 month furlough. As we have been preparing to leave, it seems that
every time we turn around something else breaks down or goes wrong. First it was the water pump, then the computer, then
the washer, next the water backed up in the bathroom drain. At the moment each of these things seem to be back to normal.
We have our suitcases packed, almost. I still have to do a minor repair job on one item of clothing and have a few other things
yet to cross off my list. Joe has already gone to bed so I'll make this note really short.
Just would like to ask you to pray for us as we travel across the great USA. We will be visiting with many friends and
relatives, representing the Christ is Life Church, The Alpha Chrisian school and more importantly, Jesus Christ. Pray for safety,
good health, and that we may be an encouragement to others and be encouraged as well.
We are thankful for those who are covering for us while we are gone. This includes Ellie, who just arrived in Brazil last week.
She is a new missionary and will be teaching my English classes at Alpha during the 2 months we are gone. After that she will
begin her formal language study. Meanwhile she will be living with a Brazilian teacher who knows very little English. It will be a
stretching experience for both Ellie and Ivonete. Pray for them.
In Christ,
Jeanie for Joe too
P.S. While we are in the US we will not have an e-mail address We can be reached at: (217) 553-0171
Dear Family and Friends,
They say time goes fast when you're having fun. We must really be having fun because time is just flying!
Classes are going well at Alfa this semester, though not without problems. Ron is acting director while Ken is gone in the US
and he has doing an excellent job. He has had to deal with some difficult situations which have taken place. We are thankful
for your prayers for this ministry. Continue to pray that Alfa would be used to bring the children to the Lord as well as their
parents and other family members. Also pray that the administration and staff would grow in our love for the Lord and for one
another for His glory.
Our Sunday school attendance has been up recently, especially in the adolescents' class. This same group has been getting
together after church on Sunday nights as well. One of the gals who works with them said there are getting to be so many of
them, we hardly know what to do with them. I guess we'll have to make it more boring so not so many come. She was only
teasing, of course. Instead she has planned some presentations for them to be involved in at the evening services.
Over a year ago we turned Kid's club over to the Brazilians and they are doing a great job. Last Saturday Joe went to take
some pictures and they had over 60 kids.
We're making plans to go to the states around the middle of September for 2 months. This time around we plan to go to the
west coast to visit our family, supporting churches and other friends that we didn't get to see on our last visit in 2000. We'll
also spend a little time in the midwest. We won't get to see all of you, but hopefully if we miss you this time, we'll get to see
you next time.
We appreciate your prayers for us during these busy days. Drop us a line and let us know how we can pray for you.
In His service,
Joe and Jeanie
Dear Family and Friends,
Ever since Ron and Ranelle moved to Mossoró, 2 1/2 years ago they have been living upstairs. We fixed it into a tiny
apartment for them. Today they moved out into their spacious new house. I couldn't believe all the things they brought out of
those 3 rooms! Only because they are both very organized were they able to keep such a tiny place neat and orderly for all
these months.
During the construction of the house, Caleb has been referring to it as "Daddy's house". Today as one thing after another
disappeared from the apartment, he seemed rather perplexed as he said, "the sofa is all gone, Caleb's books are all gone, the
fan is all gone." I'm sure that when he discovers all of these things in "Daddy's house" it will be Mommy and Caleb's house too.
Ken and Lori and family who live next door but in the same walled in yard as we do with just a picket fence between us are
gone on vacation, so here we are just the 2 of us. Don't feel too sorry for us, Ken and Lori and girls are due home from
vacation tomorrow and Ron and Ranelle's house is only 5 1/2 blocks from here so we'll still see them often.
We have one more week of vacation before classes begin and many more projects to complete. The lady who helps in our
home has been gone most of this time. Her father has a tumor and the Drs. here in Mossoró sent him to Natal, 4 hours from
here to a Dr. there. They have made 3 or 4 trips there, run several tests, visited with the Dr. several times etc. but still have not
determined for sure whether the tumor is malignant or not or how or when they will treat it. This has been very difficult for the
whole family as they play the waiting and wondering game. Evaristo is not saved. His wife is and is a member of our church.
We have been praying for his salvation for years. You have probably prayed for him too. Please continue to pray for him to be
saved and for his physical health as well. Since he became ill, he has quit drinking and smoking, and that's good, but of course
we know that won't get him to heaven.
Thank you for your prayers. We appreciate being able to count on you.
Joe and Jeanie
Dear Family and Friends,
Our day started early today. We had Bible study at 6:30 AM. It's usually at 8:30 but we had to change our schedule for today
so everyone could get home in time to watch Brazil's soccer team win the World Cup.
We are enjoying having our Sunday school and church services at the Alpha facilities. Visitors have come each Sunday both
for church and Sunday school. Pray with us for continued new interest.
Friday ended the first semester of school at Alpha. We have a 4 week break now and second semester begins July 29th. We
are thankful for the progress that has been made during this semester in getting things up to standards legally. This process,
however has increased our monthly expenses considerably with taxes etc. that need to be paid. Please pray with us for God to
provide the funds we need for operating expenses. If you are interested in helping meet this need, either with a one time gift or
by contributing to the scholarship fund write and let us know and we will inform you how you can participate.
Have a happy 4th of July,
Jeanie for Joe too
Dear Family and Friends,
Thank you for praying for our first service and the inauguration of the covered sports court at Alpha. We had been praying that
it wouldn't rain because there is a space of about 12 feet between the top of the wall and the roof. If it had rained hard like it
did 2 nights earlier, it would have been very difficult to keep the instruments, sound equipment and the people dry.
The Lord gave us a beautiful evening and many of our unsaved friends came out for the special program. The gospel message
was clearly presented. Pray with us that many of our friends will come back again and for the Holy Spirit to draw them to
accept the gift of salvation.
We all enjoyed having the Appalachian hand bell choir with us from Thursday noon until Monday morning when they boarded
the bus for the last time and headed to Fortaleza to catch their plane back to the US. While they were in Mossoró they
presented their program in 4 places. Many people heard the gospel during these days.
Today we will be having Sunday school at Alpha for the first time. I had a meeting with all the SS teachers last night and
showed them where their rooms are. Today some of the young people will be helping me show the students to their rooms. It's
exciting that for the first time in the existence of our church, each class will have a room in which to meet! Pray for us to work
out all the details as our church shares the facilities with the school.
Have you put our new address in your address book yet? It's jnj@stucky.net Drop us a note!
In His service,
Joe and Jeanie
Grandkids corner:
While Jessica and Alicia were staying with us Alicia prayed every night for the men who were working on the "skort skort".
God knew she was referring to the "sports court" and He did protect the men and helped them with their work. If all goes well
the surface of the floor will be finished by the end of this week! Thank you so much for praying for the completion of this
project.
Dear Family and Friends,
We've had quite a few changes recently. For example, did you notice that our e-mail address changed again? This time it's
jnj@stucky.net We plan to keep that address for a awhile so delete the others from your address book and put this one in.
Sunday our church is going to have a big change. We're moving to the Alpha campass and Sunday we'll have our first service
there. Joe and his crew have been working diligently at getting everything ready for the inauguration service of the Alpha sports
court. He's disappointed because they weren't able to get the smooth surface of the court done, but other than that the
construction is pretty well done.
Ken and Lori have been traveling for 2 weeks with the handbell choir from Appalachian Bible College. They'll be arriving here
in Mossoró on Thursday and will be presenting programs in 4 different places here. They'll give their program at our
inauguration service Sunday night. We're really looking forward to having them with us. Pray that God will use these programs
to impact our city for the Lord.
We have quite a bit to do yet to get ready for the program on Sunday. Ron will be especially busy getting the wiring done to
set up the sound system. Joe is building a special portable cabinet on wheels to house the system. It will have to be moved
inside after each service until a more permanent arrangement can be made. Pray for them to get it all ready and for it to be
functioning well in time for our meeting on Sunday.
Jessica and Alicia have been staying with us for these 2 weeks while Ken and Lori are traveling with the choir. That's quite a
change for us! We're not used to keeping up with a 5 year old and a 9 year old, but it has been a delightful experience, for the
most part.
We've had some good opportunities to talk about some pretty serious subjects. Last night in our devotions from "Keys for
Kids", we read about forgiveness. Today at noon I overheard them having a discussion and Alicia said "Jessica, I'm sorry I did
that to you, will you forgive me?" I don't remember what the offense was, but I was glad that she had applied the principle.
Pray for safety, good health and strength for Ken and Lori and the choir as they finish up their tour. Sunday night is their
last service and on Monday they head back to the states.
Drop us a line and let us know what's new with you.
Keeping up with the changes,
Joe and Jeanie
Dear Family and Friends,
Thank you very much for praying for safety for the Alpha playing court project. The Big Task was accomplished last week.
We rented a truck with a hoist and operator. The crew started Monday morning and worked all day, Monday, Tuesday and
until 8:30 AM Wednesday . If they hadn't been delayed by rain, they would have probably finished Tuesday afternoon. They
installed the 7 trusses, weighing 800 lb each and the twenty-four, 250 lb. rafters. Each truss and each rafter had to be welded
into place. We are very thankful that it was all accomplished safely. Check out the picture at the end of this letter. There is
some work yet to be done before we are ready to install the metal roofing. We would appreciate your continued prayers for
safety as the men work on the high scaffolds. Pray that things will move ahead quickly and that the project, including the floor
will be finished by the end of April.
Things are going fairly well at school in spite of health problems among the staff members. Our secretary was out for at least a
week with a virus. One teacher sprained her ankle and missed several days. Last week one of the teachers had surgery that
willkeep her away from school for at least 3 weeks. Some of the teachers of special classes had "the virus" as well and missed
someclasses. We praise the Lord for those who have covered for the ones who have been absent. We have 36 students
registered.
Thank you for participating in our ministry with your prayers and gifts. You are a big encouragement to us. We also appreciate
those of you who take time to send us a note and let us know what's going on in your lives.
Busy about the King's Business,
Joe and Jeanie
Dear Family and Friends,
After some time out, we’re up and running again. We had some problems with viruses on our computer. Thankfully, Ron was
able to figure out how to get them off the computer. About the same time this was going on we had gotten notice that our
server would be going out of business in 3 months, so we began making plans for getting a different server. Suddenly with no
further notice at the end of one month we discovered that our server had closed up shop and moved out of town, leaving us
with no e-mail. That, too has been remedied so here is our new address (for now). jjstucky@uol.com.br
If you sent us any mail since April 15th that we didn’t answer, we probably didn’t receive it. Please resend anything important
that you sent us during that time. Thank you very much for your patience and understanding.
The court project at Alpha continues. The roof tiles are all secured in place except for the peak which needs to be done yet.
We praise the Lord for safety thus far. Pray that the remaining part will be finished soon and without accident as well. The
floor will be the next big phase of this project.
Sunday Joe will begin preaching a series on the letters to the seven churches in the book of Revelation. Pray that these
messages would speak to our hearts.
In June several of our Sunday school teachers will be switching classes. We're excited that we have 2 husband-wife teams
who are teaching - one in the adolescent class and the other in the primary class.
Looking forward to hearing from you,
Joe and Jeanie
Dear Family and Friends,
This morning we ended our adolescent retreat which started Sunday night after church. We had 13 kids here along with 3
counselors and some other helpers. Nine of the kids are members of our adolescent Sunday school class and the other 4 were
visitors. Everyone had a good time. They were cooperative with the program and all chipped in and helped with dishes etc.
We would like for you to pray for Charles who is 15. He accepted the Lord at Kid's Club several months back and has been
coming to church and Sunday school regularly ever since. He is the only Christian in his home and he had a lot of
questions which he shared with one of the counselors. Pray for him to continue to grow and to honor the Lord with his
life.
Our new school year at Alfa started January 30th. We have 32 students registered so far. Many of the schools in Mossoró
don't begin until next week so we expect there will be more students registering at Alfa too. There has also been a lot of
sickness going around which may have kept some from registering. We would still like to see our student body increase to at
least 40 this year.
Between Ken's, Ron's and our family we have all had our turns with flu and colds during the last month. It's a nasty flu that has
been going around and keeps you down for a while. Fortunately, through it all, at least one of the ladies has been up and able
to get meals for those who felt up to eating anything.
Joe's construction of furnishings for the school has been put on hold while he and his crew work on the covered playing court.
They have built 7 trusses which need to be put up to support the metal roofing sheets which they plan to use. Pray for safety as
they hoist up these heavy trusses and the roofing sheets and fasten it all down.
We are thankful that we have had good rains so far this year. Everything has greened up, the dust has settled, water levels
have come up and the temperatures are a bit cooler.
Trust this finds you all well and enjoying your walk with the Lord,
Jeanie for the 2 of us
Dear Family and Friends,
Thank you to all of you who sent us Christmas greetings by e-mail. It was really good to hear from
you. Hopefully sometime before the 4th of July I will be able to send you a personal response
(oops! I just got started with my letter yesterday, when Ron came in to help me with another
program on the computer. Before I realized what had happened I sent you the letter I had started.
I'll finish it now.)
We appreciate your prayers on our behalf and the ministry in which we are involved.
Friday Ron, Ranelle and Caleb arrived back home in Brazil. They're glad to be here and we're glad to
have them back.
Monday, Jan 7th, we'll all be heading to Fortaleza for our mission retreat. We are looking forward to
having a good time of fellowship
with the other missionaries, time to rest and relax, and a time for mutual encouragement.
When we get back, it will be full speed ahead on the preparations for the new school year at Alpha.
We start classes the 30th. So
far, we're still lacking 2 teachers and many students and financial partners. Joe is still building
furniture. We haven't been able to
get started on the covered play area yet, but have gotten some of the materials. We also still need to
make some playground
equipment. Pray for us to have everything ready and in place when we need it.
There will be some changes in our junior Sunday school department starting the end of January. Some
teachers will be taking time
off, others will be returning to the class room and we have 3 new ones who will begin the teacher's
training course and will be placed
with experienced teachers for practical training. Pray that the children who are saved will grow in the
Lord and that those
who don't know the Lord, will be saved and, in turn, reach their families.
We appreciate your prayers and enjoy hearing from you.
Jeanie (for Joe too)