Bob – Page 3 – Notes from Bob and Ellen

This and that from March to June

Bob date 24132

I only had my cell phone with me while birding so flowers instead of birds 🙂

Connect Week

I have been in Peachtree City, Georgia this week at AIM’s US headquarters. Ellen arrived back from Kenya on Sunday and I drove up from Florida to meet her here. We’ve met some great people and I have enjoyed reconnecting with friends.

Isaiah

Our grandson Isaiah, who was born in March (14 weeks early) was released from NICU in Orlando on Monday. Everything looks good at this point. For more about this young fighter see Craig and Laura’s blog “A Way in the Wild“.

Next grandchild

So Ellen and I have been together this week after her two and a half weeks in Kenya but tomorrow we head in different directions! She is going to Albuquerque to be with our daughter Ginny who is expecting our 7th grandchild any day now. Actually, labor will be induced on Sunday if nothing happens before then.

ECHO — Climate change initiative and crop selection tool

One thing we have been working on at ECHO recently is how to help small-scale farmers deal with uncertain yearly weather and long-term climate change. We worked up a proposal to develop a strategy for tracking changes in any country. We also plan to develop a crop selection tool that would indicate which crops would be best suited for a specific location, both at the present and in the future based on reliable models of climate shifts. Of course all of that depends on funding!

Birds

For several years now I have taken up the “June Challenge” to see how many birds one can find in a specific county in the month of June — basically the worst month for birding in Florida. So far I’ve seen 16 in Lee County (haven’t had much time for birding there yet) and 30 in Fayette County, Georgia where I’ve been this week.

Death and Birth

My 88 year old mother-in-law passed away on Sunday, March 6th after a long decline. Although her passing was expected it is still hard for Ellen, her sisters and especially my father-in-law Bob Wheeler. They had been married for 65 years, raising the three girls and enjoying their six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Speaking of great-grandchildren, another was born prematurely the next day (March 7th, 2016). Our grandson Isaiah Owen Slezak appeared weighing 2 pounds, 4 ounces and mostly breathing on his own. His remarkable story can be found on Craig and Laura’s blog “A Way in the Wild”.

And then that evening my dear Aunt Liz (Mom’s sister) went to her eternal reward after emergency surgery for extensive cancer that had remained undiagnosed. She was 85 years old. I was unable to be with the family for her memorial service because I was, of course, in Ohio with Ellen and her family.

What a start to an eventful week! Ellen and I drove up to Columbus, Ohio and along with grieving for her mother we enjoyed really good times with the family. Our other three kids and two of our grandchildren were able to join us there.

As the years roll on we will continue to experience and embrace more of these life events.

2016 starts with surgery

On January 27th I had surgery to repair an abdominal hernia. Pretty straight forward, not serious. It was supposed to be outpatient but ended up being a little more involved and so I spent the night at Cape Coral Hospital. The staff took great care of me there and then it was Ellen’s turn when we got home Thursday. I am blessed to have her by my side through these adventures that come with aging (I’m 65, Ellen is younger :-).

I was able to work from home most of the next week and return to a normal routine at ECHO that Friday (Feb. 5th). I’m still limited in what I can (should!) pick up but otherwise back to great health.

Reflections:

grateful for excellent medical care and adequate health insurance
grateful for general good health
Ellen’s bout with cancer and this remind us we are mortal and aging
We are happy to be able to continue in full-time ministry at ECHO and with AIM

The 2015 ECHO Annual Conference

Full title “ECHO International Agriculture Conference 2015”. Last week (Nov. 17th to 19th) was the 22^nd annual conference. Over 200 delegates listened to plenary speakers, attended workshops and got to know each other. Many have been to a number of conferences and so it feels a bit like a family reunion!

It is the only time during the year that we here in Florida are able to be in the same room with so many people in our global network. I’d like to tell you about one of those people.

Roy and his family have served in the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire) and the Central African Republic for almost 40 years. In their mission work they assist local partners in meeting the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of rural communities He has planted thousands of trees and has been through several coups and evacuations.

He found out about ECHO in the early years of the organization, back in the 80’s. He has read most of our development notes and technical notes, he has received seeds, and we have even sent live trees to him in Africa. He always attends this annual conference when he is in the US on home assignment.

In turn Roy has shared his knowledge and experience with ECHO. Three of our interns have served with he and his family after their internships here in Florida. And Roy has spent time at ECHO as a missionary in residence.

He shared at our closing banquet that part of the purpose of home assignment or furlough is to spend time with people that support their ministry and to spend time with family. And Roy feels that ECHO is family and so he must come see us whenever possible.

Even though Ellen and I would rather be in Africa we count it a wonderful privilege to be able to provide information and give advice to people like Roy and his family who are living and serving in communities around the world.