Carelinks | Riga Winter Feeding Scheme | Latvia
Our brothers, sisters and friends thawing out with hot coffee and tea
We have continued the Winter feeding project throughout the Winter thanks to a stream of brethren and sisters from the UK, France and Canada. We have provided meals and Bible teaching at least 5 days / week, along with an hour’s Bible teaching each day. Most of those who attend are baptized. Heavy snowfall and very low temperatures have been experienced, and we continue to distribute walking sticks, firewood, clothing, medicines and other assistance. Pictured right you can see brother Maxim giving a walking stick to sister Medina [‘Aunty Masha’]. Walking the icy streets and pavements, which are often not cleared, is a nightmare for elderly folks and those unsteady on their feet.
Our elderly Sister tucked up in Cindy’s fur coat
Pictured above you can see Cindy giving her heavy fur Winter overcoat to a sister. It weighs really very heavy, and brings back memories of when dear Cindy first bravely came out to Siberia, Russia in 2001 dressed in a blue jacket which was thought by loving friends and family in Australia to be ‘very warm’ and ‘just what you’ll need out there in the cold’. Russians wouldn’t even have used that for an anorak in Winter! Cindy experienced temperatures down to -51 C that Winter in Siberia, and Duncan bought her that coat second hand from an old woman out in Yakutsk. It remained as a kind of keepsake, but a rather heavy and cumbersome one, and Cindy never uses it. But it’s a testament to 15 years of dedicated service to the Lord by Cindy in this hard land.
Temperatures here have been very low, with significant winds and humidity, meaning that the -20 C temperatures ‘feel like’ far lower than that. With the night shelters open only at 8 p.m. and throwing people out by 8 a.m., our brethren and sisters have to be out all day, or take shelter in places like waiting rooms which are open to the public. Most of our number are middle aged or elderly, having worked during the previous regime but now given no or very little pension because of their ethnicity. Or others simply who cannot afford to rent or heat property, who are therefore driven to the night shelter existence. This really is a genuinely needy segment of society which the Lord has led us to. Jim and Ann Barton continue to assist greatly with the work. But we are all worked off our feet. Our folk arrive ever earlier in these temperatures and take about half an hour to thaw out on entry to the hall. Please remember that our heating costs at the hall can come to nearly 1000 Euros / month in extreme temperatures. The on costs are high, but the work done is absolutely necessary and relevant, and the welfare aspect dovetails seamlessly with the preaching of the Gospel and further teaching of the many who are baptized.
On New Year’s Eve, about 110-120 came, Cindy’s welfare packages were wonderful, plus we gave them a special seasonal meal... (pictured below). Sincere thanks to all who contributed to enable this. We read Revelation 21 and 22 according to the Bible Companion and reflected for an hour on the awesome, breathtaking reality that is ahead, eternally, for we weak, cold, tired, aging, handicapped, frail and weak mortals. Please do take a view of the video and enter into the spirit of these dear believers and the work here (see page 18 for video link). And really, do consider coming over and assisting or otherwise supporting the work.
You will notice in some of the pictures that several of our number have walking sticks. Quite a few others are in need of them- many have suffered strokes, or with lack of medical care have been unable to fix breakages or sprains, resulting in mobility and balance problems. Such problems of basic stability when walking are made many times worse by the fact that many pavements aren’t free of ice, and at these very low temperatures the ice is like glass and very slippery. We are providing walking sticks and related aids, health care is not free and so when you have no pension, it’s hard to get such things. So you are welcome to donate towards the provision of such assistance.
Pictured above: Entering the hall frozen; brother Vyacheslav [pictured with his bag of possessions] was once a guard on the Berlin Wall in Germany, and he gave a lovely reading of Revelation 21 at our New Year's gathering.
Taking free clothing; note the brothers with walking sticks [and they must carry what they possess in bags as they can’t leave bags at the night shelters].
We’re so grateful to all who enable this effort, and especially to Bro & Sis Jim and Anne Barton from Canada who worked for two months at the Centre. The strong winds and moisture in the air mean that temperatures such as -26 feel like far worse than that. Mucus freezes in the nose and breathing is difficult for many of our folk; they have to be out on the streets much of the day as the night shelters work from 8 p.m. up to 8 a.m. only.
We’ve also been buying and delivering firewood, grateful for Brother Maxim’s assistance. Some of our brothers and sisters live in property which they are effectively squatting in, and electric bills haven’t been paid so there is no electricity. There are not many hours of daylight at this time; it’s hard to capture the darkness, lit at best by a candle; and the dampness and general cold. Using flash photography makes everything seem different; note in the photo below our sister wears full outdoor clothing indoors all the time.
Bro Maxim with Sis Brigita in her ‘home’. Sis Brigita was found squatting by the owner but as she had gone to such efforts to make it homely and tidy, for now the owner has allowed her to stay as a caretaker. God’s providence in action.
There have been baptisms most weeks
Here then are Jim and Anne’s reports: This year’s mission began as my wife Anne and I arrived in Riga in mid-November and is winding up now in early January. Once again it's been a very rich experience as we provided a hot meal to the poor, the homeless and indigent of Riga, through the Carelinks Winter Welfare Program. While these people are in dire need of respite from the cold (-21 today) and some physical nourishment for their souls, they are also provided with a daily Bible Study to nourish their Spirit. Best of all there’s been several baptisms while we’ve been here, praise God. Our responsibilities have mainly been to provide the meals each day from Sunday to Thursday. A typical day starts with a trip to the local market to acquire the ingredients of that day’s menu, most of the afternoon to prepare it, serve it at 6pm and then clean up. We are tired at the end of the day but it’s a good kind of “tired” that comes from feeling your time and energy have been well spent. How often while serving the food we hear appreciative comments that truly lifts up our hearts. So often I can only think that “there by the grace of God, go I”. It's hard to receive the abundant blessings we’ve enjoyed in our prosperous lives without feeling a need to give back in a meaningful way, that reflects positively upon the Lord.
Bro Jim presents Bro Igor with a stick and explains how to alter the height of it
It’s not all work either. While here we’ve been able to enjoy the rich Latvian culture. It’s a uniquely European experience that has further enriched out lives and enhanced our stay. If you’re able to free up some time, please do consider participating in this wonderful project. The program could be extended further into the year with additional manpower. We are so pleased to be a part of this mission and would recommend it to anyone. You will never forget the time spent here, we know we never will. To learn more contact ‘Carelinks’ at info@carelinks.net . Bro Jim Barton
Kingston, Ontario, Canada
This is our second trip to Riga to support the Bible Centre and we stayed for 8 weeks this time rather than the 4 weeks on our first trip. We serve soup on Sunday for lunch after the Memorial Service and on Monday through Thursday for supper, after an hour of social time with coffee and an hour of Bible talks. We try to offer both spiritual and physical food as well as a warm place to be for a couple of hours each day. A longer stay gives us the benefit of getting to know many of our guests a little better.
One of my most memorable experiences was when we were trying to find a way to better serve the soup, bread and dessert item to streamline the process. Jim and I figured out that we could use a longer table to serve and a smaller table a short distance away to collect dirty dishes and spoons. We then had to convey this idea to the Russians that help set up for us. We found ourselves explaining this change to our Latvian sister Anna who speaks English as well. She spoke Latvian to sister Sondra who speaks Latvian and Russian and Sondra translated into Russian for the other helpers. Once all the Russians heard, then they all had opinions and started chattering in Russian. Meanwhile Jim and I just stood there stunned while all this went on. It reminded us of an old game called ‘Telephone’ where you are all in a circle and someone starts a message around the circle. Each person hears the message then repeats it to the person on the other side and when the last person gets the message they repeat it out loud. Usually there is much laughter since the message often sounds nothing like the original. It all worked out and the new set-up has been very functional but I will never forget that night. Since one of my concerns before we came the first time was how to manage when we knew nothing of Latvian or Russian, it was quite a relief to find there was almost always a way to communicate - one of my favorites is to find a young person and ask if they speak English - many learn it in school and enjoy the opportunity to practice.
I have to confess that most of my concerns about coming here have never been a problem and the rewards are overwhelming. I had no idea that this trip would change my outlook in so many ways. I thank God continually for the experience and the spiritual growth he has brought into my life.
Sis Anne Barton - Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Enter into the spirit of Riga Bible Centre ~ watch our New Year’s video: https://youtu.be/s72HjjFHR-A
