Still here in Egypt ...

Typical highway check

Egypt is back in the news, so we are long overdue to update our blog.  As you have no doubt seen on the news, regaining that control is proving to be a challenge.  There has been less petty theft on the streets in the last year, so that has been better.  However, driving to the Sinai and western desert is still restricted by the Egyptian government as they step up security operations.  The US embassy and auxiliary organizations like US A.I.D. do not let their families travel outside of Cairo, which affects youth and church retreats.  We still do not feel in danger in day-to-day living here, but I think we will all look forward to improved airport security conditions in the immediate future!  Sort of puts the extra time and hassle of airport security into perspective!  The greater atmosphere of restrictiveness still makes for a somber and less active existence for many expats.  It was also unusually hot in August-October this year, and now things are quickly cooling toward winter temperatures.  So not a very long autumn!

Cairo sunset

     Our church and school numbers are still down.  Both are nearly the same size as last year.  However in the church, it seems our demographic continues to shift to a few less oil workers as declining oil prices translate into layoffs and fewer people coming.  Also, we are in an upward cycle of an increasing nationalization trend in many industries here, so that is also putting downward pressure on the number of expats.  Also, visas are harder to obtain.  Many people have been here for years on a tourist visa to do their compassion and service work for which they receive no salary.  Now almost all these volunteers only receive visa renewals for three months and some have been refused renewal completely.  This has made for many nervous people.  Also many rules for organizations that were previously not enforced are now being enforced.  So it’s a new landscape for us, but just part of the cycle of things here over many decades.  We cling to our conviction that God is still in control and still at work no matter what circumstances we face.

Family of six out for a drive

     At church, though people feel the restrictions and so stay at home more, we have still had to implement changes.  We reduced our senior staff with layoffs and reductions in hours for the first time in our time here.  Most notable was the lay off of our worship pastor as we have transitioned to an all-volunteer model of worship leaders.  God has brought new leaders forward, but it makes for adjustments of workload and changing how we do ministry.  So we feel the stress of change and seek to go where God is sending us.

Pissouri Beach, Cyprus

     Karan is still loving being head of Student Support Services Department K-12 (special education + new English language learners).  She has been able to help implement a more unified approach across the divisions of elementary, middle school, and high school.  She has been able to advocate for inclusion of an additional teacher in some classrooms with LSS & ELL students, which then becomes a team approach in teaching.  This has worked very well for her in the middle school, so it is the opportunity to broaden this “best practice” approach in other classrooms.  The changes are making a difference, though like most changes in life, it comes with some adjustments.

     Then on 29 August 2015, Karan stepped off her mountain bike on a hill in the wadi and slipped and broke her fibula just above her ankle.  She was in a cast for seven weeks, and is now in an air cast for another few weeks.  She has had to use crutches and a wheelchair to go to school and church.  It has obviously made a large impact on our lives as we are not able to do all the things we once did.  Karan is now in physical therapy to heal the ligaments and tendons as the bone is mostly healed.

Travis, Karan, Alex in Spokane

     Our three sons are all doing well.  Travis is now a general manager of his own Verizon store in the Northgate area of Seattle since August 2015.  We were able to stay with Travis for several days while in Spokane in July.  He loves being able to shape the culture of his own store, and has made great improvements in customer service.  Brett is now working in graphic design-web site interface for a cancer support group in Seattle and just moved into an efficiency apartment by himself a few minutes away from Travis.  Alex is in his senior year at Gonzaga in marketing and international business.  It has been an extra busy semester with lots of reading and papers, plus his part-time job in a sporting goods store.  He had an internship with Sherwin Williams paint in Spokane last summer, so we saw him a lot, especially when he vacationed with us in Sunriver, Oregon.  Brett then joined the three of us in our second

Alex + Brett bungee jumping at Mt. Hood

 vacation week on Mount Hood.  We had lots of opportunity to bike and hike during the summer.  This will be Alex’s last year to come to Egypt this Christmas.

     In addition to summer vacation in Oregon, we also used the September holiday to go to Cyprus.  It wasn’t quite the active hiking, biking, and touring vacation we had planned, but we were able to sit on the beach (with crutches) for five days for a last bit of summer!
     That's all for now!  We would love to hear from you!