Bill & Linda at Tiwi College

2008-12-13T00:14:00.000-08:00

Laif FM station manager Tony in Wewak, Papua new Guinea
Linda and a staff friend enjoying a time at a beach for a picnic lunch after a football game.

Future Tiwi College students

A photo of the boys along with a team from Alice Springs after a game. Of course our boys won!

At Long Last

2008-12-13T00:08:00.000-08:00

Yes… It has been a while since we have added to our blog. We apologize for the delay.
We are in the Darwin area with some friends at the moment in preparation to fly out on Saturday night (tonight) for a 5 week break in the USA. What a drastic change that will be! We are in the wet season which is also the hottest time of the year with daily heavy rains and thunderstorms. Living on the island this year has been an experience we will surely never forget! What a privilege it has been to serve with Tiwi College even though this first year of pioneering the college has been tough on all the staff. Some staff have been talking about designing a shirt that says, “I survived the 1st year of Tiwi College”.
We finished the year in what we would call “victory”! The students, school and staff have come a long way since the beginning of the year. We have especially seen the students come a long way. Many have improved drastically in their literacy skills along with their behavioral and social skills. Linda and I feel we are now connecting with most of our boys in the house. It was very encouraging to actually get hugs from some of them as they left for home for the Christmas school holidays. The last day of school was a grand faunally of football, people and food. The Hawthorn Hawks, an AFL team that recently won the Australia Football league championship were there to spend time with the students. They were actually water boys to the boys as they played football. How cool is that! Tiwi College did go on to win the game which added to the excitement. There were many locals from the communities there for the game and there was a fantastic BBQ to finish off the days events. Of course we are all ready for a break and need to recharge for the year to come. Linda and I will be returning back to Tiwi College on January 19th 2009. Until then we are very much looking forward to a restful time with family and friends.
Papua New Guinea...
During our free time at Tiwi College I have been in close touch with Tony the station manager of “Laif FM” a radio station we pioneered in Wewak, Papua New Guinea. I continue to be very proud of Tony as he leads and grows in the work there. We have been assisting him to obtain some new broadcast equipment which will enable the station to transmit a much greater distance allowing many more thousands of people to receive the broadcast. The new equipment should be installed in a matter of a few weeks and a celebration is planned where the Prime Minister of PNG will switch on the new equipment.
I’ve been hearing some very distressing news from Tony over the last few days concerning large waves pounding the coast. I’ve noticed this story has been carried in the news internationally. These waves hit Wewak last Monday afternoon about 3 or 4:00. Many of the waves were several meters high and destroyed many homes, businesses and town infrastructure. The hospitable was especially hard hit and had to be closed. The patients were all sent home. The local Toyota dealer was destroyed along with businesses including a couple of hotels and restaurants and the wharf where the town’s supply of goods and fuel are received. A hotel/ restaurant where Linda and I used to visit for a meal named “The Windjammer” is gone! Wewak is experiencing a very difficult time. Please pray for this situation and for the many people who have been displaced through this tragedy.

Love and Merry Christmas …Bill & Linda

RAIN!

2008-09-25T05:40:00.000-07:00

Yes… RAIN!!!! We received the first rain we have had in about 5 months! We were alarmed by the rain in the middle of the night as it roared on our tin roof but what a wonderful sound it was! The dust conditions over the past couple of months have been unbelievable. Often when driving down the roads (all the roads are dirt off campus) one cannot see the road when another vehicle passes by going the opposite direction. Often we have needed to stop on the side of the road until the dust clears. The Islands here (and all of the Northern Territory) have a very distinct wet and dry season. The dry season runs from May to about November or December and then the wet season thru April. The Wet season comes in gradually beginning with what is called the “build up” which we are experiencing now. During the build up we may get occasional rain but the big story of the build up is the high humidity! Once the wet season sets in, many of the roads will be impassible due to mud. We go from one extreme to another. People have told us that here on Melville Island, the strongest thunder storms in the world occur. We hear that scientists actually study the weather here on the island because of the frequent thunderstorm activity during the wet season. There is also the threat of Cyclones (Hurricanes) here in the wet. Needless to say it should be interesting here during the wet season.
Tomorrow we go off to Darwin for a much needed break. Running the house over the past few weeks has been an extremely high maintenance task. We believe we are making progress with the boys but ever so slowly with a lot of bumps on the way.
These students have had very little (if any) structure/discipline in their lives and to bring structure into their lives from the age of 12 years and up is challenging. So often children who don’t have structure and discipline growing up come into severe consequence as adults which of course is much more damaging than if they were taught as children. One of our goals with the students is to teach them concerning right and wrong choices and the consequence thereof. Its much better to pay consequence now when they are young and learn rather than when adults when it might be too late. Also positive affirmation in the children’s lives and speaking into their lives is just as important if not more important. Please pray for our boys over the next couple of weeks while they are on break. The next school term begins on October 14th.
We are now proud grandparents to our 5th grandchild named Malachi born to our oldest son Bill and his wife Trudy. We will be going back to the states for 5 weeks for Christmas break and can’t wait to meet him!
Many blessings!!!! Love …Bill & Linda

30th anniversary celebration Photos

2008-09-14T23:11:00.000-07:00

Linda enjoying the show

Water Buffolo burgers!

2008-09-14T18:41:00.000-07:00

Greetings… It’s been a couple of very busy weeks for us here at Tiwi College. It’s been challenging to work with the boys in the house as they have been somewhat restless/ unsettled since the excursion. The reality of classroom study and tight structure is all but comfortable to most of the students. Our house here has been high maintenance with the boys and we are extremely tired by the end of the week. A big part of our job here is to bring structure, training and discipline to the lives of the students to help them move on to successful adult lives. Easier said than done! The process is long and often seed planting in their lives is all we can accomplish in some.
This last week was the 30th anniversary of the Tiwi land counsel. In 1978 the Tiwi Islands (Melville & Bathurst Islands) were officially handed back to the Tiwi people by the Australian government. Although the Tiwi Islands are still part of Australia, they are governed by what’s called the “Tiwi Land Counsel”. The celebration was big with plenty of food, dance and speeches. The elders did a lot of traditional Tiwi dance and the food was great! It was the first time for us to eat water buffalo meat which was actually quite tasty. Water Buffalo roam wild around Melville Island and are hunted by the Tiwi people. They cooked both buffalo burgers and buffalo meat underground. There was also turtle to eat but it went fast and Linda and I missed out. Oh well, next time.
We have 2 weeks till break and are very much looking forward to a rest. We will go to Darwin and stay for about 9 days and enjoy some R&R and civilization again. There are absolutely no shops in or near Pickertaramoor here so it will be nice especially for Linda to do some serious shopping. There are also a lot of very good restaurants and a great network of biking/ walking trails around the Darwin metro area. We always enjoy our time around Darwin.
Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we serve here at Tiwi College. Love …Bill & Linda

Excursion Photos

2008-09-14T18:06:00.000-07:00

A view of the Victoria Coast near Melbourne
These two students found some work of their immediate ancestors on display in a Melbourne museum. How cool is that!!!
Meeting the team at training. They went on to win at the game on Saturday.
Some of the boys posing for a photo with one of the football stars during a training session we attended.
The Melbourne skyline 88 stories up on the Eureka Tower. We spent about 1 1/2 hours enjoying the views.
Two of the boys enjoying the time on the 88th floor.
A first time horseback riding experience for the students
Another new experience for the students... commuting around the city in a tram.

Return From Melbourne (and then no internet)

2008-09-01T20:53:00.000-07:00

Greetings… We apologize for not getting to our blog before this. We arrived back from Melbourne, took a couple of days off and then the internet went down. Well it’s back up so here we go.
The Melbourne trip was quite an experience. I guess the most fun was watching the students experience new things. For the most part they were well behaved but we had our moments of insanity! We made it and we are thankful for that!
The trip from Pickertaramoor started on the road for about 45 minutes as we made our way to a boat called the “Arafura Pearl”. The boat ride was about two hours to Darwin. We then shacked up in a couple of schools till about midnight and left for the airport. We were off to Melbourne just before 3:00 am. Flying a jet was an all new experience for most of the 45 students. One student I was with saw me with my boarding pass as we walked to the terminal. He reacted a bit concerned and asked, “what’s that?” I explained to him that it was my boarding pass which we all need to board the plane. He then said, “oh no, I thought it was rubbish and threw it away!” He then rushed back to where he threw it away and fortunately found it in the can. As we were taking off another student next to me asked, “Bill, how fast are we going?” I explained, he then asked, “How high are we going to go?” I again explained, he then asked, “are we going to be above the clouds?” I said yes. He pondered a brief moment, then seriously looked at me and said, “Bill, this is freaking me out!”
It was also interesting watching the students react to the cold weather being it was winter in southern Australia and few have experienced winter. As they got off plane they enjoyed seeing their breath and some pretended they were smoking. Quite fascinating to watch!
The trip was full-on every day. The zoo, museum, shopping, AFL footy game (they met a lot of the players and also formed the guard of honor as the Melbourne team ran out for the game), the beach, they also played AFL against another school (and won). Our schedule was full!
At times it was difficult keeping 45 students together but we somehow managed our way through it.
Linda and I had a few evenings free which was nice. One night we took a tram downtown. Melbourne is a very big beautiful city with plenty to do.
Now back at the college we have been facing the “after the trip syndrome”. Many of the students have been less than responsive to school work so it’s been a challenge for all of us staff. Tiwi College is on the front lines here to bring education to the Tiwi youth. It is a battle at times and staff can get quite battle weary at times as well. It’s amazing to us to see the staff here continue to press on to see victory in the lives of these Tiwi Boys and girls. Please keep us all in your prayers. Thanks …Bill & Linda

Photos

2008-08-10T04:37:00.000-07:00

The happy hunter!
Students enjoying the new trampolines
Our very first sports day during the first week of the term

The BIG hunt!

2008-08-10T03:36:00.000-07:00

Well… It's been a while since we added to the blog. We apologize for this. We usually try to add something on a weekly basis.
Since last term the campus grounds has come a long way. We now have a school building, net ball and basketball courts, 2 trampolines, and the running track is nearly completed and there has been much progress on the football oval. There has also been a lot of staff housing completed which has given the teachers and their families a good place to live. We also now have internet in our homes which has been really good. Satellite TV and phones are yet to come. Its amazing to see a brand new community developing right before our eyes in the middle of the bush on a remote island.

The first 3 weeks of the term has been a bit wild and crazy here. We currently have 49 students enrolled which is great but along with that comes the care for 49 students!!! We currently have 12 boys in our house which is a handful!!. Overall we feel things are going well and we have not had any serious issues which we are thankful for. We have several new boys and we are bringing them through a similar process as we have with the original boys last term. It helps with our original boys knowing the routine in the house which helps the new boys understand what is expected. Most of the boys we are working with have serious trouble in school environments and have trouble sitting in class to learn. Needless to say the teachers have had their moments this term with 49 of them. At the end of the week we are all tired and ready to rest for the weekend.
I consider the most important time of the day in the house is the devotion time. This is the time when we talk about their creator and teach from His Word. We usually give a short teaching from the Bible show a contemporary Christian music video and enjoy a bowl of ice cream or a paddle pop as all of this is happening. Please pray for our boys that they see Gods love for them and come to receive everything Jesus has done for them on the cross. God is truly awesome and has a lot for these boys!
I learned one very interesting lesson this week as I took some of the boys for a walk. I first wanted to encourage the boys to take a walk so I did everything I could to make it sound exciting. I told them we were going to hunt on this walk and I was hoping to see some wildlife. Well… they literally took “hunt” seriously and hunt is exactly what they did! Shortly into our walk they spotted a large lizard called a Goanna. They picked up rocks and started firing at it with rapid fire. They chased it up a tree and the boys were able to knock it out of the tree to its death. I knew that I shouldn’t have used the word “hunt” being they took what I said very literally and I knew I had to let this take its course. I of course felt sorry for the Goanna. They in turn were proud of their kill and brought it back to the house to show off to the others. The Australian Aboriginal people are hunters and gathers so this is second nature to them.
The school is going on a 10 day excursion to Melbourne Australia leaving the 13th of August. Linda and I have the privilege to go on this trip to help supervise the students. It will be a lot of hard work but it should prove to be a lot of fun. It will be a good time of relationship building among the staff and students. We will be going to an AFL footy game, the zoo, shopping and all kinds of fun stuff. Many of these students have never been beyond the Darwin area so this will be an adventure for them. It will actually be an adventure for Linda and I as well. I’m looking forward to going to my first Australian Rules Football game and Linda of course is looking forward to the shopping experiences. I am told to be careful of this AFL football stuff. A lot of Aussie guys have come under the spell of this leather god in the shape of a football! Scary!!!!! How much different is this than the states… about the same I would say!
We so much appreciate your prayer as we serve the Tiwi youth here. We are awed at the opportunity we have to work with these Tiwi young people who will be the future leaders in their communities and nation! Love …Bill & Linda

2008-07-23T03:14:00.000-07:00

A beach along the coast near Cairns A friendly Kookaburra who joined us for a picnic lunch
Barbecue Australian style... snags (sausages) & onions... good stuff!!!!
One needs to practice a bit more caution than most beaches when going to Cairns area beaches. If you look on the left side of the sign it warns one must be cautious of Crocodiles, Jelly Fish and sharks. The beaches are very beautiful though!!!
Linda working hard to build relationships with the locals.

Back At Pickertaramoor

2008-07-22T18:45:00.000-07:00

It was a good time in Cairns, Queensland (pronounced = Cans) and we were able to get some good rest. Cairns is a beautiful place and has a lot to offer with beaches, reefs, mountains, tropical rain forests with plenty of restaurants, shops and tourist-like things to do. It’s a perfect place to get away and rest. We rented an older car which saved money (and made us look like locals) and gave us the freedom to roam around which was really nice. We are thankful for our time there!
Our time in Papua New Guinea is still strong on our hearts. It was such a refreshing and wonderful trip to Wewak! The PNG people are awesome and wonderful to be around. We were totally encouraged by the trip! We feel like we were leaving family as we left. Please keep the staff there at Laif FM in your prayers and if you want to learn more about the radio station there or contact them, contact us and we will give you any information you need.

We also very much enjoyed our time in Darwin with some friends before heading back to Pickertaramoor. The 10 week term at Tiwi College began yesterday We anticipate that it will be another tough term with the boys, but at the same time we feel we will continue to make progress. We have some new boys in the house in addition to ones from last term. It will be challenging but there is already a house culture that has started last term so they should come into line as we move into the term.. The first school building is now complete so that will make a better learning environment for the students rather than holding classes in the houses.

We are in the middle of the dry season in the Northern territory and here on Melville Island. During the dry season it often does not rain for months and is windy at times and always dusty. It’s still hot during the day but a bit cooler at night with much less humidity than the wet. Just as common as the rain is in the wet season, bush fires are in the dry season. The smell of smoke is normal as much of the bush in the area burns which produces natural regeneration in the forests.

In our spirits we are fresh and ready to go through this term. In our bodies we have a few struggles. Linda pulled her shoulder and is hurting a bit. I have been bit by a nasty spider which produced a sick feeling and a headache for a few days. There is also a fairly major skin irritation from the bite. Please pray for those needs with us. Thanks! Love …Bill & Linda

Photo's

2008-06-30T23:52:00.000-07:00

Our plane as they were unloading our baggage just after landing in Wewak
The veiw from the radio station grounds. The large islands you see are Mushu (in front) and Kairuru Islands
Every night during the Share-A-Thon there was a panel of pastors discussing and promoting the fundraising. Top left: Assembly Of God pastor with his 3 boys- Top right: Tony Dua, station manager- Bottom left: Nazerine pastor- Bottom right: Baptist pastor
The staff counting donations during the Share-A-Thon

We are back in Australia from Papua New Guinea

2008-06-30T23:44:00.000-07:00

Linda and I Have just returned back from Australia from Wewak, Papua New Guinea. It was so good to go back again. We felt very welcome by the staff and the community alike. It was like coming home!!
Originally back about 10 years ago we set out with a vision to establish a Christian radio station unique to the nation of Papua New Guinea. Papua New Guinea is unlike any nation in the world. Our heart was to see a youth targeted station with the majority of the programming in music form. We also wanted a station that would attract non-Christian listeners as well as Christian that would evangelize and build up the “Body Of Christ. We did not want to sound like a “church on the air” nor broadcast for the supporting listener’s sake. We felt that the Lord was challenging us to focus on and impact the youth of PNG with cutting edge music/ministry that would bring it’s listeners to the knowledge and nurture of the Lord Jesus Christ and help to unite the Body Of Christ in the process.
We were very pleased concerning the station when we arrived. Tony Dua our station manager has come a long way since meeting him ten years ago in Mt Hagen. We see tremendous growth in his life and he has kept the original vision for Laif FM which of course is exciting to us. He is stepping out in many areas of the ministry as he works to take the station to the next level. This young man is excelling in his potential! We are very proud of him!
The Share-A-Thon was a very big success! It was a 5 day long on-air time where we asked the listeners to take ownership and pitch in some money to see the station grow in listener coverage. It was fantastic to see the listening audience give thousands of Kina into the work as they took ownership of “their” radio station. This group- type of fund raising is very effective here in PNG mostly because this parallels some of their cultural practices with group giving for bride prices, compensation, etc… We were amazed to see money coming into the station from children, youth and adults many being non Christian! We were in awe! I’m thinking of one young man who didn’t appear to be a Christian and gave Kina 1000.00 to the station. Another 10 year old girl brought a Kina 10.00 note to the station. There are many stories like these! Truly awesome!
Laif FM (pronounced “life”) is a very popular station! As we were around town this week we were often approached by people thanking us for bringing Laif FM to Wewak. Christians and non-Christians alike are enjoying the station. As we were leaving our guest house for the airport to head back, a security guard approached us and thanked us for Laif FM. He told us that many have repented because of the music they hear on Laif FM. Again there are many stories like this one. It’s encouraging to see the impact the station is having on the greater community. Linda and I are truly encouraged and we thank God for everything he is doing there.
We are here in Cairns Australia now and have 9 days to rest (which we very much need) before heading back to Darwin. Please keep Laif FM and staff in your prayers.
Love …Bill & Linda

Photos of future Tiwi College students

2008-06-21T22:57:00.000-07:00

Papua New Guinea… Here we come!!!

2008-06-21T22:52:00.000-07:00

Our first 10 week school term at Tiwi College has completed and we are off on a 4 week break. Our first week will be spent in Wewak, Papua New Guinea helping Life FM with their 5 day, on air Share-A-Thon. We are looking forward to our time there. Those of you who know us well know that PNG has been a big part of our lives and is still very much on our hearts. It will be good to see our PNG friends once again!
Our last week at Tiwi College was extremely busy and tense. The boys were very restless the last week and were definitely ready for their school Holidays. The students and staff are definitely in need of a break as well!! This particular school break is known around the Tiwi Islands as “Bush Holiday”. It’s the time of the year when the Tiwi people camp out bush to fish and hunt. It’s interesting that most Australian Aboriginals are traditionally “hunters and gathers” while most people in PNG are farmers and very good ones at that. The PNG people are thought to be the world’s earliest farmers. The Tiwi people will hunt mostly Wallaby (small kangaroos) and water buffalo over the “Bush Holiday”. They will also do a lot of fishing. The biggest sought after fish on the islands is the Barramundi. Barramundi is a very good eating fish and fun to catch.
Also during this last week the Four Corners program aired across Australia on Monday. The 4 Corners program has been airing for about 50 years here in Australia and is a well respected news program similar to 60 minutes. They did a special story called, “Educating Kimberly” which for the most part reflected what Tiwi College is doing on the Tiwi Islands. It was for the most part a positive report concerning Tiwi College but the report revealed much of the negative social and educational issues concerning the Tiwi people. You can catch a streaming broadcast of the airing here… http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/content/2008/s2273093.htm Linda and I are in it a little.
We will be arriving back to Australia from PNG on July 1st and will spend some time in Cairns, Queensland, Australia before heading back to Darwin and Pickertaramoor. Our time in Cairns will be a time of resting so we will be fully refreshed when we go back to start school term #3.
Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we travel and for the radio work in PNG. We will add to our blog again once we return from PNG on July 1st.

2008-06-10T18:48:00.000-07:00

This is one of our local wild Dingo's. A week ago Saturday Linda and I were taking an evening walk at dusk when one of these guys surprised us by running up to us from behind. He then followed us for a while coming as close as about 8 feet from us. It was probably curiosity but we didn't take any chances. I was armed and dangerous with a large folding knife in hand I carry for these kind of surprises.
Here are 4 of the girls as they loaded in the mini bus after a refreshing afternoon swim.
Meet Gabriel... Gabriel is our new boy in the house. He is 13 and one of the more polite/ educated Tiwi boys we have met. We're excited to have him in the house.

School Break is coming!!!

2008-06-10T18:42:00.000-07:00

It’s hard to believe that we are already in week 9 of the 10 week school term. After the term we will be on school holidays for 4 weeks. The next 2 weeks will be exceptionally busy as we close out the term. We have BBQ’s planed for the families and friends of the students and all the other “end of the term” stuff that one can expect. We are definitely looking forward to the upcoming break! It’s been a tough stretch! Linda and I will be in Wewak, Papua New Guinea for about a week helping with an “on air” Share-A-Thon with “Life FM”, a station we brought to air back in 2003. Following the time in PNG we will take a rest in Cairns, Queensland, Australia for about 9 days. We will then head back to Darwin for a few days before attending a week of training and meetings in preparation for the next term.
We do love the boys in our care here at Tiwi College. The challenges are many but it’s exciting to see growth in their lives as they settle into routines here. Most have never experienced structure and discipline so this is all new to them. The house is a learning environment as they learn respect (for themselves and others), submission to authority, Biblical principles they can apply to their lives, self worth, hygiene, and ultimately and most importantly… a relationship with a God that loves them and gave his Son Jesus for them. The most important thing you can do for us here is to pray for breakthrough in their lives so they can see Gods love for them and receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. The Tiwi society is crumbing at the seams. The Tiwi people have the highest suicide rate per capita in the world! Drug and alcohol addiction is epidemic and the breakdown of family is evident everywhere. Most of our boys here do not live with their parents but aunties or grandparents. The vast majority of students here are many years behind academically for their age. Some students could not write their own name or recognize numbers when they came. Tiwi College is on the front lines to reach the Tiwi people and the battle is raging! We appreciate your prayer!
Tiwi College is a 30 year dream (come true) of a Tiwi elder.

A visit to Papua New Guinea

2008-06-03T05:28:00.000-07:00

The staff at Life FM in Wewak PNG as we left back in late August, 2004. The station manager "Tony" is front right with the blue hat.

A visit to Papua New Guinea

Yes!!! We are going to Wewak, Papua New Guinea for a visit arriving June 23 and departing July 1st. Needless to say we are very excited concerning this opportunity! A few weeks ago we received an invitation email from Tony the station manager there at Life FM. He invited us to come and take part with a five day on air fundraising event called Share-A-Thon. With a minor adjustment to their schedule, we will be able to go being Linda and I will be on school holidays. Needless to say we are thrilled about the opportunity to go back to Wewak and spend time with PNG friends. We go way back with Tony to the first year we worked in PNG back in 1998. He is a dear friend! We are so very proud of Tony being he has grown tremendously and is doing a great job managing the station and running with the vision of Life FM, Christian radio for PNG youth.
Please pray for us as we go that God will be glorified and the station will raise the funds needed to upgrade the work and begin to bring the station to other provinces in Papua New Guinea.

Photo's

2008-05-31T15:49:00.000-07:00

Linda browsing some local artwork at the Mindil Beach Market
One of our boys going back to his roots
The view as we come into Milikapiti on Monday morning to pick up some students for school

Another Week In Paradise

2008-05-31T15:40:00.000-07:00

We had a nice rest in Darwin last weekend. I was able to get a much needed haircut and Linda very much enjoyed the shopping opportunities and picked up some things we needed. It was strange to be in civilization again. The Hotel we stayed in was brand new and very nice. The room had a beautiful view of downtown Darwin. On Sunday evening we went to what’s called the “Mindil Beach Sunset Market”. The market opens at sunset and goes well into the night and offers all sorts of international food, entertainment and has various vendors selling unique craft, art and clothes items. The atmosphere has a very international feeling to it. Darwin is a very multi-cultural/ethnic city and it is actually closer by flight to Singapore and Manila than Sydney.
We arrived back to Pickertaramoor about 8:00 Monday morning to begin a new week with our boys. Man, what a week it was! It’s a good thing we had a good rest. We needed to deal with a serious anger issue this week. In fact it was by far the most serious issue we had ever dealt with in our years of working with youth. It’s a long story and will spare the details but one of our young men became very verbally abusive and threatening to the teacher staff and us. It has been building up for some weeks and we have made attempts to curve this behavior and give the student every chance to come under the authority of the school. He is a very big, strong young man for his age. It got to the point on Wednesday evening that we needed to send him back to his community. He became enraged at that point and went ballistic swinging a large piece of wood breaking windows and threatening staff at the top of his lungs. He finally calmed down after an hour or so and the police needed to transport him back to his community. We don’t want to give up on this young man. He is very smart and shows very good leadership ability. Please pray for him and for us staff here as we seek Godly wisdom in this situation.
It is amazing to us how God can turn a not-so-good situation into opportunities of learning and growth. We needed to walk our other boys through the above situation being they of course experienced the trauma of it as well. We had a day of informal debriefing on Thursday and focused on dealing with anger being most of them are dealing with all sorts of anger issues themselves. We discussed Eph 4:26-27 "Be angry, and do not sin": do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil. & Prov 22:24-25 “Make no friendship with an angry man, And with a furious man do not go, Lest you learn his ways And set a snare for your soul”. Linda and I are thrilled concerning their response and believe our boys have moved to a new level as they learn to deal with anger. What a blessing it is to see these young men begin grow and blossom.
Linda and I are enjoying a peaceful weekend here in Pickertaramoor. The weather is beautiful every day here during the dry season. The lows are usually in the upper 60’s to lower 70’s and the highs are middle 80’s to lower 90’s. The school is located in a very remote bush area so there are no stores or anything like that but we enjoy taking long walks, spending time with friends and watching an occasional DVD. We watched a movie last night called, “August Rush”. Check it out if you haven’t seen it yet.
It’s early Saturday morning as I’m writing this and it’s still dark. The realization of being here is all to evident as I hear the Dingo’s yell in the bush. Please continue to keep the students and staff here at Tiwi College in your prayers. Thanks!!!!

Our boys this week

2008-05-23T17:11:00.000-07:00

Our boys as we went on a bush walk Thursday after dinner. We walked about 5 kilometers (3 miles) and arrived back to the house after dark. On the way the boys found a snake and killed it. They also kicked the rugby ball back and forth to each other during most of the walk. After we got home one of them said, "that walk was good fun"!

Media and more!

2008-05-22T23:58:00.000-07:00

Yes, it been another very busy week here for us. On Tuesday, the Minister of education (3rd down from the Prime Minister) visited along with a group of dignitaries from Canberra, leaders from the Northern Territory government, leaders from the Tiwi Islands and plenty of media personal for the official opening of the family group homes here on campus. We were interviewed by the “Melbourne Age” (a large newspaper in Melbourne which is the second largest city in Australia). The article hit the paper on the 21st. It was a very positive article which was encouraging. One funny thing in the article was the reporter said, “we are from Tennessee and have southern accents”!! Quite funny!
I was also interviewed by the “4 Corners” program media. The special on Tiwi College will be airing sometime next month.
It was a very stressful couple of days for us as we prepared the house being we were the host house. We had in excess of 60 people on our covered porch area for the celebration and some tours around the home. We were glad when all of this was over.

Overall we had a great week with the boys. We are seeing steady progress and it is encouraging to see the boys settle down into a routine around the house. We are working to make them feel safe and loved as the Tiwi College culture is developed.

We were very surprised yesterday when our leadership asked if we would like a weekend in Darwin to rest in a nice Hotel expenses paid by the college! What a huge blessing!!! We will spend two nights in Darwin and return on Monday morning to start another week. Of course Linda will like the shopping opportunities and we will both enjoy some meals out to local restaurants. Darwin is a beautiful city and we always enjoy our time there.

Here’s a couple of tidbits we came across this week with the students that made us laugh and/or shake our heads….

On Monday as I was picking up the students from Milikapiti for the week, one of the young ladies told me that her brother has a Dingo for a pet. I then asked if he bites? She replied, “only if he’s hungry”!!!!

Another one was… during class, one of the boys was struggling to sit and participate. He then left the classroom setting and went to the bathroom and used a piece of soap to scribble a four letter word on the mirror. The interesting thing is that he spelled the four letter word wrong!! Needless to say this student is struggling with his reading and writing skills and really needed to get back to class!

Keep us, the staff and students at Tiwi College in your prayers. Thanks

Recent photo's

2008-05-16T17:59:00.001-07:00

The students enjoying the daily ritual of an afternoon swim after school.
One of our boys "Kenny" helping the campus maintenance man install curtain rods

Enjoying a Kangaroo and Damper meal together around the fire.

Kangaroo For Dinner

2008-05-16T17:12:00.000-07:00

Yes, we had our first kangaroo meal with the boys this week. Kangaroo meat is very good. We were both impressed. It’s a little hard to eat when one thinks about those cute little animals that hop around but very tasty indeed! We also had traditional Damper Bread with our meal. Damper bread is a traditional bread eaten by Australian Aboriginal people. We also enjoyed a time around the fire as we enjoyed this traditional feast.
The past couple of weeks have been very busy for us. Our weeks have started out with me (Bill) driving to a community called Milikapiti to pick up students for the week. Milikapiti is about a one hour very dusty drive from the College here at Pickertaramoor. Once in Milikapiti, I go to the local shop and find a couple of students. At that point we drive around and pick up more students making sure everyone has their bags for the week. This process can last an hour and I’m always glad to be on our way back to Pickertaramoor. They then go home at 1:00 pm for the weekend on Friday. Tiwi College is definitely on the front lines here as we work to bring hope for the future to the Tiwi people. The challenges are numerous but we are slowly seeing the work develop.
The past two weeks with the boys have been challenging at times but we are seeing substantial progress. We are seeing the boys fall into more of a routine in the house with very little acting out.
Early this week we had the media with us from an Australian news show called “4 Corners”. 4 Corners is very similar to 20/20 or 60 minutes and is a well regarded show that has been airing in Australia for around 50 years! It was definitely a stressful day for Linda and me as they spent a good part of the day filming activities in the house including dinner time and lights out as we tucked the boys into bed. They also did quite a bit of interviewing with some of the students. The reporters told us it’s going to be a positive report on what Tiwi College is doing. It should air in 3 or 4 weeks. I think it will be streaming on the Internet also so we will pass on the link when it becomes available.
Next Tuesday we are in for another media circus when a government minister visits. We understand that this lady visiting (along with a group of dignitaries) is number three in charge in the Australian government. They are actually coming to our house to dedicate the school using our house as “dedication central” with a gathering in our living room. Our house here is the “show house” per say being it’s the newest and probably the nicest. We will be glad when the show is over!!!
We miss everybody back home but we are truly glad to be here during the pioneering stage of the school. It is difficult, often stressful work but the joys along the way are irreplaceable! We don’t have TV here yet but we are supposed to get a phone and Internet connection in the house by the end of May. TV is coming sometime in the future. We rely mostly on radio to get our news and we trade DVD’s around the campus for free-time entertainment. All the staff and their families live here on Campus as of last week. Before, most of the families lived in Darwin while their fathers worked the weekdays and flew back for the weekend. There are children everywhere and it feels like a community now. We have a great swimming hole on campus that helps to relieve the heat of the day. There are a couple small waterfalls and a rope to swing off into the water. Linda and I have been doing a lot of walking in our free time. It is beautiful Australian bush with varieties of beautiful parrots and other birds. We often see wild horses and wallabies and hope we don’t run into a water buffalo or a Dingo which are plentiful as well.
Please keep us in your prayers as we continue as a team to advance the front lines. Thanks!

Photo's

2008-05-05T16:33:00.001-07:00

The wet season is only a memory now but what a wet season it was! Literally everyone on campus was effected in one way or another by the heavy rain fall this season. The dry season will run to sometime in November.
A photo of our boys last Thursday as we went on a walk after dinner. We came across some old equipment that used to be used here when Pickertaramoor was a logging camp.
The latest addition to one of the wild horse herds here on the grounds

The Dry Season Is Here At Pickertaramoor

2008-05-05T16:23:00.000-07:00

The Dry Season is in full swing and so is the construction here at Tiwi College. The landing strip often has airplanes buzzing in and out with workers. The trucks are coming in from the barge landing with materials. The dirt roads out from the College are now in good condition and the luxury to travel around the island is available once again. This is an amazing project and enormous in proportion! The College campus will soon boast a 400 meter running track, a rugby oval, 6 large Family group homes for the students, many staff homes and buildings, several school buildings, a school for staff children among other things. This is only phase 1 of 4!! Truly an awesome project in a very remote area! What a privledge it is to serve here!
The week with the boys has been a tough one indeed. We had 9 boys at one point and finished up with 8 by the end of the week. Linda and I both broke up fights. 2 boys were suspended and we had one new arrival later in the week. There is not a school building completed yet so the boys school has been in our Family Group home’s common room. It’s been difficult especially for the teachers this week. The boys would often go into their rooms not wanting to come out for class. Some would change out of their school uniform and say they wanted to go home. This sort of structure here at the College is all new for these boys. At one point during the school day on Thursday, Linda advised me to come and help the teachers. As I walked out the back door, there was a teacher using a large piece of cardboard for a shield deflecting rocks that were being thrown at him by a student. At one point the student actually threw a circular stone saw blade he found in a pile of construction rubbish. It was quite an interesting scene especially being this is a very short 12 year old student! I walked up behind him and by the time I reached him he was sitting down on the ground. I then sat on the ground next to him and asked him "what was going on" to start a conversation. I was a bit nervous with this being he had an arsenal of weapons on his lap which included a wood saw with the handle broke off, a metal pipe and another circular stone saw blade. After we talked a few minutes he put his weapons off to the side, asked to wash his face because of the tears and rejoined the group. He will need to work some during his free time next week to pay for 4 chairs he broke during the rampage.
Believe it or not, the boys are coming along well compared to last term. Sure, this week was a little bit of a blip, but we see better things for the coming week. We are convinced that a positive learning culture will continue to develop here on campus as the staff here continue to work as a team to teach and train the students in every day living skills and education. We also know that real peace and true lasting change only comes from a relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "I have come that you may have life and have it more abundantly". Please continue to pray for our boys as they continue on here at Tiwi College.

Recent photo's

2008-04-25T20:26:00.000-07:00

Back view of the boys house we run
Front view of the boys house (yes, this is all one house)

Our transport to and from the island to Darwin

Our seven boys

We have internet!!!

2008-04-25T01:11:00.000-07:00

April 25th 2008

We now have internet on campus! It’s a temporary wireless router in the main office until the college infrastructure is finalized but we are thankful we now have means in which to access!! I think the next step will be a wireless router that will transmit 2 miles and then a fiber optics network to the homes. We are glad to see step one at the moment!
It’s a public holiday here called “Anzac Day” so we have a 3 day weekend. Anzac day is similar to Veterans Day in the States. We will be going to an Anzac day party on campus this evening to eat some traditional Aussie holiday treats.
Week two with the boys has been very good. We had 7 boys in the house. Most of them are 12 and 13 with a 14, 16 and 17 year old. We are very encouraged how the boys are settling in and it has surpassed our initial expectations. One of the boys who lives with his grandparents and doesn’t have a father and his mother has serious issues, expressed to us that “he feels like we are family here”. That was very encouraging to us!
The teachers have expressed to us that the boys are participating in class like never before. This kind of life is all new to the students and of course has it’s challenges as we work to play our part with the boys to build a campus culture. We are thankful we haven’t had any acting out as of yet with no escalation of anger. It’s not a matter of “if” this will happen, but when, but we are working to minimize any incident. Even though these boys are not in custody, the vast majority come from “families in crisis”.
Before the boys were in the house here at the College, they lived in very small portable houses during the first term. There were often fights, rock throwing and serious temper tantrums. Actually, the only rock throwing we have seen this term was when we were walking back from the river where we swim with the students after school. They spotted a snake and immediately opened fire with rapid rock fire! It was amazing to see the accuracy of their shooting as stones bounced off the 2 or 3 foot black colored snake as it screamed off across the road for cover!
It’s amazing to us as we get to know the boys concerning the potential in their lives. We’ve been instructed to teach and guide the boys through a teaching philosophy known as “RAP” (Response Ability Pathways). RAP works by encouragement/ positive reinforcement rather than using a string of consequences to deal with bad behavior. “RAP” works to promote changed lifestyle from the inside-out rather than an external system which only “Band-Aids”. If anyone is interested in the book that teaches this its called” Response Ability Pathways (restoring bonds of respect)” authored by Larry Brendtro & Lesley du Toit. As we apply this with other Biblical principle, we believe will see the Tiwi youth of Bathurst and Melville Island rise up and take their place to be everything God has created them to be.
We thank those of you who have been praying for the Tiwi people. Transformation needs to happen here and we are literally on the front lines. Please pray for us as well for strength and wisdom.

School Term 1 /Achieved April 11 – 18, 2008

2008-04-25T01:07:00.000-07:00

April 11 – 18, 2008
We flew back to Pickertaramoor on Friday morning the 11th. The flight was a bit bumpy because of strong easterly winds and very hot ground weather. It was good to be back. We learned when we returned that our new Family Group Home was ready to move into. We were off to work within minutes of our arrival. It was a hard 3 days of moving and assembling stuff. First the house needed to be cleaned from the construction dust, etc... We were thankful for some hard working staff that offered to help with this. We needed to move all kinds of stuff including, 2 refrigerator’s, 2 freezers 13 beds, 12 of which needed to be assembled. Everything was brand new for the house. The kitchen tools and small appliances are top of the line and virtually everything we will ever need. We are very impressed! Someone mentioned to us that it must be like getting married all over again with everything new for the house. The house and everything in it is beautiful and we are very thankful for such fine facilities in which to keep the boys.
The first day of the school term started on Tuesday. The roads are in much better shape now being the dry season is here so we went to pick up the students via road. I went to a community called Milikapati which is in an area known as Snake Bay on the North side of the island about 1 hour and 20 minutes away. The trip back to the school was uneventful and the students enjoyed listening to some music I brought along.
The boys did well overall the first week in the new house. We had an orientation with them the first day and laid down the house rules, etc… Discipline and structure is for the most part foreign to these boys so at times they were a bit slow to follow through. We gently led and encouraged them and they for the most part followed through with what needed to be done. We began to build relationships with each one which is very important with the focus of making them feel loved. We are teaching and training them and are working to develop a culture in the house which will take some time. The capacity of our house is 12 boys. We started out with 7 boys this week. Some did not come because of a funeral in the community. The Tiwi people are very respectful when it comes to these kinds of things. Over the course of the week we lost another boy who went to the funeral, one was suspended for refusing to participate in school and yet another hurt his foot during PE and needed to go home for the week. We finished the week with 4 boys. The encouraging thing about the week is we had no rock throwing or fighting among the boys which is a breakthrough. They seem very comfortable in their new home. We expect to have more boys in the house next week.
We continue to enjoy our new surroundings. We love the wildlife which includes wallabies (a smaller version of kangaroo, some call them Kangaroo want-to-be’s), wild horses, and many varieties of parrots. We also have seen a couple of Dingo’s around as we have driven the roads. We know there are plenty around the campus at night.
We’ve enjoyed our time with other staff on campus. We got together and played Yatzee one night this weekend and another night watched a DVD concert with some others by Randy Stonehill and Phil Keaggy. That definitely gives away our age! We still like it loud!!!

Some photo's

2008-04-09T05:57:00.000-07:00

Bill's first experience in the mud. It's a good
thing we had a winch!! The guy standing next
to the "Troop Carrier" is a Tiwi Teachers aid
at the school. The guy behind the camera is Bill.

Linda behind the wheel safely on the beach during low tide as we fished.
Some of the students going home for the weekend. They have had to fly for most of last term being the roads have been impassible due to the heavy monsoon rains.

Back in Darwin for a week

2008-04-09T05:03:00.000-07:00

April 9th, 2008
Well, it’s been more than two weeks since we have made an addition to the journal. We still don’t have Internet but we have been told it will be installed on April 11th. We are on school break until April 15th and we had an opportunity to spend a little time in Darwin during the break so we are here in Darwin. During this time in Darwin we are shopping for needs for our new family group home. We just finished up four days of professional development which has been very helpful for our preparation. We will be returning back to the island on the 11th which will give us a couple of days to prepare the new house for the new term. More on that later on in this entry.
Easter weekend was very good on the island. We had our own service at one of the family group homes and one of the teachers preached at the service. He is a former pastor and the message he shared was excellent!
It’s been really good to live in community again. There are a great bunch of staff and we have been blessed to have the opportunity to spend time with them during these first couple of weeks here.
We have had opportunity to begin to build relationships with some of the students as well during our first bit of acclimation time here. We learned that we will be working with the boys which we are happy about. There has been some change in plans since we arrived. Originally, our family group home was to be complete by the end of April and at that time we would take a new intake of boys to the college. Until that time we would mentor a couple who has never done this before whose group home will be complete by the beginning of the new term. The plan has changed because one of the house parent couples gave notice to terminate which left a void in the girl’s house. Instead of mentoring the couple in the boy’s house, we will now take the boy’s house on our own and mentor the other couple in the girl’s house as time avails. Hope this isn’t too confusing!!
The house in absolutely beautiful! It is very large somewhere around 3 or 4000 sq feet! It has a huge central great room which includes the kitchen and dinning room. It has 2 large bedrooms at each end of the house for the boys (6 each in a room) with a bathroom in each. It has a spacious house parent suite. It also has a large roof covered additional recreational room outside. We of course are very excited about the new house and Linda is already having fun with decoration ideas around the house. The house is constructed to withstand a category 5 cyclone (hurricane). It’s all thick brick with a welded steel roof construction. Cyclones happen here so it is good to know we are prepared.
We definitely need your prayer as we start this new term being the boys have had a very difficult start here at the school. The last week of last term several boys acted out by throwing rocks, swinging sticks, near fights along with nasty verbal gestures, etc... Many times disputes will carry on here from their communities and there will be divisions among them. There are no communities anywhere near the campus. In fact the nearest community is at least a 2 day’s walk from the school. This has been planned so that the students can focus on their education without distractions from their communities. We are literally working in the most remote school in the world! The students here have had very little discipline or structure in their lives so all of this will take time to develop. It will be a challenge but we are thankful we have the opportunity to help to have an influence in their lives.
Internet is coming to the campus and the talk is that it will be installed before the next term starts. We will then be able to make fresh entries instead of waiting until we are off the island. The next school term will last 10 weeks in which we expect to be on the island the entire time. On Monday the day before the term starts, we will fly to a couple aboriginal communities to meet with the students and their families before the term starts the following day. This time is important as we follow up with the students and families before school starts and it is time to build relationships which is critical in this culture.
We will have much more as the school term moves into full swing. Please keep us in your prayer being we know we are in for a challenge with the boys. Thanks
Culture shock has been a non issue for us for the most part. We are excited to be back to this part of the world and working with indigenous people again. I guess if there is one thing that we are trying to get used to is the Water Buffalo in the area. These animals are huge and make a cow look small. I was taking my morning walk one morning and literally felt the ground vibrate as one stomped off through the bush. I didn't see him but what else would give that effect? I had a feeling like I was living in Jurassic park! I changed my walking route after that. More later...

Archieved after arriving to Pickertaramoor

2008-04-09T05:00:00.000-07:00

March 18th 2008

Our first day in Pickertaramoor.

Our flight was delayed at first due to mechanical troubles with a few of the planes. After waiting for about 4 hours we were instructed to board a single engine plane. Shortly after leaving the Darwin airport Melville Island came into view. As we were flying the pilot asked where we were from. We explained and he asked us about our family. He then asked if we have explained to our family that we will be working at the most remote school in the world! The flight was very smooth and the scenery was awesome! The flight time was about 25 minutes.
We landed on the dirt landing strip at Pickertaramoor at around 5:00pm. We had a nice welcome at the landing strip from some of the students who were there. The first thing they asked was, "where are you from"? When we told them America they asked," Have you ever met any movie stars or rap stars"? We explained that America is a big place.
We were then transported to the College via Land Cruiser which is about a 5 minute ride. On the way we saw a small heard of wild horses. They are very beautiful horses and there was one colt among them.
Our first impression of the campus was "WOW"! What a beautiful place! It was much larger than we anticipated. The campus takes in about 1000 acres. The streets are paved and there are even street lights. There is construction happening everywhere. It's amazing to think that we are experiencing a brand new community being built right before our eyes! How cool is that! The project here is of enormous proportion! It is truly amazing!
We met many of the very friendly staff during the evening. They were all very welcoming and made us feel at home. Our family group home will not be finished for about 2 months yet so we have temporary housing in a small portable home which will work just fine. It's air conditioned and has a bathroom. What more could one need?? There is a community dinning area where we will be eating our meals until which time our home is completed.
We slept very good the first night and are very happy to be here and thankful that God has given us this opportunity and privilege to serve the Tiwi youth here at Pickertaramoor.

March 21st 2008

Our first road trip off campus
The students returned to their respective communities late yesterday afternoon via small plane for a four day Easter break. The roads to their communities are still closed off so air travel is the only way for the students to return. All the students are at least a day’s walk to their communities from the college. The remoteness of the school is a good thing because it is important for them to be away from the influence of their communities so they can focus on their learning. It was fun hanging out at the landing strip as the students went on their way.
Because of the extreme wet season the major road to the island communities and the port has been sealed off because of washouts and deep mud holes. Therefore, construction has been delayed because trucks have not been able to navigate the roads to the port to pick up building materials. The building materials are brought over from Darwin via barge. A recent arrangement was made where the barge would dock at another location on a beach at a mineral mine where the road was yet passable. The barge landing was successful and construction crews are in the process of bringing the materials to the site. The principle asked Linda and me if we would like to come with them to pick up a new college vehicle that came in on the barge. Of course we were excited to make the trip. It was about a 36 mile trip each way. We needed to make one river crossing and the remainder of the road was in alright condition. The interesting thing about the trip was we came across a total of about a dozen water buffalo along the side of the road. These animals are huge and not very friendly. In fact they can be very dangerous. As we approached the animals they were very skittish and a few were a bit defensive looking. We drove through cautiously and it was apparent these animals can be very dangerous. They are very fast runners and ones best defense if charged would be to climb a tree if not protected by a vehicle. There was one instance where a bulldozer on campus here was charged by one.
Anyway, I was asked to drive the new vehicle back to the college. It was good to get behind the wheel again on the opposite side of the car and drive on the opposite side of the road. It took a little getting used to but it all came back fairly quickly being Papua New Guinea has the same road system. The new vehicle is a Toyota Land Cruiser troop carrier. They are large, tough powerful vehicles made for harsh conditions and will easily carry 10 people. It was fun to drive.
We are very impressed with the staff here. They are committed professional people with a pioneering spirit and most love the Lord. We have had many wonderful conversations as we are getting to know everyone.

March 22nd 2008

The fishing adventure
We set out on our first adventure to the beach this morning. It was about an eight mile drive. We needed to make two river crossings and the road was very rough in a few places but passable.
The beach here is a whole new adventure compared to beaches we know back home. There are many dangers that lurk and one needs to be exceptionally careful while at the beach. The heat alone is dangerous and one must be covered in sunscreen, wear a hat and bring plenty of water to drink. It would be a terrible mistake to swim in the water here. The waters are infested with shark and Box Jelly fish not to mention Salt Water Crocodiles. The crocodiles here are reported to be up to 19 feet! Mangrove swamps meet the sandy beaches on the inland side. With all of that to the side, the beaches are absolutely beautiful as long as you don’t go in the water and watch what’s happening around you! We were lent some fishing equipment and were excited to try to catch something. The bait we used was a smaller fish that was caught the day before in a river near the college. We cut pieces off of it as needed to bait the hook. The pole was a large pole and it took a couple of casts before I got the hang of casting it. The first fish I caught was very interesting. It appeared to be a cross between a Flounder and a Sting Ray. None of us were really sure what it was. I carefully removed the hook with pliers and sent him on his way back to the sea. I also caught a couple of sharks. One was big weighing at least 10 pounds and man did it fight. He was not a happy guy when I got him to shore as he snapped at us. I think he was a Tiger Shark.
As we were getting ready to leave the beach a large Sea Eagle was soaring around us and then perched high on a nearby tree. An absolutely beautiful bird and similar to the bald eagle.
We are enjoying getting to know our new surroundings.

Off to the Island

2008-03-17T17:57:00.000-07:00

Yep... we are off to Pickertaramoor this afternoon. We have had a great time here in Darwin and have gotten a lot done in preparation for our time here in Australia. We now have NT, Australia drivers licenses, bank accounts, health insurance, etc...
We again went out to Woolaning yesterday for some training. The training was excellent and has given us a lot of good information concerning our work with the Tiwi Aboriginal youth. After the training we spent time with the staff there on campus. They filled us with a lot of good information that will be helpful. We also spent time with some Aboriginal youth while there. We went swimming in their favorite swimming hole. The swimming hole is a series of heavily flowing small waterfalls with very deep holes to swim in. What fun! The water was in the 80's f surrounded by beautiful tropical forests. The kids were delightful to be around and enjoyed rocking-out to music full blast in the van as we drove out. Their home had a family atmosphere. 11 students were in the house and seemed to enjoy the comforts of home. After school some were on the computers, others watched TV or played video games while others played ping-pong. Over all of this the stereo was cranked up full blast repeating an old song by CCR "Who Will Stop The rain". I guess that is an appropriate song being it is near the end of the heaviest monsoon season the area has seen in a long time!! One of the highlights of the evening was a couple of younger teacher aid staff caught a baby Crocodile and were excited to show us. The little croc was not thrilled about the ordeal and was looking for opportunity to have a good bite at someones finger! It was about a foot long.
It was dark by the time we began our 2 hour trek home. As we left the campus there were several white cockatoo still stirring before settling on a branch for the evening. The road home was dark with an occasional Kangaroo hopping across the road. The roads are very dangerous at night.
Will be in touch again as soon as possible.

Aboriginal kids playing Aussie Rules football

2008-03-14T23:23:00.001-07:00

We've arrived to Darwin!

2008-03-12T20:58:00.000-07:00

We had a very smooth trip here to Darwin with absolutely no problems. It did take us a couple of days to overcome jet lag but we feel now we are living well with the change on the other side of the date line. Our employer has put us up at a resort here in Darwin for about 8 days to help us acclimate before heading out to Tiwi College. It is really nice! What a wonderful blessing this has been and we are very thankful for this extra time here in Darwin.
The first evening here we had dinner with the principle (and his wife) of the college who is our boss. We were so encouraged as we listened to him speak and hear his heart for the Tiwi people and some of his thinking concerning running the school. We knew after that time with them we were in the right place!!! They are a wonderful Australian couple who love the Lord!

It's been almost 10 years since we have been back here in Darwin and it is so nice to be back. We were here from September 1997-April 1998 for our DTS training before heading to Papua New Guinea. Not much has changed other than a few new buildings. A lot of memories have come back since arriving. This is the wet time of the year so it is exceptionally humid. Most of the rain has been falling after dark with beautiful hot sunny days.

Darwin a quite an interesting place. It is possibly the most laid back city in the world. It is common to see someone in the grocery store doing their shopping bare footed. It's a very slow paced community which we like just fine!!

The social issues of the aboriginal are evident around town. Its common to see them drunk and/or sleeping on sidewalks, fighting, etc... We are thankful for the awesome opportunity we have to start work with the up and coming generation of Tiwi aboriginal youth on Melville Island.

Darwin has had a couple of tragic events where the city was flattened twice last century. In world war II the Japanese bombed Darwin with about 60 bombing raids. On Christmas Eve 1974 Cyclone "Tracy" moved across Darwin with the strongest winds ever reported on Mainland Australia. The devastation was horrific.
Today Darwin of course has been rebuilt and is a very friendly, beautiful city. It's been fun for Linda and I to travel around town via bus and get reacquainted with the area. We have also caught up with some friends here which has been a wonderful time. It's hard to believe 10 years have gone by???
On Friday we had an opportunity to travel to a College named Woolaning Christian College located about two hours outside of Darwin. We had a wonderful time there with the staff as they shared their knowledge of the work to help us prepare for the work we will do at Tiwi College. We will also make a return trip to Woolaning on Monday for a training course before flying out on Tuesday to Tiwi College.
We thank everyone for their prayer. We know as we go over to the island we will face some very difficult challenges. We have heard that it has been at least 20 years since a Tiwi youth has graduated a secondary school and possibly even high school!
We heard we should have Internet on the island in about two weeks so we will make contact asap. Love ...Bill & Linda

Flying out today

2008-03-08T05:04:00.001-08:00

Later on today we will be flying out to Darwin, Australia. We leave Denver at 5:35 pm with a stop in LA and Sydney before arriving to Darwin on Monday 1:35 pm their time (Sunday night USA time).

We have had a wonderful time here in Colorado with our children and grandchildren! It's been good spending quality time with them. There is a rush of emotions as we leave today. We will miss our family but we are excited about our new work in Australia.

We have learned that we won't be flying out to the island for about 8 days after our arrival to Darwin. We are thankful we will have time to acclimate to the very hot weather and the drastic time change. One of those days we will go to a NTSCA school in an area called Woolaning in the outback to tour and chat with staff there. We are excited about that being it will help us to understand their program before we begin our work at Tiwi College. Tiwi College is a new facility just opening with much more construction to be completed.

We continue to hear that the monsoonal rains have been exceptionally heavy. Construction has temporarily halted. The children's classes are being held under a roof with no walls with mud everywhere. Good thing the dry season is just around the corner! The children are having trouble settling in to a educational enviornment and structure with a lot of disciplinary issues. We have also heard stories of water Buffalo and wild horses around the landing strip area with the pilots needing to be exceptionally careful as they maneuver in to land. Definitely sounds like we are in for quite an adventure! As crazy as it sounds... we are looking forward to digging in!

Thanks for all your prayers as we go!!

kevin rudd says sorry

2008-02-29T04:47:00.001-08:00

This a portion of the "Sorry Speech" given to the Australian Aboriginal people from Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. The sorry speech was given on February 12th, 2008

We're off!!!

2008-02-28T06:31:00.000-08:00

Our tickets are now fully booked. We will leave Cleveland, Tennessee on Sunday evening via Atlanta. We will then spend 5 days with our children and have a chance to catch up with some friends in Colorado. We will fly out of Denver on Saturday the 8th in route to Australia. We will arrive in Darwin on the 10th and spend a couple of nights in Darwin before flying out to Pickertaramoor on Melville Island.

I don't think it's really sunken in yet concerning this adventure. All we know is there is a joy and excitement as we go and can't wait to dig in there at Tiwi College. One thing we do know is we will terribly miss the children and staff at Crossnore School! Many we will never see again which is a hard thought.

We have been getting some interesting reports out of Tiwi college the past couple of days. It's been a very tough start-up there. They have had the worst monsoonal rains this season than they have had in 25 years. Construction has slowed and halted in some cases because everything is mud. The school building is still under construction and most of the housing is incomplete. Classes are being held under a roof with no walls. At times there has not been any running water. Looking at that situation and looking at our past experiences in Papua New Guinea, we see how Gods hand has been there as he has prepared us for this awesome work with the Tiwi people! The wet season should end around April and the dry season will be around till late in the year.

We have also heard stores about the students. It sounds like their ages range from 12 years old and up. We have heard an estimate that 70 % of the students have only a first grade reading ability. There are also a lot of disciplinary issues already as they begin to settle in there at the school. Along with that, various social issues are evident among the students. We also see how Gods hand has been there to prepare us for this work during our time at Crossnore School over the last 3 years!

We understand the Internet is not functional at the school yet although the installation is in progress. We are not sure if we will have Internet access right away when we first arrive. If you don't hear from us at first know that we are waiting for the service to be functional.

Please keep the students and the staff at Tiwi College in your prayers. Please also keep us in your prayers as we go. Thanks Love ...Bill & Linda

Visa's approved!

2008-02-25T19:56:00.000-08:00

Our visa's have just been approved!!! Timing is everything and the timing was perfect! We just learned of the approval this evening about 12 hours before we go off shift from our current employer, Crossnore school Inc. This has been another lesson to us of Gods faithfulness and fact that His timeing is perfect!
We will arrive back to Cleveland, Tennessee late Tuesday and begin the marathon of all the last minute stuff including travel plans before heading out. We want to stop in Colorado to spend a few days with our famlily there before flying overseas.
Please keep us in your prayer during this time.
We are very thankful for this new opportunity!! More to come on our travel plans.

Mount Hagen Cultural Festival

2008-02-18T19:07:00.001-08:00

We had a chance to attend this festival a couple of times during the time we lived in the Mt. Hagen area of Papua New Guinea.

Waiting for Visa

2008-02-03T12:04:00.000-08:00

Linda and I are very excited... concerning our new adventure to serve with Tiwi College on Melville Island in the Northern Territory of Australia. We should be hearing concerning our visa approval any day now. Once we hear of the approval we will be heading off in a matter of a week or two.
We have mixed feelings about leaving being our family is here in the states and the fact that we are leaving behind a very good ministry working with children from families in crisis at Crossnore School, Inc. in the high country of North Carolina. It was a tough decicion to leave but we feel like God has new things for us with Tiwi College and we do not want to pass up a great opportunity. We are thankful for the opportunities we have had at Crossnore school over the last 3 years after returning back from Papua New Guinea.
At Tiwi College we will serve as house parents to 12 students while they attend the school. Our duties will be many as we tend for the students needs, spirit, soul and body and also serve as needed on the campus and around the islands aboriginal communities.
Melville Island is Tiwi customary land and was officially handed back over to the Tiwi people by the Australian government in 1978. Tiwi College is located in Pickertaramoor on Melville Island. Melville Island is located about 50 miles North of Darwin, Australia.
We thank God for the opportunity to serve the Tiwi people. Please pray concerning the finalization of our visas and a smooth transition as we leave the states.
One can view the college website here... http://www.tiwilandcouncil.net.au/WhatsBH/Whats_BH_college_eduall.htm