The NPC group meets at Dulles for fellowship and prayer before their
departure. From left to right are Sara Jamison, Jim Stover, Pat Cunningham,
Seniye Temel, Miley Busiek, and Howard Frost. |
The New Hope staff in the Czech Republic (with Hank at right) show
off their teaching aids. The Nova Nadeje office is located in Brno, Czech
Republic. |
The NPC group enjoyed visiting the plaza in the old part of Prague
which is near Brno. |
Each morning of the trip began with devotions as members of the group
reflected upon what they had learned about ministry in Eastern Europe.
A Christ-centered program is key to New Hope’s work. |
NPC trip members meet with the leaders and staff of Nova Nadej, the
New Hope office in Bratislava. |
NPC members enjoy the fellowship and hospitality of the Bratislava
staff at a tasty lunch. |
From Bratislava, the group drove through Hungary to Budapest. Much
of the Hungarian countryside is flat, which is one reason the country was
invaded often. |
NPC Team members enjoy visiting central Budapest. |
In the small town of Debrecen, not far from Budapest, the group had
dinner with leaders of the Reformed Church in Hungary. Pictured here are
Hjuka and Daniel, two Reformed pastors. Daniel suffered much persecution
from the government in Communist times, but at the time of the NPC group’s
visit, Daniel was the highest-ranking lay person in the church. At the
time the NPC group was in Hungary, there was no New Hope office, but now
there is one at Debrecen that serves most of central Hungary. |
From Hungary, the group crossed into western Romania, or Transylvania
(the region where Count Dracula was said to have lived). The Carpathian
Mountains provide beautiful background for the group’s travels through
western Romania, which is generally pretty rural. |
Cars and trucks along the main inter-state highway between Hungary
and Romania share the road with wagons, most of which are driven by gypsies.
Gypsies drivers do not generally like having their picture taken, probably
because they are sensitive about their economic situation. |
A house of a wealthy gypsy, under construction in the western part
of Romania. When Romania offered to help the gypsies, the government moved
these nomadic people group into stable communities in Romania. |
Another gypsy house in a small town in western Romania. In Europe,
gypsies are referred to as Roma, and they are originally Indo-European. |
Hank (pictured at left) with the members of the Nova Speranti (New
Hope) office in Timisoara, Romania. |
While in Timisoara, the NPC group visited the site where the December 1989 revolution started, which ended in the deposition of Nicolae Ceaucescu and the country’s communist political structure. |
NPC trip members enjoy lunch in theTimisoara office, which functions
sometimes as a warehouse. |
Members of the Nova Speranta office in Cluj, Romania. Rei and Ramona
Abrudan (pictured at left) have visited NPC on several occasions. New Hope’s
outreach to Moldova is managed from this office. |
The main Catholic cathedral and regional seat in Cluj. Most Romanians
are Orthodox, and sometimes there are tensions between these leaders and
the Catholics. New Hope staff work with both. |
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