New faces at Budapest Christian Library

I have been talking about adding to the staff here at the library and I now want to officially present our new ministry partners, Beth and Rusty Ridgeway. They along with their four children, Jake, Nola, Weston and Landon, arrived in Budapest August 13 and so have been in the work with Merrill and I since about September 1. It has been a challenging transition for Beth and Rusty, but perhaps all of the difficulties have presented us opportunities to lean on one another. I would say, without a doubt that though none of us had ever met before July this year, we have become incredibly attached to one another. What we see as bad or difficult, God uses for good.

Ok, let me tell you a little about Beth and Rusty. This will be fairly brief, because we have not had a great deal of time to delve into great detail in what happened before all of us came to Budapest. They are both Johnson Bible College graduates and have served several congregations in youth ministry, with the last being 6 years in Brownsville, Texas. Beth is originally from Florida, and Rusty from Indiana. Beth is a teacher by training, in addition to her wife and mother roles. She is very excited about developing children's programs here in the library and is committed to making learning fun. Rusty has worked in youth ministry for more than 10 years and also, did some preaching during an interim while the church was searching for a senior minister. They both have a passion for Jesus and are excited to be in Budapest, working with the library.

Jake is 11 and a middle schooler this year. He faces the same challenges that he would in school as he would have in Brownsville... lockers, moving between classes, having to keep up with home work. He loves legos and spends hours creating with legos. He is hoping to get a bicycle as he had to sell the one he had in Brownsville and they live in one of the suburbs where he could ride his bike to school. He tried out for the basketball team and is currently, working on his shots.

Nola is 8 and is very inquisitive. She loves crafts and making things with her hands. She is also very good help with her younger brothers. She recently got first place in the invention fair for 3rd grade. She invented a game for her four year old brother, Weston, to help him learn to recognize the letters of the alphabet. She was so excited about getting first place, that she invited us to have dinner with them the following Sunday, to celebrate her success. Dinner at McDonald's never tasted so sweet!

Weston is 4 and is the "Eeyore" of the children. He is so sad because he has not been able to make any friends. There are not many playmates in his age group in their neighborhood and with the language barrier, has not been able to find someone to play with. He likes to ride his scooter, play with Nola and help his mom bake cookies. Weston loves Thomas the Tank Engine and has a great train set at home.

Landon is 18 months old and loves to eat. If he sees food, he wants it and he lets you know that he wants it. He is on the verge of walking, but just isn't quite ready to let go. Mom says that why should he walk when Nola will make sure he gets where ever he needs to go. He's got a happy little disposition and loves peekaboo and books.

So that is your introduction to the Ridgeways. I am sure that I will be including them on the blog often. We look forward to formulating our plan of working together in January.