Festival of Hearts!

I would just like to say that the "Festival of Hearts" was a great success! A big THANK YOU to all who were involved! The kids had a great time celebrating with fun songs and games and learning about God's love. Check out some more pictures from this event - click on the "my space" link to your right.

An Ending to a New Beginning!

Wow! Today was the day...the day of farewells and see you laters. It was my last day at the high school, and it was not an easy day. I am very excited to be moving forward and starting my job at the church but it was hard to leave my colleagues and students.

I will miss you each one because in some way you have all impacted my life and I love you! I love you for being a part of who I am and sharing with you the past 3 years has been a blessing. Thank You! I will be back to visit and you will have to visit me too!
Please keep me on the invite list for potlucks and parties...the food is great! (and the company too) :) You are all on my e-mail list for sure! Lets do lunch sometime! Want a coffee? :)

Students...know that you can e-mail me at any time and I will be here, and I will try my best to help you with whatever you need!

Remember me in your prayers and I will remember you in mine!
Take Care and God Bless!

You are looking at the new Children's Pastor of the

Fort McMurray Pentecostal Assembly!

I am soooo excited! It is amazing how God works, it truely is! Never did I think that anything like this would happen for me here in Fort McMurray! I knew God had a plan for me here but I honestly didn't expect this.

I am so thankful, children are my passion and this is amazing!

If you are faithful and patient God will always work it out! Just trust Him!

New Pictures!

I have fallen behind on my Blog writing...and too much has happened to catch up...we had our staff Christmas party...Stephanie and I carried on our Christmas baking tradition...we had a Christmas Party for the adult ESL class at the church, where we had GREAT food (mostly Venezuelian)...and today I had a few girls from my ESL class over to my house to go sliding and come back to have cookies and hot chocolate. They had never been slinding before and for one of them, one of my Chinese students it is her first Christmas ever! It was sooo much fun...(2 of them are from Japan and 2 of them are from China). So...look at my pictures and check out what has been happening in December :)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Toshiki Update

I just wanted to let everyone know that Toshiki is doing much better! His recovery is looking very positive. On Tuesday he was fully concious and talking in Japanese and English which is a very good sign and he remebered that Tuesday was his birthday. Which means his brain is fine and they have rule dout any head trauma. As far as I know he hasn't had surgery yet his body is healthy and has been doing fine on its own.
His parents, siblings and grandparents made it here last Saturday. He still has a long road ahead but at least he is ok and doing much better. I am still unsure of when he will be able to travel back home to Japan but I am thinking it will not be for awhile.

Continue to remember him and his fmaily in your prayers, pray for a speedy recovery!

PLEASE PRAY!

Today has been a very difficult day. I got a call this morning that one of my ESL students at the school had been in an accident. They didn't tell me what had happened or how serious it was, they just wanted to know how well he could understand English. I thouhgt nothing of it I just thought he had maybe fallen down the stairs at school or something minor. But when I reached the school that was not the case.

They told me he had been hit by a car while walking to school that morning and that he was just alive. I was shocked and upset by this news and I really didn't know what to do. My Principal advised me to go down to the hospital, that maybe that would help. When I arrived at the hospital the nurses brought me to the back room of Emergency. There I sat with the host dad, the victims service lady and the Exchange liason. We waited, at this point we had no idea how Toshiki was doing.

The doctors came in and told us that he had suffered some head truama but there was no swelling or fluid on his brain which is a good sign, his pelvis is crushed which at that time was causing severe internal bleeding, he had lost a lot of blood. They had a respirator breathing for him and he was still classified as unstable.

They medivaced him to Edmonton, I got to speak to him before he left, of course he could not respond but he could hear what I was saying. He is now in Edmonton awaiting surgery and things are looking a little more positive but he is still in serious condition. PLEASE PRAY FOR HIM!
Also pray for his parents, they are in Japan (he is an exchange student) and they do not have passports so the soonest they can get here is Monday, so pray for them too.

Thanks Everyone I really appreciate your thoughts and prayers. I have never had to deal with anything like this before and seeing him lying there was so...I don't even know how to describe it...it was just plain horrible. He's only 17, he was so excited about trying out for the basketball team and his host family was planning a trip to Disneyland for Christmas. Very sad, but God has a purpose in it and all we can do is trust and pray. Thanks guys.

Thanksgiving at Our House!

Well, I would just like to say a big Happy Turkey Day to everyone! I would also like to say that I am very thankful for a wonderful family and great friends, I really couldn't be happier!
This Thanksgiving was especially special because it was at our house and I cooked the turkey and dinner (with help from mom of course) and we had it here at our house with my parents and with one of my ESL students and his family. They are from Venezuela and have only been here in Canada (Fort McMurray) a short time. They are wonderful people and we had an AWESOME Time! It was so great to share this holiday with them as they do not celebrate Thanksgiving as a holiday like we do...so for them it was their first Thanksgiving ever and the first time that they had seen or tasted a turkey! (Not too mention all the Newfie trimmings). It was so much Fun...we had some good laughs! :)
I have to say that I enjoy my job as the ESL person (I don't know really what to call myself) at the school. I am developing the ESL program...as the need is huge and the school board is actually quite behind...I am the first ESL Aide at the school. But, I love all the kids I work with and I have developed good relationships with them and some of their families...it really is what I love to do and I didn't realize how much I missed getting to know other cultures and languages and all that goes with it...it is awesome to be using what I learned and knowing that I am where I am supposed to be :) Plus...my ESL class that I am starting at the church starts in a week and I have 23 people signed up! Crazy! But I have good help and I am very excited to have the responsibility of my own class...not to mention NERVOUS! :) Yeah so...this past month has been crazy busy...kind of reminds me of my HMS days :) but I love it and I am thankful for it :) So from the whole Peckford family here in the Mac Happy Thanksgiving!

ps. Just to let all of you know...my Latin Dance classes are going GREAT! I love it and yes...I am finding my groove...who knew this White girl could dance :)