We received the following prayer request for Roger Guilbert, a long-time GCI elder in France.
We are asking for your prayers for Roger who was hospitalized recently with a blood clot blocking the main artery to his lungs. Though the clot has been removed, particles remain in his lungs. Roger is experiencing much pain and his wife Christiane is deeply affected by all this. Your prayers for them are appreciated along with prayer for their four children and their spouses, and their grandchildren.
Cards may be sent to:
M et Mme Roger GUILBERT 9 rue Georges Jourdain 80540 Bovelles France
We were saddened to learn of the death of Norm Foster on January 3. Norm was a long-time elder and member of the pastoral care team in GCI’s Salt Lake City, Utah, congregation. Norm, who was 75, is survived by his wife, Sue, and three adult children.
Cards may be sent to:
Sue Foster 2391 E. Willow View Way Sandy, Utah 84092-5514
We received the sad news from Robert McKinney, GCI pastor in Nassau, Bahamas, that John Paul Jones, pastor of our congregation on Moore’s Island, Bahamas, has died due to complications from diabetes. His funeral is planned for January 18. Please keep the family in your prayers. He and his wife Sheva would have celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on January 12.
Here from retired GCI-Canada pastor George Patrickson, is an update on the previous prayer request for his wife, Luann, who is battling pancreatic cancer.
Luann and I would like to thank everyone for their prayers on our behalf. We appreciate so much their love and concern. Luann recently began a new round of cancer treatments that will conclude in the middle of January. They may take a scan at that time to determine the effectiveness of the treatments, or schedule her for another cycle of treatments before doing a scan. She is suffering some side effects from the treatments, which require injections to boost her white blood cell count and to stop blood clots from forming. She is in good spirits but does get tired quickly and needs to rest frequently. Again our thanks for all the prayers for her.
Cards may be sent to:
George and Luann Patrickson 1936 Hyannis Drive North Vancouver, BC V7H 2E4 CANADA
Thanks for praying for Bob Persky concerning his open-heart surgery. On December 17, Bob underwent quadruple bypass surgery along with heart valve replacement. He did well and remains in the hospital recovering. Please pray for his rapid and complete recovery and also for his wife Kay who had heart surgery of her own several months ago.
Cards may be sent to:
Bob and Kay Persky 129 Star Point LaneWeatherford, TX 76088-6409
Here from his wife Pam, is an update on Pastor Richard Ridgell’s battle with cancer. Click here for the earlier prayer request.
Pam and Richard Ridgell
It has been a hard few months since I last updated you on Richard’s lung cancer ordeal. It has been an uphill battle for him. He has had to go on oxygen at home and is filing for long-term sick leave at his job. He will be cut to half salary but will continue his health and life insurance for six months. Richard is still taking medication for the cancer but will know more when he visits the doctor next week. I have been doing the sermons the last two weeks at church but he is hoping he can make it this week as he has a Christmas series ready to go. We will be glad when 2014 ends and we can start a new year. This one has been tough for us. But we know that God is the one in charge and we are trusting him for strength to get us through what he has planned for us. We thank everyone for their prayers and we continue to ask for them.
Cards may be sent to:
Rick and Pam Ridgell 640 Butler Ave. Winchester, VA 22601
Please pray for Bob Persky, who recently retired as senior pastor of GCI’s congregation in Mesquite, Texas (Dallas metro area).
Bob will be having triple by-pass heart surgery with replacement of his aortic heart valve. The surgery is scheduled for December 17 at 7:30 a.m. at the Plaza Medical Center in Ft. Worth, Texas.
Please also pray for Bob’s wife Kay, who had open-heart surgery several weeks ago and continues to recover.
Cards may be sent to:
Bob and Kay Persky 129 Star Point LaneWeatherford, TX 76088-6409
Susan McNutt is the director of Base Camp NW, one of Generations Ministries’ U.S. youth camps. Susan and her husband Lee Combs, Jr., were recently in a car accident. Susan apparently suffered a broken vertebra and sternum. Thankfully, there is no paralysis. Doctors have decided to put Susan in an upper body/neck cast. Though surgery is not now anticipated, blood clots are a major concern. Lee, who has bruising from the airbag and seat belt, was released from the hospital. Please keep Susan and Lee in your prayers.
Cards may be sent to:
Susan McNutt & Lee Combs, Jr. 1827 NW Highland Dr. Corvallis, OR 97330-2023
We were saddened to learn that Deb Paz’s aunt Elaine Vernon died following her lengthy battle with cancer. Here is an announcement and tribute to Elaine from her sons Bill and Rick Guthy who are shown with Elaine below.
It is with enormous grief and sadness that we announce the passing of our Mom, Elaine Vernon. She was forever a beautiful guiding light and we will miss her so very much. We believe and know that she is in a far better place, smiling down on us with those very same beautiful, loving and caring eyes that radiated kindness, joy and hope to everyone that she came in contact with.
She was an amazing and unwavering example of love, generosity, humility, compassion and self sacrifice—always putting the needs of others ahead of her own. She never wavered in her faith in God, love of family and the golden rule. She leaves behind a beautiful and enduring legacy. Her life has truly blessed ours and we hope to carry on her extraordinary, life-long example. She definitely “walked the talk” and taught us that life is all about giving, serving and caring for others.
To honor Mom, we will be holding a celebration of life service at a future date. We want to thank each and every one of you for continued prayers and support at this time.
We were saddened to learn of the recent death of George W. Earle, father of GCI-USA pastor and GCS instructor Neil Earle. Here are excerpts from an article that Neil wrote in his father’s honor. It appeared in “Anglican Life”—a magazine of the Anglican church in Labrador, Newfoundland, Canada.
George Earle
George W. Earle was my father. So this I know: He was in his glory on the open water. He began to build boats in the 1980s to the tune of one a year which led to him and his best friend, Eph Laing, plying the waters around Carbonear and Bristol’s Hope in search of the wily cod. He began his working life as a stationer on the Labrador coast with his father Thomas J. Earle who has the distinction of being buried nearest the steps on the south entrance to St. James Anglican [church]. Yes, close to the action!
George would recall many stories of small-town life and the impact of being part of that Anglican parish. At St. James Anglican he came early under the tutelage of the near-legendary cleric, Canon E. E. Rusted, who was spoken of in respectful terms when I was growing up. Once, when praying with Dad a few years ago, he confessed that, even though not a regular attendee, he recited the Lord’s Prayer and the Apostles’ Creed every night before he went to bed.
George came into his own as a fisherman. In 1949 he jigged the largest codfish ever caught by hook and line… it measured 5’ 11 ½” and weighed 157 pounds. He had the picture to prove it and distributed copies to most people he met in later years. No wonder. The record stood for 50 years.
George had spurts of church attendance in the 1950s but for complicated reasons began to drift away from regular meetings. Yet the St. James drama team and the Roman Catholic neighbors at St. Clare’s School had no hesitation for enlisting him in their many “Christmas Concerts” in the 1950s, a staple of the decades before “Entertainment Tonight.” One of my father’s prized possessions was a certificate from the local Catholic prelate thanking him for his artistic services in the 1940s and 1950s.
The tributes that poured in to celebrate my father’s life as mayor, honorary fireman, Lion’s Club executive secretary, hospital board member in October, 2014 rightly cited his contributions to the town—a “Carbonear legend,” he was called—but his quiet Anglicanism obviously shaped his early life and lived on till the end of his days. An Anglican in deed.
Cards may be sent to:
Neil Earle 1643 Calle Coronado Duarte, CA 91010-2575
