www.arcticoutreach.org --- e-mail rinker@arcticoutreach.org --- phone 403-989-3715
Dear Friends,
We had some cold weather in December, getting down to 30 below zero. The highlight of our Christmas season was the visit of John & Lydia and two of their children who stayed with us for two days.
In mid December there were 4 deaths with the wakes and funerals all happening in the space of a few days. My oldest brother Blaine also passed away late on Christmas day our time here.
I (Rodger) still have the throat condition I've had for the last year, and still don't know what it is or how to treat it. I won't be able to speak much in our church services until it is resolved. Karen will have to fill in for what I can't do, which makes her have even more to do. She has held up well this year with all the load she carries, for which we thank God.
We want to express a special "Thank You!" and "God Bless You" to all of you who prayed for us this year and financially supported us and made it possible to carry on this ministry. A number of new churches and individuals got involved this year, for which we are so thankful.
We certainly have plans for the coming year which will significantly affect the mission work, but only God can make it all successful! We trust you will remember to pray for us in the coming year, and you are always welcome to come and visit us!
In mid December we held our Christmas dinner. (picture below) The tables in the Sunday School room were filled with the food and most ate here after the speaker finished. Altogether we had about 30 attend. There were 4 deaths during this time and wakes were being held on both Reserves and school was closed, so this affected our attendance for the dinner.
The picture below features the Korean team that came to hold a youth group on the O'Chiese reserve. Here they are in our home before returning to Calgary.
This is a teen group upstairs in our chapel.
These three fellows stayed over to help in our Sunday School classes.
On the 23rd and 24th we had a Korean family come and stay with Karen & I for Christmas. We cut a tree and here they are decorating it.
We made gingerbread house decorations. Although they now live in Calgary, they are originally from Korea and this is the first time they made gingerbread houses.
In the morning we had sausauge, eggs, & hashbrowns, a true Western breakfast, which also was different for them!
For lunch, before they left, they fixed a Korean "Hot Pot", which included octopus, shrimp, and all kinds of things new to us.
It certainly was the highlight of our Christmas to have this special family stay with us for two days. John is the pastor of one of the Korean churches in Calgary, and his wife Lydia is a nurse.
The Saturday after Christmas the Koreans came to hold a teen event, and here they are setting up a game.
Below is a picture of the team ready to head back to Calgary. They have been a wonderful help with our youth this year on both Sunchild and O'Chiese reserves.
On the last day of 2025 a house burned down with someone inside.
Although we don't know what the New Year holds, we can know that "Jesus" will be with us through it all. God Bless....Rodger & Karen Rinker