The Troxel Family Times

We are still here...

2012-01-30T09:08:00.002-09:00

We are still here in Nenana, preaching the Word and loving the people. We are in our fifth winter here and this one seems like the coldest. They all seem like the coldest! Temps these last few days have been down to -60 degrees F. Way COLD!

Our kids are doing great. Aerin is homeschooled this year in 8th grade, but she is taking mostly high school classes from online sources. She does go to the public school for band and is looking forward to music fest in April. Ethan is just finishing up a unit on Da Vinci for his fifth grade homeschool lessons. He is also in the public school band, and both kiddos play the trombone. Emily has two bottom teeth and is really a joy to have around. We all dote on her and spoil her rotten.

Bill is starting a new preaching series, Daniel one month and Thessalonians the next, until both are done. He just finished going through the book of Romans. Church attendance is down when it is so cold, but we usually expect about 40 attendees when it is -20 or warmer. Bill is attending a Men's Retreat this weekend featuring Bible Study, Bullets and BBQ.

I am busy being the homeschool teacher, working as a file clerk ten hours a week, being a mom, wife and friend. We have had some traumatic events during the last year and every day I struggle with heartache. But I guess you can learn to live with it and it is not the overwhelming emotion all the time. My kids and husband make every day a joy, and I try not to dwell on the things that are so upsetting.

I was reading in Daniel last week and some of my favorite verses are in chapter 3.

¹⁶ Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. ¹⁷ If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. ¹⁸ But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

2011-02-26T07:23:00.000-09:00

Bill's mom, Cheryl Troxel, passed away unexpectedly yesterday. She was found dead after passing away in her sleep during the night.

Bill has left for Iowa to make arrangements and to conduct the services.

We are all shocked and saddened by this turn of events as Cheryl was planning on moving in with us at the beginning of May.

Please pray for Bill during this stressful time and for Cheryl's family in Iowa.

2010-12-20T12:44:00.003-09:00

Merry Christmas from the Troxels!

Winter 2010

Dear Friends,

I hope this post finds you healthy and content. May the spirit of God be with you this blessed holy season. We have had so many things to be thankful for this year, although we have also been through some hard times. I hope to hear from all of you soon and hope you will share what God has been doing in your lives too.

Our New Year started out with a bang! We found out that we were going to have a baby in September. We were all full of joy and very excited. However, the baby was miscarried the end of February, the last full day we were in Hawaii on vacation. Hawaii was warm and wonderful in February. We had an exciting time there; we were evacuated from Waikiki due to a tsunami warning! But we also got to visit the zoo, Pearl Harbor, beaches, shopping districts, and we had good times visiting with my mom and dad and grandma, who were also in Hawaii with us.

We also got to visit Disneyland this year! We spent the month of October traveling in California. We stayed in LA for a week and visited not only Disneyland, but California Adventure Park, the California Science Center, La Brea tar pits, and Hollywood. Then we spent a week at a friend’s family’s cabin up in the San Bernardino Mountains, west of LA. We rode Amtrak from LA to Redding, and visited with some fellow Village Missionaries in Willow Creek, CA. They let us borrow their car to spend a day viewing the Redwoods along the coast. We returned to the train and continued on to southern Washington, where we attended a VM conference in Ocean Park. We were gone long enough to really miss Nenana.

Bill was diagnosed with “Mood Disorder due to a Chronic Medical Condition”, depression related to losing the baby and from dealing with his liver condition. He was put on medication that greatly reduces the pain level he constantly experiences and is also an anti-depressant. He is feeling much better lately, after being on the medication and going to counseling this year. I have also been diagnosed with two more medical conditions this fall. I’m pregnant again! We are expecting a new little Troxel in May. The pregnancy has aggravated a condition I already had; Premature Atrial Contractions, a condition were the parts of my heart don’t beat in sync. This is normal according to the doctor; but it is uncomfortable, and the symptoms should decrease after the baby is born.

Aerin and Ethan are growing tall and more wonderful every day! They are excited about the baby and can’t wait for it to arrive. They won trophies in Tae Kwon Do this year for sparring and patterns. Aerin plays trombone in the junior high school band; Ethan played Santa Claus in the class Christmas play. Aerin was also elected president of the local 4H ATV safety club. They both attended Camp Li-Wa this last summer, and had a fabulous time. When we returned from California, they both had chicken pox. They are very good kids and make us proud.

We started a new hobby this year. We are now chicken owners! We have 19 hens and one rooster and I enjoy them so much. Gathering eggs is a real treasure hunt. We are using and selling the eggs. We made them a house out of straw for the winter and next summer plan to make them a real coop.

May God bless and keep you and yours.

2010-08-11T11:36:00.000-08:00

Aerin got braces!

2010-07-25T22:10:00.000-08:00


We have been helping with Project Overhaul this summer, a local effort to clean up Nenana. We took 14 tons out of town this summer already, and there will be a few more work days scheduled.


A picture of Aerin

A photo of Ethan


This is Lynn, a friend from Tok, who has been spending a lot of time with us this summer.


We hosted a Freecycle at our house and lots of people showed up. We love to BBQ and talk so we had a great time!

The kids and I took a walk and found this old car seat out by the river. We sat for awhile and enjoyed the breeze.

There was a fabulous double rainbow! The sun was shining through it so beautifully, there was more than one set of colors on the big rainbow.

2010-06-27T19:00:00.000-08:00

We have a beautiful new sign! We put this sign up and take it down every week.

2010-06-23T13:11:00.000-08:00

Two more quilts given away. That is now four this year. I hope the kids feel loved and always can find a hug within the quilt when they need it.

2010-06-12T15:29:00.000-08:00

Two more quilts to be given away today. My friend had two little foster girls arrive with nothing more than their clothes on their backs. I thought the girlies would like a quilt of their own. The first one was half finished, (had been for about a year) so I got it out and finished it yesterday. The green one was just waiting for the right kid to come along.

2010-05-31T17:58:00.004-08:00

We were invited on a boat ride upriver with our neighbors. I took lots of photos! I want to share them with you!

2010-05-26T18:41:00.001-08:00

Can you see the temperature!!!! 83.1 degrees at 4:22 p.m. This was in the shade! WOW!

2010-05-26T08:10:00.003-08:00

This was our AWANA group for 2009-2010. We had a great year and the kids did so great! In the last 10 weeks they finished 283 sections!
Aerin finished her fourth T & T book this year and got a trophy, the Timothy Award. She is the only kid in Nenana AWANA that has ever earned this award.

We love AWANA!

2010-05-25T09:16:00.002-08:00

Bill was the commencement speaker at Alaska Bible College this year. This was the last class that would remember him as a student. Graduation was May 8, so we made a weekend of it and went to Glennallen and Tok. We saw 11 moose, 11 caribou, beaver, rabbits and porcupines on the way down and back. We stayed with good friends and had a nice relaxing time.

Our little chicks are turning into chickens! This is a rabbit hutch turned upside down and made into a chicken pen. The kids can fit inside and they go and sit with the chicks.

2010-05-18T08:09:00.002-08:00

Ethan has become quite the artist with the Etch-A-Sketch! I know I couldn't do this!

What a great Mother's Day present from Bill! Just what I wanted. But cooking with stainless steel is certainly different than non-stick!

We are having fun with the chicks. The kids each took two to school today for show and tell. They are so fun to watch!

Marshmallows!

Both kids won trophies in the Tae Kwon Do tournament held in Nenana this last weekend. Aerin got first in Sparring and third in Patterns and Ethan got first in patterns and third in Sparring!

This week is incredibly busy. Maggie has a sore on her leg, so she went to the vet yesterday for medicine and to update her shots. While we were gone the landlord came over and replaced some of the porch boards. Today is helping with Project Overhaul, a local clean up effort, then Wellness in Nenana meeting, then a funeral for Bob Eldridge followed by a potluck, then a meeting this evening about the gas pipeline. Wednesday is the Ethan's class field trip and the Spring Concert in the evening. Thursday is Aerin's class field trip, the Crowly Community Picnic and Races, and 4H in the evening. Friday is the School Clean-Up BBQ followed by a community Clean-Up Day. Saturday nothing yet. Sunday is Graduation followed by a picnic party for the graduates. Whew!

2010-04-28T09:02:00.003-08:00

Ethan and I both got new hairdo's for spring!

We are dog sitting this little dog named Baby for some friends. Maggie (the black and white one) is our little dog.Spring is here! I have since raked up the leaves in the yard!

The kiddos dyed some eggs for Easter.

And our new project for the summer is chickens! We have 20 chicks. We bought all these, we tried to hatch some from eggs, but they didn't make it. Out of 12 eggs, there were four that had chicks in them, but they never hatched.

2010-03-03T19:58:00.001-09:00

We have some bad news and I am so heart broken having to post it.

The baby we were eagerly awaiting miscarried on March 1st.

Sermons Now Online

2010-01-19T14:49:00.001-09:00

We have something new at Nenana Community Church…

I received an excellent suggestion from a member that is in the lower 48 for the next few months. He asked about having sermons recorded so that he and his family could listen in even when they are away for a time. What a great idea! Alaskans love to travel and making sermons available is an excellent ministry opportunity.

The elders chatted about the best way to accomplish this request and we now have a new mp3 recorder. Added to the mix is that the other 2 elders have extensive backgrounds in the skill set to produce a reasonably refined audio track for posting online.

Look on the left hand side of the blog for a list of sermons. Click on the link and it will take you to Bill's blog with a short summary of the topic and a link to the sermon download.

2010-01-13T14:53:00.005-09:00

The 2nd Annual Chili-Off was held January 9th, 2010. There were four more contestants than last year, and all the chili was really good. Each chili was judged in every category and the one with the most points overall was the grand champion!

The judges were left to right, Rebekah Thompson, Carl Horn, Bill Troxel and Wayne Miller.

The winners were Sam Verhagen, Tastiest Chili (2nd year in a row);

Prettiest Chili went to Terri Thompson;

And Hottest and Grand Champion to Jeff Coghill (2nd year in a row)!!!! Photo is from 2009.

Congratulations!!!

******

We had a very busy but very happy Christmas. From the week before Thanksgiving until Christmas Day we had something to do every day. Places to go, people to see, things to do.

On Christmas, we opened presents in the morning and then visited with two different sets of friends before we left on vacation. We so needed it. But it wasn't really an all rest vacation, we were visiting supporters and friends all through Alaska.

This is near Eureka, between Glennallen and Anchorage. I am always amazed at how beautiful Alaska is, every time of year. The sky was so blue and the snow was so white. God is so creative!

The frost was really incredible. It must have stuck out about six inches from the one side of the power pole. All the trees were droopy and the power lines must have been four inches in diameter. It was really cool.

I was taking pictures through my sunglasses and this one is really neat. Darn it though, my sunglasses got broken on this trip. I really liked the purple tint.

This is my friend Esther. I like this photo because we both look so happy.

Esther took this picture of me and Bill so we could have a formal photograph for Village Missions. We don't do formal very often! In fact, we had to borrow some clothes to take the picture!

We will be going to Hawaii in February for a real incognito vacation! We are all looking forward to laying on the beach and soaking up some sun!

2010-01-10T11:05:00.002-09:00

What a great way to start the New Year!

I'm pregnant!

Our baby will be here in September 2010.

We are so very excited!

2009-12-23T20:37:00.002-09:00

We put on a community Thanksgiving dinner on Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. A lot of people came out to have a good time. There was even a pinata and a movie!

We have had three potlatches since mid November. This is a pot of moose head soup. It is served at every potlatch from these enormous pots. Bill has started to help cook the soup.

I set up a table selling fabric at the holiday bazaar. I had a great time and got to see a lot of people.

Ethan had one of the main parts in the K-4 Christmas program. Go Ethan! He did a great job!

Bill got to play Santa Claus again this year. Not everyone was happy to sit on his lap!

2009-12-23T17:09:00.002-09:00

Happy Holidays from Nenana, Alaska!

We want to wish all of our family and friends Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! May God bless you greatly and may you in turn bless others.

2009 has been a great year for us! Our photo was on the front page of the Fairbanks paper, we got to see the Tanana River ice break up, and Bill got his head shaved at AWANA. Rebecca won a local quilt contest, Bill said the river blessing, friends and family came to visit and all of Nenana survived the wildfire that was only a couple miles away. All the details are on our blog; scroll down to read all about it!

We are involved in many activities and are never bored or have nothing to do. The kids participate in tae kwon do and they have won trophies at the tournaments. Aerin is in cheer club this year to encourage the high school basketball team at their home games, and Ethan has joined Cub Scouts. Aerin’s favorite subjects are music and reading and Ethan likes lunch and recess (math too!) They just participated in the annual fall concert; Aerin played the trombone in a trombone/trumpet duet, and Ethan was a part of the 3rd/4th grade drum choir. They both did a great job! Bill keeps busy writing sermons, leading Bible studies, and cutting wood. We bought a chain saw this winter and he has been using it to help others get in wood; we don’t have a wood stove. I work 10 hours a week as a file clerk, quilt and help others with their sewing projects, and be a wife and mom. There is never a dull moment around here.

Nenana Community Church is thriving. We are making a difference in our community and people notice. We just put on a community Thanksgiving dinner, free for all, and about 120 people came (out of a community of 400 or so). We have an average attendance of about 35 and are growing out of our current rented space. This next year we will begin seriously looking into plans for building our own church building. Many times this year people have stopped us and thanked us for coming to Nenana.

We were highlighted in the Village Missionary Prayer Spotlight this October and received quite a few letters, phone calls, emails and monetary gifts. It is wonderful to know that people are praying for us and really want to know what we are doing up here. As the only VM missionaries in Alaska, sometimes it can get lonely and we think we are forgotten. It was so encouraging to hear from so many.

Please pray for us during the upcoming year. Pray for guidance as we will be looking into blueprints and fundraising for our own church building. Pray for ministry opportunities as we continue to plan and implement community activities. Pray for Bill as he prepares the sermon weekly. Pray that we can be a light in the darkness in Nenana. Pray for Aerin and Ethan as they grow up. Pray that I can be a good wife and mother, and not neglect my family by being too busy doing good things.

Our work here is really making a difference in the lives of those around us. Your donations are keeping us here. We have lost some supporters over the last year, due to the downturn in the economy, and we are asking for your help in staying in Nenana. If you could support us on a monthly basis or make a one time gift, we would greatly appreciate it. You can do this by contacting Village Missions by phone at 1-800-617-9905 or on the web www.village-missions.org. If you know someone who is looking for a missionary to support, please pass along our information. Thanks!

2009-12-01T14:46:00.002-09:00

Did you celebrate a Thanksgiving meal? Did you celebrate Thanksgiving Day? We celebrated Thanksgiving Week!
On Sunday, we ate dinner with some friends.
On Monday, I took someone to the doctor and ate lunch in Fairbanks.
On Tuesday, we ate the Thanksgiving lunch put on by the school.
On Wednesday, we didn't eat out but I helped Jeannie make pies for Thursday.
On Thursday, we ate at 2 p.m. at the Bennett's and then again at 6 p.m. at the Verhagen's.
On Friday, we hosted a community Thanksgiving Dinner at the Tribal Hall, about 120 showed up.
On Saturday, there was a memorial pancake supper for Joshua Mayrand.
On Sunday, we had church potluck.
On Monday, Thankfully we ate at home (Between AWANA ending at 5 p.m. and taekwondo starting at 6 p.m.)
On Tuesday, lunch out at the wellness meeting, and dinner at a potlatch.

And we just got word that a local elder passed away today and there will be another potlatch this week.

And this is really our normal.

2009-11-10T14:50:00.002-09:00

We were chosen to be in the Village Missions Spotlight recently and have been overwhelmed with care. Thank you for your letters, notes, monetary gifts and prayers. We have been encouraged, uplifted and made to feel special. This came at a great time for us as we were feeling a little low. God knows our every need.

2009-10-19T10:27:00.003-08:00

Bill's dad and stepmom, John and Patti Troxel, came to visit for a few days. We had a great time visiting with them. They blessed us with a bunch of groceries and presents for all. Thanks!

Bill and the kids did some pumpkin carving while I took pictures. Last year we had a pumpkin but never got around to carving it. So, I made sure to do it this year. Aerin has said she is going to dress up as a tourist and Ethan is going to be a ninja this year.

And here is just a great photo of Aerin.

And a great one of Ethan too.

2009-09-26T07:46:00.003-08:00

We had a fabulous autumn! The colors were so bright and welcome. The weather was nice and warm and we enjoyed every moment.

This article on the front page of the Fairbanks paper was about our friend Walter (the man under the word escape), and how he has gotten sober and his life now, three years out of the chronic inebriate lifestyle. But look who is also on the front page! (I'm glad I wasn't picking my nose or something!)

The kids and I got to go to Denali Park on the Alaska Railroad with the Senior Center (we are volunteers) for $25 per person, a very good deal. Bill was off with his friends (see photo below). I have heard that when you go hunting and get nothing, it is a lot of fun. When you get a moose, it becomes a lot of work. John Watts, Sr. and John Watts, Jr. from Ottumwa, Iowa were here and took Bill out moose hunting with them. They all had a lot of fun.

We do a lot of visitation this way. We go out into the community and look for every chance to say hello and chat.

And we also host events. This is a Freecycle, a large community stuff exchange. You bring when you no longer want and take somebody else's stuff home. We have been doing these for a year and have a great time. We cook some food and other people bring some food too.

And guess what happened last night? SNOW!!! And here is our annual family photo.

August Update

2009-08-23T15:30:00.007-08:00

Wow! Time for an update!

Thank the Lord that the rains came and put out the fire! It started raining August 6th, and it has been pretty wet since then. The fire crews have now left the area after waiting to see if the rains really put out the fire. School has been delayed until September 8 and the kids are kind of bummed as they were looking forward to seeing their friends again.

Bill got to go out to the drill rig, he won a place on the tour in a drawing. They are drilling for natural gas four miles away from Nenana. The first drill site found no gas, but they are going to drill at other sites. Click here to read more about it.
And this was a great year for berry picking! This photo shows over two pounds of raspberries that Aerin and I picked in about an hour. The blueberries were great too. The four of us picked five pounds of blueberries in about 75 minutes. I made blueberry sauce, blueberry syrup and raspberry sauce. Yummy!
The kids learned a new skill this summer!
It was hard to get a picture before the houses fell down/got knocked down!

We went to the Tanana Valley Fair twice, once to go and once because I had to work and Bill and the kids wanted to see more stuff. I worked the booth for CyberLynx, a homeschool program, giving out helium balloons.

The kiddos had to try out the climbing wall, and Ethan made it to the top! Both kids vowed to do it again next year.

Aerin joined soccer this fall. She will have to be in high school to play in the official games, but she can join in the practice and scrimmages. She is in the middle of the photo, in a white shirt, between two players in yellow, looking like she is going to kick the ball, which she did.
This tree is right off the front corner of our porch. Can you see the yellow leaves? Fall is definitely here! It was 36 degrees yesterday when I took Maggie out at 7 a.m. The afternoons are still warmish, but there has been frost a few mornings.
We had a very busy week this last week. Monday was calm and normal, Tuesday was Wellness in Nenana meeting for lunch then a funeral and potlatch. Wednesday was Bill's birthday and we had guests over for salmon, moose, and bison BBQ. Thursday I worked all day at Cyberlynx and then Bill and I had to go to Fairbanks for dinner with the Norwood's (VM staff), Friday I had lunch with a friend, and an invitation for a ham dinner. Aerin had a soccer match. Saturday was going to be spent at home, but Ethan's bike was stolen. I spent an hour in the car, and Bill three hours on his bike, and he found Ethan's bike down by the river. It is still in good shape. Then on short notice there was a potluck and concert at the tribal hall. Sunday (today) is Aerin's birthday (more cake)! Eating special meals (birthdays and away from home) six days out of seven is not conducive to losing weight! Hopefully this week is calmer and not so crazy. Well, Bill is called up for jury duty tomorrow in Fairbanks (I hope he doesn't have to serve, it's a murder trial).

We have some friends visiting from Iowa in the beginning of September and then Bill's dad will be visiting the first week of October.

Fire!

2009-07-22T10:44:00.004-08:00

So what does living 10 miles from a 200,000 acre wildfire look like? I took some photos of the big smoke clouds on Sunday and Tuesday. Some days the smoke blows over us and we can't see very much at all. We have had some ash fall, but not really very much. There are helicopters flying over all day long, delivering supplies and water to the firefighters. The fire is mostly being allowed to burn, and is not being put out. There are some places where the fire will not be allowed to go, and those small areas will be fought for.

2009-07-22T10:39:00.003-08:00

The previous photos have been the fire west of Nenana. The following photo is of a fire east of Nenana.

2009-07-18T13:03:00.002-08:00

We got to go on a short Alaska roadtrip and visit our supporters, and have some fun. These are some photos from July 2009.

Near Eureka, Alaska

Grizzley Lake, Mile 53 Tok Cutoff

Worthington Glacier near Valdez

Worthington Glacier near Valdez

Worthington Glacier near Valdez

2009-07-05T22:10:00.002-08:00

We had some overnight visitors last week and they said some nice things about us. Check out their adventure and what they said about us!

AdventuresforAutism

Read journal entry for June 30th!

2009-07-05T16:21:00.004-08:00

***Notice the smoke! There is a fire west of Nenana and we are getting alot of smoke and flying ash and ashy rain. It is very rough on those with breathing problems. It is getting worse every day.***

Bill was asked to preach a short sermon after a session of native drumming that has held after the local 4th of July activities.

As a token of appreciation from the native Christian community, Bill and Rebecca were presented with gifts. Bill received a spotted owl feather and Rebecca was given a kusbuk.

This is Ida, a native pastor, singing praise songs to native drumming.

The photos that Rebecca sent in to the Fairbanks paper were printed on Father's Day! There is Bill in the photo on the left and Aerin on the right.

Please pray that our car gets fixed. We are having a problem getting the parts to Fairbanks in order to have the CV joints fixed under warranty. We are wanting to travel this week and the car was supposed to be fixed last week. Also, Bill got a notice for jury duty. He is supposed to call in on Tuesday. This is the third time we have wanted to take a week away, and the third jury notice that he has received in the same week. We feel doomed. Please pray that we get some time away and time to rest.

***The car got fixed and we got to take some vacation time! Yea!***

2009-06-12T20:26:00.003-08:00

Bill was asked to preach the sermon for the Tanana River Blessing on June 7. This is an annual event held during River Daze, the first weekend of June.

There were about 50 people in attendance.

After the River Daze parade, a group always gathers to say a prayer for Nenana. This is Rita on the left and Sue on the right.

We like to spend time on the river bank. The kids play in the muddy silt (it washes off, really!) The river is so silty, you can see your feet when you are only in up to your ankles.

Look what Rebecca did today! She put up a rope swing which included borrowing and CLIMBING a ladder! The kiddos are thrilled!

2009-06-06T22:31:00.002-08:00

We have had a chance to rest so far in June. Bill and I celebrated our 15th anniversary on June 6th, and celebrated in part by going to Jester's, a local bar, for soda and to listen to a friend play live music.

We had a freecycle tonight, an everything is free yard sale, and there were about 30 in attendance. We grilled hot dogs, salmon and burgers. We had some great fellowship and made some new friends too. Today was Nenana River Daze, with a parade and everything.

The church is seeing some new attendees. We are now up to an average of about 35 on Sunday mornings and 20 or so on Sunday nights. This is really wonderful, but we are outgrowing our space. We would really like to build our own building here in Nenana, but we are short in the finance department. God knows our need and he will fill it in his time.

I am looking for someone to quilt some tops for me as a charity project. If there is anyone you know who can help me, please drop me an email.

2009-06-06T22:18:00.002-08:00

This is Aerin, the tied for first place winner of the Nenana River Daze pie eating contest!

2009-05-23T12:00:00.003-08:00

The Nenana Patchers made a quilt for a lady going through chemo and radiation, (I made the block in the upper right hand corner) and we presented it to her last Thursday at a lunch party.

We were able to go on a riverboat ride the day after school got out,

and this is where Ethan spent most of the ride! He was watching the paddle wheel.

Here is a current photo of our little family. We had such a great time!

Aerin and I saw sandhill cranes yesterday at Creamer's Field in Fairbanks.

2009-05-11T19:06:00.000-08:00

Nenana Ice Classic is over for 2009

2009-05-01T22:43:00.007-08:00

The tripod went out this evening. The clock stopped at 9:42 p.m. May 1st! (official time is 8:41 p.m., something about daylight savings?) And guess what! I was there to see it!!!!!!

These pictures do not do it justice! When the ice was moving, it felt like a train was going by, the earth was rumbling. The sound was a loud rumbling, creaking and whooshing. It was huge!

This last picture shows the channel behind the tripod opening and ice chuncks piling up behind it.

2009-04-24T20:58:00.004-08:00

Not only did Pastor Bill lose his hair, Mr. Schubert, the youth pastor also lost his beard. The AWANA kids said another 100 sections in order to shave Mr. Schubert's beard. The kids said more than 300 sections in 10 weeks.

This weekend is another freecycle, with dinner being a baked potato bar. We will be showing National Treasure also. We are looking forward to a great time!

2009-04-20T09:28:00.001-08:00

Breakup is here! And what a difference a few days make! The snow is melting and the water is still standing around. The puddles are so fun to drive thru! It reminds me of one time in Hawaii, my parents drove thru a storm valley in the road and it was so much fun we turned around and did it twice more!

2009-04-07T19:45:00.005-08:00

There was a house fire in our community a few weeks ago and I gave some more quilts away.

2009-04-07T19:43:00.000-08:00

My dh is such a good sport! For AWANA we challenged the kids to say 200 sections in 10 weeks, and they did it in 6! Their reward?

Shave the pastor's head!!!

2009-03-09T12:48:00.005-08:00

Diet Challenger Wins Donut Eating Contest

and Quilt Competition

NENANA-- Rebecca Troxel of Nenana was the winner this weekend of the Donut Eating Contest, hosted by the Nenana Ice Classic as part of the Tripod Days celebration. Rebecca downed a donut and a half in the one-minute time limit, easily out-munching the competition. The donuts were dry, hard to swallow cake donuts, but Rebecca beat the odds without even a cup of water to aid in the difficult task. In her victory, she claimed the $3 prize. And she wanted to mention, "Even though I ate the donuts, I lost .4 pounds this week."

Rebecca was a double champion this weekend, also winning the Quilt Contest. She took first place this year, a better finish than her second place win last year. On seeing the quilt she entered for judging, her arch rival (last year's quilt contest winner) said, "If you are going to enter that one, I'm not even going to bother to enter." Rebecca was estatic at this year's win; she said before the judging, "I'm in it to win it!" The winning quilt was a hand pieced, hand quilted 1000 Pyramids. It is not a true charm quilt in that some of the fabrics are repeated, but it does have over 900 different fabrics in the 1100 piece quilt. The prize was a $25 gift card to Jo-Ann's.

Rebecca and her family also participated in other weekend events including the Hula Hoop Contest, the Ball and Chain Contest, Face Painting, the TaeKwon Do Demonstration, the Potato Race, the Tug of War, the Egg Toss, the Gunny Sack Race and the Pop Scramble. They were very happy to win a door prize; a gift certificate to the Monderosa, a local restaurant.

The Nenana Ice Classic is happy to announce that the official Tripod is now up on the Tanana River and everyone will be waiting until the ice melts and the $300,000 prize will be awarded to the person who guesses closest to the time the ice goes out.

2009-03-02T13:44:00.002-09:00

The kiddos were in a TaeKwon do Tournament this last weekend and they are Champions!

Aerin won 1st Place in Sparring!

Ethan won 1st Place in Sparring and 3rd Place for Patterns.

2009-02-27T16:25:00.003-09:00

I gave away this quilt yesterday. I was so happy to find who it belonged to. You see, I made this quilt for someone three years ago, but I didn't know her then. Here's the story.

The fabric on the back of this quilt has the name Chelsea written on it. All over the design, in fact. I don't know where I got the fabric or why it said Chelsea. I knew when I put the back on that one day I would meet Chelsea and this would be her quilt.

This quilt has been used a few times, but mostly it has been in the closet on the shelf. I was cold a few nights ago and pulled this quilt out. The next morning I was laying in bed enjoying looking at the quilt when I realized that I had met who the quilt belongs to. I washed the quilt and got it ready to give away.

I wait for God to tell me who gets the next quilt. There has been a family of kids on my mind but I don't know them, I have just met them in passing. It would be weird for me to give them quilts as they don't live near me. But the oldest girl just moved back to my town and we have talked a few times. She is 14, and her name is Chelsea!

When I gave her the quilt, I told her it had her name written all over it! I am so thrilled to have given the quilt away! I knew when I made it I would give it away some day and that day arrived. This is why I make quilts!

Chili Cook-off

2009-02-01T18:36:00.004-09:00

On Jan. 17, Nenana Community Church and Nenana Wellness Coalition sponsored a Chili Cook-off and Freecycle.

We had seven chili entrants and four judges, and about 50 people showed up for a bowl of free chili! We held the event at the Tribal Hall, our first event there. Everyone said they had a great time and are looking forward to doing it again next year! We awarded prizes for

Tastiest to Merrily Ver HagenHottest and Grand Champion to Jeff Coghilland Prettiest to Kelvin Schubert.

Our judges were Innoko Chapman, Bill Troxel, Terri Thompson, and Eric Gephart (Superintendent).

2009-01-31T14:14:00.003-09:00

We travelled to Anchorage and Glennallen this last week for a short vacation. I saw this sign in Anchorage and just had to take a photo. The white sign is the funny part "Swimsuits Ice Grippers".

2009-01-13T15:52:00.000-09:00

Heat Wave!

2009-01-06T14:10:00.001-09:00

December 2008

To all our dear friends and family:

We are hoping this letter finds you happy and healthy and enjoying your family and friends during this most blessed of seasons.

This year has been full of ups and downs but we are always serving the Lord with all our hearts. We have become more deeply involved in Nenana and with the people here. We have been told many times over that we are the right people to reach out to Nenana and that we are a blessing to the town. Some acquaintances that have lived here longer than we have came to us to ask how to become involved in the community. We were able to tell them how to find out what’s happening and help them find activities to enjoy.

We have had many good times. We started an every other month community activity called a Freecycle – like a yard sale but everything is free, and we provided dinner too. We traveled to Oregon for a Village Missions conference and then on to Iowa to see Bill’s family. I have made and given away about six quilts to kids that need an extra measure of love. Aerin started playing the trombone in the school band this year. Ethan was just awarded his yellow belt in tae kwon do. Bill was asked to play Santa for the Senior’s Christmas Bazaar, and had a great time. We attended our first and second potlatch, a native traditional dinner and dance. We are involved weekly in AWANA, Bible studies, youth group, Sunday services, tae kwon do and crafting at senior housing. We also volunteer often at the school and community activities. We have been losing weight and are down 100 pounds between Bill and Rebecca.

There have been many tragic deaths in Nenana this last year. In July, Cindy, a church member, died of metastasized breast cancer, leaving a husband and three children. In October, the mayor’s 15 year old son, Josh, was killed when his snow machine slid in front of a car on the highway. A man, Richard, died of alcoholism, just two weeks after Josh. A week later, another young man that grew up here, Freddy, was killed in a snow machine accident in Fairbanks, and was brought to Nenana for services. Bill was afforded many opportunities to talk to people about God’s ultimate plan and how to deal with the grief of losing a loved one. Also in August, Nenana was flooded and property was destroyed but no one perished.

We are looking forward with great expectation to the new year. We are sure that we are where God wants us to be and doing what God wants us to do. So whatever this next year brings, we know God is in control. We update our web pages often so come and see what we are doing.

nenana.blogspot.com, rebecca0669.blogspot.com and nenana.wordpress.com

2008-12-31T11:04:00.005-09:00

It is cold here today! And it has been about 30 below F since Saturday! And it is not going to warm up anytime soon. So what do you do at -40F? Stay inside where it is 70 above! And start the car every few hours! We do have a lunch to go to at two, we won't turn the car off as there is no place to plug in to keep the engine warm. And the interior gets so cold too. There is another potluck to go to tonight at 8 p.m. and then some dogs to check on, and then fireworks at midnight.

About cold, really cold.

From 0 to -20 F is not bad. Very liveable weather. The car needs to warm up about 10 minutes, coats and gloves and hats are needed when going about town.

-20 to -40F is okay. Snowpants and coveralls are the normal dress.

The car needs about 20 minutes to function, but it doesn't act warm until about 10 minutes of driving. The interior doesn't get warm, even with the heat on high. If the defrost is lowered or changed to heat the interior, the windshield immediately frosts. The other windows are all frosted all the time. Moving about town is limited.

-40 to -60F is just about awful. The car is so cold, it doesn't warm up. If you have to drive somewhere, the car has square tires that take a mile or so to round out. If you get the car started, you must plug it in where ever you go or leave it running. Snow pants, coveralls, face masks, gloves, long underwear, sweaters and layers are all required attire. Town travel is just not worth it and road travel is just what is really necessary. Any travel requires blankets, and all emergency gear in the car.

-60F and colder. What is so necessary to do in this weather? Most people stay home. School is cancelled at 55 below. Work is optional; so many cars won't start, it is expected people won't come in. Travel is emergency only. You won't get warm in the car, so full winter attire, blankets and hand warmers are necessary.

We went to Fairbanks yesterday for a dentist appointment and groceries, driving about town the signs said -38F. So many cars are left running, the air quality is awful. Added to wood smoke, you just about can't breathe. Everything is kept at ground level, the pollution doesn't lift due to the cold. Wow, it was really cold. We left the car running while visiting with some friends in McDonalds for an hour, we had the groceries in the car and didn't want them to freeze. Winter is hard on the gas budget, so thank God that we are now paying $2.45 a gallon, not the $4.63 we were paying.

The sun is finally peeking above the trees, it is 11:30 a.m. and it will be dark by 4. I mean DARK. There is no warmth to the sun, just brightness, and not much of that. I just took this photo out the front window. The sun won't get any higher.

2008-12-22T15:23:00.004-09:00

We have been busy these last few weeks with Christmas activities. Bill was asked to play Santa for the Seniors Christmas Bazaar, and he had a great time!

Bill was asked to be the Narrator for the Nativity Program and Ethan was a shepard and Aerin was an angel.

We arranged a caroling session last night. I was shocked when 40 people showed up to go caroling! We sang to about 12 houses and then stopped for cookies and hot chocolate. It was about -10 F. Everyone said it was a great time and next year we should do it again!

Tonight is a Christmas party, tomorrow night is a Christmas party, and Wednesday is a Christmas party at our house. Whew!

2008-11-26T19:33:00.006-09:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

We have already been to two Thanksgiving meals and it is not the official day yet! We went to the school community lunch on Monday and then to the Senior Housing Dinner on Tuesday. We were invited especially so that Bill could pray for the dinner. There were about 35 people there, and our presence was really appreciated. Bill talked with Nina about beading, his new hobby. In this community, beading opens up a lot of doors, and leads to many conversations. Nina makes beaded slippers and gloves and sells them in the store here. They are breath-taking, the whole top part is beaded.

This last week, we attended our first potlatch and then the second the same week. A potlatch is a big party in honor of a native who died. The first potlatch was for Richard, a 37 year old; and the second was for Freddy, another youth who died in a snow machine accident. When someone dies, the family starts cooking at the native hall. Usually food is cooked for up to five days, all meals, for anyone who wants to come. After the funeral service, always held at 2 p.m., the main potlatch starts at 6 p.m. Chairs are set up around the outer perimeter of the room, and then another row is set up facing those chairs about six feet apart. Then another row is set up back to back of the second row and sometimes a fourth row of chairs is added. Large rolls of freezer paper are unrolled at your feet and this becomes your table. There is a foot wide space between the freezer paper tables and this is where the servers scooch down the row, serving as they go. It is tradition to bring your own dishes, and lots of plastic bags, and a soup container. The family gives away moose meat (a traditional hunt is allowed any time someone dies), and oodles of food. Moose soup is the big thing, and they make it in vats over an open fire. When the food is all given out and some of it eaten, everyone helps to clear the chairs. Then the singing and dancing begins.

The first part of the singing is mourning. They are sad slow songs, sung by the elders mostly, and sung in honor of the deceased. After about half an hour, the drums come out and the dancing begins. The men stand in front of the drums, then the children and the women in the back. The drums are so loud, and then the guys start stomping. Wow, you just have to bop with the music.

There is one dance called the Athabascan Twist, and all the guys go find a partner and do the twist.

There is a game that is played with candy as the prize. The family unrolls bolts of fabric to make a huge rope. There are about 10 bolts. Everyone holds the rope and gets in a big circle, moving clockwise around the room, as big as the circle can be.

Then when the music stops, everyone runs together to make one long rope, and tug of war begins! Pull, pull, pull! After one side wins, the game is started over again.

When the last tug of war is done, bags of candy are opened and the candy is thrown everywhere. Everyone is on the floor scrambling for bits of sweetness.

After the dancing is finished, the family gives out gifts to the gravediggers, casket makers, cooks and helpers. Sometimes the potlatches go on until wee morning hours.

I have been sewing with Ruth for about a year on Tuesday mornings. We are making quilts. She is so dedicated, working on one project at a time, until it is finished. I work on this, then that, then finish something else.

Vern and Cindy came to visit. They are the district reps for Village Missions. We had a great time! They are pleased with our work here and think we are doing all the right things. Praise the Lord!

And this is our cute gingerbread house!

2008-10-21T14:34:00.000-08:00

We have had a tragedy here in Nenana.

A 15 year old boy was hit and killed by a car while riding his snowmachine.

The town is devastated.

Bill will be participating in the funeral on Friday.

Please pray for him and for the people of Nenana.

2008-09-30T17:07:00.001-08:00

It is snowing here today!!!!

2008-09-23T21:07:00.003-08:00

Yea AWANA!

Firmly AWANA stands, led by the Lord's command...

Awana started on Sept 15 with 25 kids in attendance. We are looking forward to another great year!

We had the wonderful opportunity to attend the AWANA conference in Anchorage over this last weekend. There were wonderful workshops covering all aspects of AWANA and we had a great conversation on the way home about improving our program. We had 8 leaders/helpers attend the conference!

2008-09-07T19:05:00.002-08:00

The colors around here these days are so beautiful. The sky is blue, the trees are yellow and orange. Snow is not far away, it is about 38 in the mornings.

2008-08-25T12:39:00.003-08:00

Most of Nenana is dried out. The streets are solid again, but the river bank is not yet walkable. There is some sitting water in the low areas. Now comes the clean up stage. Many people have piles of flood damaged goods waiting for the garbage man. There are some dumpsters available for garbage too. The flood damage inspectors have been around to verify flood loss and people are trying to replace lost items.

We had very few losses compared to our neighbors. But our shed and our storage trailer were knee deep in water. We lost or had damaged to the following items

Storage Trailer
Army Footlocker
Photo Albums (12)
Rocking Chair
Tires
Card Table
Sewing Machine and Case
Washer
Dryer
Lawn Mower
Brush Trimmer
Radio Control Toy Car
Christmas Tree
Winter Boots
Luggage
Stereo
Books
Clothes
Wrapping Paper
Boys Bike
Scooter Toy
Wooden Shelf

2008-08-12T19:09:00.002-08:00

We have had some flood damage as you can see in the photos. But we are so thankful that we lost only photos and things. We will file a flood damage claim. The water is mostly gone and the roads are going to be resurfaced. God is good-all the time.

2008-08-04T21:42:00.002-08:00

This is the last time we drove down this road. The water was almost into the car doors.

My house looking from the back. Notice the water is over the tires of the trailer. Good thing we moved the car! Thanks, Dad!

A flooded lot.

Photo from Sunday's Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.

We had to go back in and get a few things. Good thing we found a bucket that floated!

And Saturday night God's reminds us of his promise that he will not flood the earth again. And there is renewed hope in Nenana. There was a double rainbow and a beautiful sunset. Our God is an AWESOME God!

Nenana Flood

2008-08-01T18:49:00.006-08:00

The river is over the banks and Nenana is starting to flood. Most of the ditches are full and the water almost meets in the middles of the streets. Some are completely under water. All the area of the above map that is spray painted pink is flooded. The area inside the railroad loop has been evacuated.
Photo taken Wednesday evening about 7 p.m. Taken at the point of the yellow circle on the above map.Same point Saturday morning.
Dark green rectangle. 3rd St and B, looking toward river.
Dark blue rectangle, looking toward the railroad loop. Friday afternoon.
Same point but looking toward a house not down the street.
My house, light blue rectangle. 1st and E.
Blue Square, looking out by where the barges tie up. The water is over the dock and almost up to the tripod.
Street between the Civic Center and Coghill's Store. Pink square on map. The city plugged the storm drains with dirt, water was coming out instead of going in. Water is still seeping up.

2008-07-19T21:23:00.002-08:00

We will miss you Cindy.

Conference Vacation and Home Again

2008-07-18T12:01:00.006-08:00

The week before we left for conference and vacation, we sponsored a Freecycle at our house. We invited the town over for a grill out and about 70 people came over. We grilled hot dogs, salmon, moose, turkey, brats and burgers. Many people brought stuff like chips, potato salad, veggies, ice tea, cookies, and we had quite a party. The Freecycle part was like a big yard sale, but everything is free. People bring what they don't want and take what they do.

There was a great variety of people, young and old, native and white, from church and not. Free food always gets people to come out!

We left Nenana for the Village Missions Conference on June 15 at 2 p.m., and arrived in Cannon Beach, OR at the facility on June 16 at 3 p.m. It was a great time to catch up on our friends from Candidate School and we met lots of new people. We had chapel times and bible study times and free times on the beach.

After the conference we were the guest speakers for an Alaska Fund raiser Dinner that Village Missions hosted. Both the Hayeks from Galena and we got to speak about our mission fields. That night over $10,000 was donated to help pay our salaries. Praise the Lord!

The next day, we took off to drive to Iowa. We drove from Salem diagonal across Oregon, down to I80. Then across the US to Ottumwa, Iowa. It took two and a half days, and we ran into every construction zone and detour there ever was.

We enjoyed visiting family and friends in Iowa. We took Bill's mom to Des Moines for her birthday. We were going to go to Adventureland Amusement Park, but it was closed due to rain. We ate at Red Lobster, and then went to the Botanical Gardens.

The kids were very excited to ride cousin Jesse's horse.

At the end of our visit to Iowa, we got word that Cindy Ronander was ill and in the hospital in Anchorage. We decided it was best that we go home as soon as we could. So we got back in the car and drove right back to Portland to catch an earlier flight back to Anchorage. We had planned to take a week to drive back and see stuff, but we only had time to stop at Mt. Rushmore.

We drove through the Columbia River Gorge and got to see the dams too.

When we arrived in Anchorage, we went straight to the hospital. Cindy was dying of liver failure. She had been ill with breast cancer, and it had metastasized to her spine and she had been receiving chemo for that all winter. The doctors found tumors in her liver. She died on July 5. Her family greatly appreciated our presence during this very sad time. The kids and grandparents were all in Anchorage and we took the kids for some good times around town during those difficult days. After Cindy died, the family went back to Wisconsin for the remainder of the summer.

While we were in Anchorage, we also got to see the Somers. Scott and Anna have moved into a townhouse provided by the church where Scott is now the youth minister. Praise the Lord for this ministry opportunity! We got to see Silas and wonder at his abilities and cuteness! Please continue to pray for Silas, as he is battling another very serious cold.

We also spent time with my parents and grandma. Family is always such a blessing and I can never tell them Thank You enough for all they do for us when we are in Anchorage.

We then went to Glennallen for a few days to renew friendships there. It was so nice to visit. It was a haven of comfort after a difficult time in Anchorage. Then, on July 12 we finally arrived home. And that was just the best time of all.

2008-05-22T15:12:00.000-08:00

2008-05-22T15:07:00.002-08:00

William & Rebecca,

I have been enjoying your monthly reports. It has been such a blessing to read of your challenges, blessings and growth.

Each time someone sends in a donation, a receipt and "receipt note" is created and signed by Brian Wechsler.

During the month of April, the following note will be entered on all receipts that are used to confirm and acknowledge the gifts that have been received. Thought you would like to know about this and how much your work and ministry in Nenana, AK is being used and shared. It has been attached to this message.

Mindy and I are praying for you folks. Thank you so much in the work that you are doing and in serving God.

In His Service,

Neil A. Schaffner

Director of Stewardship

You would only see this in a small church . . . The pastor is preaching and asks the congregation to turn to a particular Scripture. In the front row there’s an 11-year-old girl who is looking and looking and looking. She’s only a couple steps away from the pastor and he sees what’s going on. He stops preaching. He wants her to be on the same page everyone else is on. For a minute he excuses himself from behind the small stand that holds his Bible and notes. He helps her find the place in the Bible he mentioned.

Jesus said that he wanted the little children to come to him and Pastor Troxel of Nenana, AK was just following in his master’s footsteps.

That’s what your generous gift means to rural communities . . . a chance for young people to find Jesus. Thank you for helping!

Keeping country churches alive,

Brian Wechsler

2008-05-18T07:38:00.004-08:00

Summer is here! The trees are budded, the birds are singing and the grass is getting green. The last snow fall was May 1^stand it was a doozy.

We got about four inches of really wet heavy snow, and all the kids had a great time making snowmen and snowballs.

But recently the temps have gotten up to 70 F and it is just wonderful. I take the dogs walking every morning and we enjoy the sunshine.

Nenana looks great today! Yesterday was Clean-Up Day and all the school kids walked around town cleaning up the litter. Bill and I joined up with different classes and picked up our fair share. Mostly we picked up cans! The Native Council and the City are picking up garbage for free this weekend. I talked to the guy in charge and he said they have already taken 6,000 pounds to the dump!!! We put out an old satellite dish left over from previous tenants and lots of cans from the back of the property. We are raking up many years worth of leaves. Six piles of leaves were an hour's work.

Many people in our church will be traveling for long periods of time this summer, so our attendance will be down for awhile. Our Sunday evening services have been very well received. We started the Truth Project on the first Sunday in February and maintained attendance of about 30, many people attending the evening program that go to other churches in the morning. Now that the Truth Project has been completed we will be studying the Bible, its origins, its inspiration and its versions from the original to the present.

We will also be traveling to Oregon and on to Iowa. We have a Village Missions conference to attend in Canon Beach, OR and then we are going to drive to Iowa to see Bill’s family. We are going to drive pretty quickly from Oregon to Iowa but on the way back we will take our time and have a family vacation. We will be going to some zoos, Mount Rushmore, an amusement park in Des Moines and a botanical center. We will be gone from June 16 to July 12.

Bill and I continue on with our community activities. Bill went with the third/fourth grade on their field trip to Fairbanks to go swimming, to the Large Animal Research Station, and to a gold dredge. I am going with the first/second grade on their field trip next week. Today is a community picnic and we are going to that, and then tomorrow we will be the workers for food delivery to those who need it. I have started attending the meetings of Wellness in Nenana, a group whose goal is to promote healthy living in our community. We have been talking about gardening and composting this spring. I adopted some composting worms, and they are making beautiful dirt!

School will be out next week and the kids are looking forward to riding bikes all day long. Ethan took his training wheels off about a week ago and off he went, only falling down twice.

There are a lot of kids here in town to play with and we have a big yard, and a swing set across the street. Both Aerin and Ethan did great in their classes and Aerin has Perfect Attendance this year in school and AWANA. The kiddos have been going to Tae Kwondo classes this school year and they attended a tournament and both won medals and trophies!

Speaking of AWANA, we ended the meetings on May 5^th. We handed out many awards and had a great selection of cookies! We had great attendance this year, most weeks we had more than 20 kids and 8 adults. We participated in the AWANA Games in Fairbanks with Denali Bible Chapel and everyone had a lot of fun running around.

We are getting better known in the community and many people stop to talk with us. Bill was asked at the last community meeting to open in prayer, he was introduced as the pastor of “our community church”. He has also been asked to open the River Blessing Ceremony tomorrow with prayer. This has been a catholic event in the past but this year they opened the service to everyone.

We are so happy here in Nenana. This little town is a perfect match for us. I pray our lives are saying more to the people here than our mouths ever could. We strive each day to bring glory to God in everything we do. Please continue to pray for us and our community. Pray that we will reach more people and tell them about God. Pray that alcohol loses its grip on the native population. Pray for traveling safety for all of us this summer.

In Christ,

Bill and Rebecca

2008-02-16T17:08:00.001-09:00

The Lord is doing great things in Nenana! January 28, 2008

The first and most exciting news is that Nenana Community Church is adding a Sunday evening service starting February 1^st! We are starting out with the video series “The Truth Project” and will continue with a regular service when that is complete. We wanted to start a Sunday evening service upon arrival, but making changes too soon is not a good idea. However, many people were asking for an evening service, and so after talking it over with the elders and Village Missions, we decided to give it a go.

AWANA is continuing to grow. We now have about 24 kids that are regular attendees. Last year, the average meeting was made up of 8 kiddos! We also have ten adult volunteers. Every week we are giving out awards for the kids learning Bible verses, reciting the books of the Bible, bringing friends, and attending. We are reaching not only the kids, but the families too.

Last Thursday night there was a community meeting. There were nearly 150 people there, that’s about one third of the town! We met some people, ate spaghetti, visited with friends and won door prizes. The town will be making some improvements this summer. They are putting in a water softening plant, resurfacing the streets, repairing the street lights and adding a garbage dump station. The school is looking for a new superintendent, the current one is resigning at the end of the year. The Railbelt Mental Health Center will be having a community health fair in March, and Bill and I volunteered to run a booth.

Our family helped out with the food delivery in January. There is a program for the elderly and low income families to receive boxes of food and the senior center runs the distribution. Nenana Community Church provides people every month to help and it was our month. It takes about two hours and we ride the senior bus and the drivers say, “Take this box over there” or “They get some cheese” and off we go. We have made friends with Dan and Ray, the drivers, and have had an opportunity to meet some other townspeople.

We bought another vehicle. Our poor van was so worn out that the dealership didn’t even want it for a trade in. We chose a 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe, a small SUV. It is smoky dark blue and is just wonderful. It has about 35000 miles on it and just seems brand new. And best of all, it has auto start!

We thank the Lord every day for your support, and for the opportunities we have to share our work with others. The Lord is doing great things in Nenana!

We do ask for your prayers:

1. Remember Nenana Community Church as we begin the Sunday evening services.

2. The darkness is difficult to live in, it can cause depression. Please pray for the emotional health of our community.

3. The school is the very center of most small towns, and the search for a superintendent is a major concern for the community.

4. A local pastor has been diagnosed with a very serious form of cancer and is awaiting test results to determine treatment options. Please pray for his peace of mind and strength to continue to shepherd God’s people.

2008-01-25T18:50:00.001-09:00

We bought a new to us car on Dec. 21. It is a 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe, a small SUV. We are so very happy with it and feel so secure when we are in it. I didn't realize how intrepidatious the van made me feel.

On the third Saturday of each month volunteers from Nenana Community Church help deliver food to the Elders and low income families. January was our month. The delivery takes about two hours, and involves taking the boxes from the van to the door. In the senior center, they have a couple carts so we don't have to carry all the boxes.

Every three months the Native Council, Railbelt Mental Health Center and the City of Nenana sponsor a community meeting. We attended the meeting last night and there was a great turn out. There were about 150 people there, native and white. We got to meet the chief, Mitch Demitrioff, and had a great time talking with everyone. There were reports about the native clinic, the school, the city water plant, a new day care, a few new streetlights, and resurfacing the existing streets.

A New Website

2008-01-12T16:56:00.000-09:00

Greetings Friends & Family!

As you know, this blogger site serves as a means to keep our updates online for all of our supporters. We are thankful for you and your partnership as we serve our Lord in Nenana. We enjoy praying for each of you. Please send us a note or give us a call if we can pray for a specific need.

Rebecca has a blogger site as well. There is a link in the side bar to her quilting blog. While you might consider me biased, she is extremely talented and I enjoy her enjoyment of quilting.

Now I am pleased to introduce a new ministry website. The site will be my regular means of communicating our daily and weekly ministry. The site has a blog on it that i will contribute to regularly. There is a page with slideshows of pictures of our family, our town, our church, etc. My sermon calendar is on one page along with descriptions of Nenana Community Church's various ministries. There is also a page of online resources that I use for sermon preparation and personal Bible study. I hope you find those links as useful as I have.

The site is still under construction, so more pages will be added and a few things might be moved around. Within the next few weeks, I hope to have the site in a standard format for your use.

I will add a link to the site on the side bar but let me also include it here:

http://troxel.uber.com

I hope the New year is finding you well. If we can be of any service, or pray for you in any way, please let us know.

2007-12-19T14:24:00.000-09:00

We wish you a Merry Christmas!

We are so thankful this holiday season to be serving the Lord in Nenana. We continually talk about how much we enjoy it here, and how we feel that we have been placed here for a reason. We thank you so much for praying and supporting us so that we can do the Lord’s work.

We were very pleased this last week to be asked by a local organization to help fill the food boxes for the needy family in our community. Bill spent one whole afternoon carrying turkeys, canned food, milk, eggs, bread, etc. from the trucks to the tables, to the boxes, to the people. He was able to meet a bunch of new people, both in the white and native community.

We have had a great time listening to the school Christmas concerts, participating in the class parties, and attending movie night fund raisers. Rebecca helped the first and second graders make reindeer antlers for their play, The Littlest Reindeer. And her picture was in the paper because she helped make a quilt that was auctioned off as a fund raiser for the senior center.

We would ask for your prayers for the Blair family, who recently lost a young son due to heart trouble. Please lift up in prayer a man who is coming to Bill for spiritual help. Also please continue to pray for our elders as they guide our church through the necessary paperwork required by the State of Alaska.

We have also had answers to our prayers. A friend, Wanda, was having a lot of foot trouble and after a visit to a specialist is now pain free. Baby Silas is home from the NICU and doing well. We are breaking attendance records at AWANA nearly every week. The Lord is doing great things!

In Him,

Bill and Rebecca

westroxel@gmail.com, rebecca0669@yahoo.com

2007-12-19T14:21:00.001-09:00

Prayer Request

2007-12-05T14:53:00.000-09:00

A young man from our community was just life-flighted to Seattle. Please pray for his healing, peace and comfort for the entire family, and for wisdom from the doctors.

Update:
The young man went home to be with his Lord on Thursday the 13th. The service is Thursday, Dec 20th.

Remain in prayer for his family. They know they will see him again someday, but their loss and grief must be hard to bear. Pray for their continued peace and healing.

2007-11-28T08:00:00.001-09:00

I took some pictures this weekend. First of all, here is our church during service. We had 27 in attendance this week.

And some new photos of each of us. Notice the big green spot on Ethan's forehead? He ran into the support at AWANA. He said he didn't cry because he didn't want anyone to know that he had blinked while running and hit the post.

2007-11-21T15:17:00.000-09:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

We have been here in Nenana a little over three months and are as excited about it today as the first day. We hope there is as much to be thankful for in your house as there is in ours. My parents are here to spend the holiday with us, and we always enjoy their visits. We celebrated Thanksgiving with a potluck for our church family and a community dinner at the school today.

Nenana Community Church is growing in size and in commitment. Offering in October was $1700 more than offering in August. This is great for the church budget! Our membership elected another elder to fulfill the church constitution. There is a great amount of participation in activities by our church family. AWANA is fully staffed; Ladies Bible Study has had a solid turnout of seven plus a few more here and there. There are many church attendees that are involved in the school, and a few are involved with the radio station, KIAM. Bill is continuing to attend the Pastoral Prayer Meeting with the other clergy of Nenana. We are getting better connected to the happenings of our town every day.

Bill had quite a pastoral experience in October. A friend and fellow supporter Scott, and his wife, Anna, delivered a healthy baby, Silas, but within minutes his health deteriorated and he needed to be rushed to Anchorage NICU. Scott called to tell Bill this news as they were riding in the ambulance. Bill knew he must go to them in Anchorage. Thankfully, we had the means for him to get on a plane and be there in less than four hours. Scott was so thankful that Bill arrived to help them through this difficult time. Bill was by their side for four days. Baby Silas is continuing to have problems with eating, but is looking forward to being home for Christmas.

We covet your continued prayers for our personal needs and the concerns of our church:

Nenana Community Church will be working on a Child Abuse Protection Policy that is required by Village Missions.
The church elders to establish their relationship with each other and their wives.
Future elder retreats for further education

We also have praise reports:

Our friend Mark had a positive answer to a personal prayer request.
Our children are doing well in school and are involved in activities.
Baby Silas is very close to going home to stay.
We are so thankful for our home, families, friends and supporters.

We carved a Jack-o-lantern. What a fun evening!

The results of our efforts!

And here is our new little dog, Maggie. She is such a sweetie!

2007-10-17T17:07:00.000-08:00

When arriving in Nenana from Fairbanks, this is the bridge we cross. Once we see it we know we are home. And that is such a great feeling.

This is a photo of the parsonage, 509 1st St. It has four bedrooms, a bathroom, a laundry room, a kitchen, a large open living/dining room and a wonderful front porch.

Nenana Community Church meets at the senior center. We push the tables aside and set up the chairs for service. We appreciate the use of this building so much.

AWANA is held at the Civic Center. There is a large open room and we have the use of some tables and chairs. This is such a great place to hold AWANA.

These are the latest pictures of the kiddos. Aerin is 9 and in 4th grade and Ethan is 6 and in 1st grade.

October 5th Update

2007-10-16T21:23:00.000-08:00

Dear Friends and Family,

We have some great news for you in this update! The church is doing well, our district representative’s visit went well, everyone returned from moose hunting well stocked and it snowed last night!

Nenana Community Church is bursting at the seams. Attendance is up to the level when the previous pastor was here. At the last service, our membership doubled, and we now have four couples as members of the church. Bill is preaching through Genesis and John, switching monthly. This week is the beginning of John. Please continue to pray for our church and its ministries. Elder selection will begin soon, and we ask prayer for God’s guidance in this process.

We are involved in AWANA, youth group, the Book Fair, the Community Prayer Meetings and other things. AWANA started October 1^st and there was a great turnout. We have plenty of leaders and staff this year, which is always a blessing. Youth group meets every Friday night and Bill is giving the messages. The teens have pizza, play games and have a bible study. Attendance has been low but now it is starting to increase. I have been setting up the school library for the book fair that is coming in mid-October. I have been painting winter scenes and hanging snow flakes. Bill is also attending the community prayer meetings with the other clergy. These meetings are every two weeks and will focus on prayers for the town and its inhabitants.

Vern and Cindy Wilkinson, representatives from Village Missions, came to visit for a few days in early October. They had meetings with us, with Bill, and with the elders. It was revealed that everything is going well and all parties are extremely happy with our presence in Nenana.

Aerin went on a trip with her school class to Denali Park for a hike and outdoor education. Bill went along as a chaperone and got a chance to interact with the kids and the other adults. They had a great time. Ethan is reading like a whiz! He was put in 2^nd grade math and is one of the best behaved kids in the class.

On a sad note, our van has been given the hands down to fixing it again. The mechanic said the only hope was to rebuild or replace the engine, and really the van is not worth it. It is currently running, but with reduced power and increased gas usage. We are saving our dividends and hoping to put a little more money aside and make it to the New Year with the van. Then we will look for a different vehicle.

We do have a serious prayer request for a member of our church family. Cindy has been diagnosed with a recurrence of breast cancer, but this time it is in all the vertebrae. She is currently undergoing chemo and continuing to work. She is feeling pain in her back and tiredness from the chemo. Please pray for patience, strength and pain relief for Cindy and for continued hope for the future.

In Him,

The Troxel Family