Our dear Partners,

We are winding down a very busy multi-layered trip outside the Naskapi community that started when we took the train out on October 26. We left Beth in Schefferville, where she had just been offered a full-time job as a substitute high-school teacher. That last sentence should be all the information you need to come up with meaningful prayers for her (being a high-school teacher is difficult enough. Being a substitute high-school teacher in a Native school is a special challenge).

Norma Jean and I (Bill) drove from the train to Montreal, where we attended the Algonquian Conference: Norma Jean took part in the anthropology sections, and I took in the linguistics talks, and also made a presentation about Naskapi Verbs and “Role and Reference Grammar”.

After this we drove to Connecticut where we spent some time with Nick, and enjoyed a visit from Ben and Tamika and our grandchildren Arion and Nya, and visited with Bill’s mom.

Then we went out to help the Mi’kmaq translation team at the Eskasoni community on Cape Breton with creating a DVD of the Christmas Story in their own language, and also assist the Mi’kmaq language department at the University with their dictionary-making class. It was a great privilege and encouragement to us to work with these good people.

Norma Jean had been planning to attend a Native healing workshop in Winnipeg right after our time in Nova Scotia, but the presenters were quarantined for medical reasons and the workshop was cancelled. But this allows us time in Connecticut for American Thanksgiving before we return to our home in Schefferville and our continuing work with the Naskapi translation project there.

Thank you for your interest, your support and prayers for our safe travels and return to the Naskapi community next week. We have much to be thankful for, but especially for God’s gift of His Son.

Serving with you, Bill and Norma Jean