Fall in Wisconsin

 

Happiness is obedience

My dear friend Lesa got married this past weekend.  It was such a beautiful day and a beautiful wedding.  I met Lesa 7 years ago in Ivanovo, Russia. We worked together over there.  She is "Aunt Lesa" to Christian and a host of other TCK's. 

Like us, Lesa had difficulties staying in Russia and moved to Estonia.  She began working there and attending church there.  She met a man named Sasha and they became friends.  If I get the story right -- after a few months, he "called off" the relationship and her heart was broken, because God had already told her that he was the one.  She waited patiently for 3.5 months and he finally called her and said that he wanted to be friends again.  Lesa was thankful and greatful for the friendship.  A week and a half later, he asked her to marry him!!!  She said yes and 3 months later they were married!!!

They shared their testimony of how God worked in their lives during the wedding ceremony.  Sasha said, "It is better to be in God's will even if there are obstacles, than to be outside of God's will." (or something to that effect.

I am so happy for my friend and her husband!  Blessings on them and their future together in Estonia!! 

 

Willeke Update

Life in the US is definitely a different pace than life in Europe.  There are things that I like about it better, and things that I miss terribly about our life in Europe.  But, we are confident that we are where God wants us to be. 

Here is a bit about what is going on in our lives:

Jill -- Works at Target Headquarters in Minneaoplis, MN.  Spends about 10 hours a week in her car and 45 hours a week working.  In her spare time, she cooks, cleans, goes to baseball games, takes a few photographs, and helps out Chris with office stuff for CleanShield. 

Christian -- Graduates from the 8th grade tonight!  He is enjoying playing baseball for the first time since he was 5.  Math was a bit of a struggle for him in school, but he has done well in his other classes.  Adjustment to public school in the US was HUGE for him.  He excelled in art and was Music Student of the Year (or month -- not sure, but he got a nice certificate and more importantly an ice cream cone!). 

Chris -- Works extrememly hard taking care of business with Clean Shield.  He usually puts in 10 hour days with a mix of delivering washer fluid and office work.  He has made great strides in getting the books in order, making sales calls, and managing cash flow.  There have been some difficult decisions that he has had to make over the last several weeks and the stress and pressure have been high.  Things seem to be leveling off now. He is also working on developing a new unit that will dispense washer fluid via a pay at the pump situation -- so while you fill up with gas, you can fill up with washer fluid as well. 

We have found a wonderful church to attend and have an awesome small group to fellowship with.  God has truly blessed us with good friends that have welcomed us into their lives. 

How can you pray for us? 

• Pray for wisdom for Chris as he is researching technical aspects of the pay at the pump system.  God has opened many doors, we are still looking for an engineering firm that will work with us to connect the parts.
• Pray that we will stay focused on what God has called us here to do with Clean Shield.  Spiritual warfare is definitely upon us. 
• Pray for Christian as he has a busy summer of travel with grandparents and preparation for High School!  (Need to review some Algebra skills)
• Pray for safe travels for Jill as she travels back and forth to Minneapolis, and that she will also be a light to those she works with. 

Have a great summer! 

Easter 2011

We spent Easter with the Bennett Family.  We had a delightful time meeting their family, eating, playing games and just fun fellowship. Here are some of the pics from the day. 

Life in the Fast Lane

Well, I have survived 2 weeks of work in Corporate America!!  Yea!!! 

But, it is "Life in the Fast Lane".  I leave for work at 6:15, get to work by 7:00 (driving mostly in the literal fast lane).  Leave for home at 4:00, get home by 5:00 (if there is no accidents and the commute turns into "Life in the Parking Lot"). Homework, supper, work for Clean Shield and to bed by 9:30.  Most mornings, I leave Christian a Mom-o-Gram just to touch base with him because he is just waking up as I walk out the door. 

I work on a team at Target Headquarters.  There are three different office buildings that house about 12,000 employees in downtown Minneapolis.  I share a 8 x 8 cubical with a nice guy (hopefully, will have my own cubie in a month or so).   It is interesting to watch all the people the scurry through the skyways in Minneapolis. 

As I cross the Mississippi River each morning,  I am amazed at the beauty of the frozen river with the skyline of Minneapolis in the background. 

I'm thankful for my life, my job and my family that help me take care of all the things that need to be done each day.  I'm especially thankful for Fabulous Friday Family Nights with Tata Chris's Pizza!!  

I am doing a study on Daniel right now and one of the concepts stands out to me.  We are literally living in a Modern Day Bablyon --  and our task is to influence "Babylon" without being influenced by "Babylon".  Pray that I will be able to be a influencer in the new sphere that I live and work.  May I be like Daniel and his 3 friends and stay true to my convictions. 

Number 9

Christian started playing basketball last month and has played in a few games.  There are 3 different middle school teams.  He only gets a few minutes of playing time, but he loves it.  We got to see one of his games last week.  Chris stayed for the whole game and said that he was definitely the fastest one on the team and played excellent defence. Here are a few pics of the game. 

New Directions for The Willekes

Greetings to you from Hudson, Wisconsin!  Over the past several months, God has been leading us in a new direction. Chris accepted an offer from his father to lead his Minnesota-based company as CEO beginning January of 2011.

Extended time in the states was not what we expected to do when we left Montenegro. In fact, we only came home with 4 suitcases because we fully expected to return to our home and work in Montenegro. However, God has graciously confirmed His calling to us that we should accept this new direction He has for us. We are relocating to Hudson, Wisconsin, 15 miles east of the Twin Cities. (Yes, there is lots of snow there – more than we ever saw in Russia!)

While our physical presence in Montenegro will be greatly curtailed over the next several years, our hearts remain committed to supporting work there and throughout Europe, and it is our sincere hope that this company will be in a position to facilitate expansion in the near future. We have said to many how much easier it would be to just go back to Montenegro, but we must be obedient to God’s new direction for our lives.

We would greatly appreciate your prayers as we begin this new direction for our lives.

*For a smooth transition for Christian as he begins public school in the US for the first time.

*Smooth transition of leadership as Chris begins in January with Clean Shield USA

*Details regarding the logistics of getting our personal belongings home from Montenegro.


Merry Christmas,

Chris, Jill and Christian



Our New Contact Information


Chris and Jill Willeke


1227 St. Croix St.


Hudson WI 54016






Jill’s Cell : 715-410-8211


Chris’s Cell 651-354-8211

Willeke Wanderings

It's been a while since I updated this site -- sorry.  But, we have been wandering all over the southeast of the US!  Since we have been in the states, here is a list of where we have gone:

Floral City, FL
Cleveland, GA
Rome, GA
Memphis, TN
Rogers, AK
Ft. Worth, TX
Rockville, VA
Forest, VA
Washington, DC
Haymarket, VA

In the midst of these travels, we have toured several Civil War sites:  Chickamauga, GA; Vicksburg, MS; Manassas, VA; Appomattox, VA.  We reconciled the North and South on the steps of the home in Appomattox where the treaty ending the Civil War was signed -- with a handshake -- Chris being from the North and me from the South. 

This weekend, we are heading down to visit my Uncle Joe in Columbus, GA and my brother in Newnan, GA.  Chris is in Minneapolis, MN this week.  Next month, we head back to TN for a conference and then a hunting trip to WI! 

Anyway, we are having a grand time and enjoying the beautiful fall weather. 

To check out some of our photos from all of our travels, check out WillekeWanderings365 to catch the highlights.

Willeke Family Update

Well, it has been a while since I wrote an update about our family -- so here goes:

Christian -- Completed the 7th grade and 5'6" tall!  He is learning to play the guitar and is doing great, and looking forward to attending youth camp next week. 

Chris -- Still working hard with SLS Consultants as well as his MBA.  He just finished a great week of planning for leadership courses here in Montenegro with the Chick-fil-a Company. 

Jill -- Just turned 40 something :) and is loving life. I am helping out with the youth camp as cook with another friend and is working on a web site for the International Woman's Club of Montenegro.  I have also successfully taken 195 pictures for my 365 Photo Blog .

We are all looking forward to being in the states for 6 months reconnecting with family and friends as well as developing other partnerships for SLS Consultants.  We will be in FL for the month of August (I know it is crazy) and then back in GA for September - January.  We will truly miss our friends and work here in Montenegro.  It is a beautiful place to live and work -- the people are so nice and welcoming. 

We are fortunate to be able to leave our furniture in our apartment (rent free), but we do have to pack up all of our personal items - just in case our landlords rent out the entire building.  So the packing has begun.  Pray that we will be wise with our time and able to get it all done as well as all the goodbyes and such. 

Truly Wandering!

Last Saturday, we started out on an adventure.  I want to hike to the head waters of Mertvica (Dead Woman's) Canyon.  After a late start and 90+ degree weather, we made it to the canyon.  Thinking that we could drive up part of the way we did.  After looking for the trail, we found it and then lost it.  We spent several hours tromping through the woods!  It was a beautiful day and the river water was stunningly beautiful.  Here are some of the pictures from our day of wandering.

Biogradska Nataional Forest

We had a delightful trip to Biogradska National Forest yesterday with friends.  The lake was beautiful and the fellowship was grand.  Christian was sick and stayed in the car and slept -- that was the only downside of the day.

Wildflower Photo Trek

It was a rainy day today and after the rain stopped, I thought it might be nice to go to a favorite place to take a few pictures.  I really wanted to take pictures of wildflowers.  I never thought that I would have so much fun taking pictures of insects on flowers. I guess they were drying off after the rain. 

Off to a Retreat

Cherry Cobbler In Waiting

 There is a beautiful cherry tree in our neighbor's back yard. When we get back on Monday, I think that they will be ready for a wonderful cherry cobbler!
We are heading down to the coast this weekend for an Encounter Weekend with some of our friends from here as well as a group of 3 from Russia.  We are looking forward to a wonderful time.  I will be cooking and Chris is teaching one session and helping with the cooking. 

Hoping that Spring is finding all of you well and you are enjoying beautiful weather and God's wonderful creation as you look around your world where ever you may be. 

Yesterday was Independence Day in Montenegro -- 4 years!  We went to the lake with some friends and had a blast.  The kids swam, and we sat around and ate rostil (Montenegrin Barbecue), sang and played.  It was a very relaxing day and a lot of fun.