Full Schedule of Events Fill the Day: Annica Nilsson shares a cup of coffee with her husband Sven-Inge as they reflect over last weeks events.  Both are active organizers of this team event since it’s conception, now seven years ago.  It has been their 11th such trip to the Village of Hope.

Packed House at the Village Complex: Guests, featured singers, team members, graduates of the program as well as men and staff from the Village of Hope filled the classroom/church complex during songs, testimonies, sharing and exchanging thanks and gifts.

In the far left of the picture are first time guests  Jeanne and Jesus Collado from Santander, Spain.  Throughout the week Jesus was attending an atomic energy conference hosted by Estonia.  The couple spend the weekend visiting the Vähis and the Village of Hope before returning to Spain Sunday evening.   Our guests are always welcome and we are thrilled to have them!

Featured Singers: Timo Lige, Estonian music teacher and composer, sings the lyrics of changed lives.  Ingemar Lilje and Lars-Gunnar Börefelt sing together in English and Swedish,  songs which inspired  the hearts of those who listened.

Village of Hope Fire Department Demonstration: Staff member Kert Simpson and servant leadership student trainee Aleksei Baidak souse out the fire set ablaze for the demonstration while, Village of Hope director, drove the engine and attends the pump controls.

Looking On With Satisfaction: Ingemar Lilje, one of the main organizers of the fire engine project and also one of the co-ordinators of the visiting team, stands in center observing the activity.

The Swedes who helped provide the truck and equipment were thrilled to see their funded project used so effectively and efficiently by members of the Village of Hope. (for more info on the fire fighting project -scroll down to May 10th entry: “Fire Truck Delivered to Village of Hope”)

A Wash Down Before the Trip Home:  To the amusement of the crowd  the fire hose was turned on the big Isaksson Karlsson tour bus for a clean up from the dusty durt roads leading up to the Village of Hope, before the Swedes return trip.

One Team Together:  Right now when things are tough and the economic hardships here in Europe as well as the world are having their impact, we feel it here in Estonia and the Village of Hope in a very real way.  For the last two months our staff and leadership are taking half salary and watching expenditures to a maximum, both here and Canada.   Many things are just being cut.  This is reality.

At the same time we continue to trust in God - not one meal has been missed!   In fact as you can see from this report - we continue to expand and defy the odds.   This is because God has used people to share and give, helping us take on the challenges.

People like so many Estonians, the Swedes visiting us, graduates and visitors.  People like you that have given and are standing with us in the Village of Hope here in Estonia and Canada. We pray that God will add to our numbers.

It makes a difference when we are a team - thank you for being a part of this team!

Swedes Take on Challenge of a Weeks of Working at Village of Hope: The bus load of 31 Swedes arrive to form a circle together with the staff, trainees and men at the Village of Hope to share in word and song as they take on the challenge of several projects during the week of work at the Village of Hope.

Arrival in Tallinn With Sunday Visit to Local Congregations:  The group spent Sunday visiting the Estonian and Russian congregations in two separate services, sharing together with the members of the Village of Hope. The joint group from churches in Mantorp, Hillerstorp, Skillingaryd and Jönköping sang songs in Swedish, Estonian, Russian and English languages.

A Message of Hope in Song: Lars Gunnar Börefelt, long time gospel singer, from Jönköping, Sweden, sings in the Russian speaking service: “Jesus is the Answer”  A truth so real in all lives but especially so to those in addiction.  In the same service young me from the Village of Hope shared their story of how this is so true in their lives.

Swedes Tackle One of Many Jobs Awaiting Them: The large 9 by 36 meter storage shed at the Village of Hope mill site will be constructed this week by the Swedes. As in all the projects, the staff and men in the program will work along side their guests in the construction effort.  The foundations and posts were ready and prepared by those at the Village prior the arrival of the visitors, for further building.

Not Long Knowing What To Do:  Big 6ft.6 (1.97) Göran Johansson, himself a sawmill owner and operator in Sweden, tackles the job not needing much instruction.  His wife Lilian accompanied her husband working in the kitchen as well as also painting on the same structure.

Plans were laid out in detail by the Swedes together with the Village of Hope staff weeks and months before. This allowed all jobs to be familiar to the members of the team as to what needed to be done and what their responsibilities were, allowing them to immediately go to work upon arrival.

Lifting the Major Carrying Beams Into Place: The large Groove ITIIAL 172 Euro Crane lifts the 18 meter 20 by 40 beams on top of the carrying posts and are joined together.  The work had already progressed to this point by  Wednesday afternoon after starting on Monday morning.

Work Moves Ahead On Staff House: On the staging from left Magnus Skoogh and his friend Ludvig Gustafsson both from Skillingaryd, Sweden work on ceiling of staff house. In the background Kaj Bjerregaard, a Dane from Anderstorp works with the Swedes on the many areas of finish work that not only requires a lot of time and energy but skillful co-ordination to get each job finished in time.

Dry Walling and Crack Filling:  Evelina Johansson and David Alkemark work at finishing walls while Alexander Ivanov, a former graduate of the program of the Village of Hope has also come to help in the effort with the Swedes.

Veteran and First Time Visitors Work Together: Hakan Andersson, placing tile on the shower room of the wash and heating house makes this his 11 visit to come work at the Village of Hope while first timer Stig Stal assists in the large amount of tile work in the two buildings - the staff  and wash/heating houses.  Hakan has been on every work mission from the beginning of the Village of Hope and though Per has been in Estonia on various other projects, it is his first time with the team at the Village.

No Job Too Difficult for All: Art and pottery student Evelina Johansson finds no job too big to take on, as she prepares  the wash/furnace house for the wood batten siding.  Staff member at the Village of Hope Ilja Naivelt assists not only in this job but, along with the other Village of Hope staff, co-ordinating and helping  many other aspects of working with the Swedes on the different jobs from translation  for Russian, Estonian and English  to keeping the teams well supplied.

Not the First Time Doing This: Bernt Karlsson from Mantorp has done preperation work and lay ceramic tile for most of the houses at the Village of Hope being his 8th time now to come and volunteer.

Drywalling in Preperation for Painting: Kenneth Skoogh of Skillingaryd, along with Peter  Broman of Mantorp in forground, and Ingemar Lilja of Hillerstorp work together on the furnace house rooms.  Like these men, most were from several different locations in Sweden who got together for this effort.

Kenneth is a paint store owner who also supplied all the paint for the three projects - then volunteered to come and paint on top of it all!

“Fika” in Swedish - “Coffee Break” in English:  Hakan Andersson takes a break from laying tiles and looks on as electrician Per-Olf Hammar and industrial machinery maitenance man Gustav Berg help themselves to coffee and baked goods done up even before the trip by ladies from the various churches.

Hakan, though laying tile at the Village of Hope, is the service manager for the local Peugot dealership near Mantorp.  Though P-O has been here on many former trips doing electrial work it is the first such trip for Gustav who also did various jobs like tiling, woodwork and drywalling.

From the Kitchen to the Paint Bucket: From the left - Leif Ottosson, Lillian Johansson, Christine Gustafsson and Alta Vähi apply the famous “Swedish Red Paint” to no small surface of the industrial wood storage shed, even during the process of the building going up.

In Sweden, Leif works at the local bakery in Mantorp and prepared pastries from from the bakery to bring with him for the “fika” breaks at the Village.  Lilian accompanied her husband the “Big Swede” who is working on the same building while Christine’s husband Sören works on the same structure and is the bus driver for the team.  Both their sons, Ludvig and Albin joined their parents again, as during earlier visits, on the mission work week.

Village Of Hope Takes Delivery of Fire Truck From Sweden: Members of the Village of Hope in Estonia are joined County Major Enn Karu (center with Märt Vähi) and by the Swedes (right: Hoakan Thulin, Fire Chief Tomas Svensson, Ingemar Lilje) from Hillerstorp who delivered the F6155 Volvo Turbo 6 Tanker to the Village as a gift from the New Free Church of Hillerstorp Sweden.

Letter of Appreciation Presented by the Local County: Left to Right: Hoakan Thulin, County Major Enn Karu, Ingemar Lilje, Village of Hope co-founder Märt Vähi, Fire Chief Tomas Svensson. The Swedes receive a certificate of appreciation on behalf of Kernu County for the fire engine, which will be the only fire truck operated in the entire County.

The volunteer fire department will be unique in that it will not only  involve members of the local community together with the men in the Village of Hope but it is the only such fire department yet known anywhere in the world - operated by former drug addicts and alcoholics from a treatment center.   Plans are underway to construct  a fire hall on the Village of Hope premises. A major fund raising endeavor will be created to raise the necessary finances for this.

“It is one way these men, who have caused so much damage, can begin to give back to the community and be a positive influence”  says Village of Hope co-founder Märt Vähi.

Fully Equipped Fire Engine is Ready for Use: Program Director Viljam Borisseko hold fire hose as founder Märt Vähi, with fire helmet, observes.  The 5000 liter tanker  came equipped fully with additional pumps, hoses, fire fighting gear such as helmets, clothing and footwear, nozzles, generator, ladders and much more.  The Hillerdorp church along with businesses and fire fighters donated additional equipment to that which came with the fire engine, which was fully in full operation in Sweden up to this point. The 79 Volvo engine is in perfect condition with only 27,000 km on it.  As most say, for an engine of this typ: “Hardly broke in”.

Instructions Given During Trial Run: Fire Chief Tomas Svensson, left in green, along with Hoakan Thulen to the right go in detail step by step over each piece of the fire fighting equipment for the staff and students in the leadership program, who will be in charge of the fire fighting operation.  The next step will also be to register as an official volunteer unit who will practice and operate together with the closest full time professional fire department, which is some twenty minutes away from the Village of Hope.

A Dream Come True:  Young Karl Erik Romulus a neighbor to the Village of Hope proudly handles the hose with Aleksei Baidak, a former professional fire fighter and now student in the Servant Leadership program after his graduation last week in the Village of Hope program.  Karl Eriks grandfather, Tõnu Ermas, a local farmer, dairy and cheese producer will become part of the volunteer department on behalf of the local community who the Village of Hope will work together with.  Aleksei will shoulder the responsibility of the fire fighting equipment at the Village of Hope. Not only this a young boys dream but a dream come true for all of us at the Village of Hope and community around us!

Additional Equipment for Fire Fighting: This ALBIN fire pump, which is powered by a Volkswagen Beetle engine can pump us to 900 litres a minute.  It can be used to supply several fire house at one time if there is a water source nearby.  Otherwise can be set up at the nearest water supply place to the fire and used to refill the 5000 liter tanker in 5.5 minutes.   In giving over the equipment Ingemar Lilje, one of the main organizers of the project, stated: “We hope this is something that will serve you well, but at the same time we hope you never have to use it!”

The plans are to build a fire hall this fall for the fire engine, especially to house it for winter but also the building can be doubled up as a garage and mechanical work shop, which the Village of Hope has a real need for, considering all the machinery and vehicles it has to maintain.    Meantime construction is underway for a lumber storage facility which one end of it will be used as a temporary shelter for the fire engine.

Thank you for all who helped this project through to reality!