Camp's an Adventure...

Well, most of you guys know that we've been having serious problems
with health inspection while we've been at camp this year. Multiple
times the health department has tried to shut the camp down for all
sorts of fraudulent reasons (the most recent being the water) and
multiple times we've managed to keep having camps even when they've
said we couldn't or we needed their permission, etc. Radooga and the
camp we rent (Camp Promin) has had independent water tests done that
come out completely normal, but somehow the health department always
manages to come up with test results that have bacteria results off
the charts. A doctor in Kyiv looked at those results for Oleg and
told him that if those results were really true every person who had
put that water in his or her mouth at camp would be in the hospital
right now. And not one person is sick, so it's quite apparent that
the water is fine and someone above us (either Galina, Camp Promin,
the factory who owns the camp, or the construction company that rents
the other camp) is a threat to the health department and the health
department wants them out. Radooga is sort of the hostage in this
situation because it's a war between the campground and the health
inspection and we're just kind of caught in the middle.
Well, every time the health department comes they always tell Camp
Promin that they must give the okay before we can have more kids at
camp. We never wait for their okay, mostly because we may never get
it and also kids come to camp some from 20 hours away or more so you
can't really call them up and ask them to hold up for a couple hours.
Plus, waiting for the approval of a corrupted company who is only
doing all of this for the hope of bribe money and turning kids away
from hearing about Jesus at camp just really didn't seem like a very
good trade.
Yesterday health inspection called the office and said they were
coming today at 10:00. Galina, the director of Camp Promin asked us
to take all the kids in the woods and lock up their rooms when health
department came. So that's what we did this morning...
Everyone got up and we led about 250 people into the woods not knowing
how long we would be there or anything. It was so exciting! I felt
like I was a part of the underground railroad or something hiding kids
from health inspection. :0) Me and Veronica had to take some kids
who had lost their English class back to the amphitheatre and we had
to cross the road to get back on the trail and it was like this
scary/exciting/thrilling feeling.
Thanks for those of you who have been praying for us. The health
department came, took some water probes (for the upteenth time),
checked the auditorium (a place that we had discussed hiding
everyone...) and then left. We don't know yet what the results of
that test will be, but hopefully they will do it and then leave us
along for 2 more weeks so we can finish out our last two camps.
That's our prayer, anyway.
Please keep praying for us. Camp four is amazing and I'm really
excited about it. I love you all! I'll try to put pictures up here
soon.
Arrivederci!