Our time on home assignment is drawing to an end and on September 1st we take over directorship of the Home Port Hospitality House on Oahu, HI.  It would be an understatement to say we can’t wait to begin loving on soldiers again, sharing our lives and the Gospel through hospitality!

So what exactly have we been doing?  A well intentioned person asked if we were enjoying our vacation, but it’s far from what I consider a vacation!  We’ve been living out of a suitcase for the last 5 months, 3 of of those months on the road in the 48 states visiting supporters, potential supporters, and family.  We were rarely in one place more than 24 hours.  We were treated with such wonderful hospitality from our friends, it was a pleasure to visit with each of you and reconnect!  The last two months were spent in Alaska visiting with our support base at our home church.  We saw some fabulous country on our travels, and all in all we drove over 20,000 miles and saw over 200 families.  If this was a vacation, it certainly wasn’t for the faint of heart!

So here’s our current schedule:

• August 13th – I took our truck to port in Anchorage for it to barge to Hawaii.
• August 14th – Penny and I flew back to Watertown, NY to pull our household goods out of storage, put them in a container, and get them shipped to Hawaii.
• August 20th – Penny and I embark from Watertown, NY to Seattle, WA with Nori, our dog, by car.  No carrier will transport her to Hawaii except for Hawaiian Airlines, but it must be from the West Coast.
• August 23rd – 26th – Along the way we get Emily situated at college.
• August 29th – We fly from Seattle to Oahu with Nori.
• September 6th – Kelsey will fly to Hawaii with a family friend.

Once in Hawaii we begin the process of familiarizing ourselves with the island and ministry.  The Beaudin family is doing well, considering all of the transitions and movement.

Glory to God we announce that we are at 100% monthly support!  Our start up funds are almost there too!  If you would like to help get us squared away, please click Here!

Enjoy a few pictures from the road!  Thanks to each of you who partner with us and are so diligent with your prayers!  We feel them and appreciate it greatly!

Thanks for taking time to catch up with us and please pray for all that is on our plate right now.  We find it such a joy to serve our Savior and Soliders!  If you partner with us you are a vital part of what God is doing in the military!  Thank you!

“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

1 Thessalonians 5:8

Our last days with our soldiers was bittersweet to say the least, we love them and you could tell it was reciprocal.

To our soldiers and families:

Our last Friday with you was filled with many tears, tears of sadness and tears of joy.  We will hold our memories of Ft. Drum  with you very close to our heart.  While we are excited for the next chapter of ministry in Oahu, Hi there won’t be a day we won’t think of our “kids” back at Ft. Drum.  I say “kids” because Penny was very adamant that while she wasn’t attached to  Watertown, NY or even the Hospitality House we poured so much time and effort into to make it a soldiers home, she and I are very attached to each of you who came to the house.  Penny joked about packing you all up and bringing you along with us to Hawaii…. and who couldn’t refuse such a deal?  We will miss your faces walking through the door on Friday as well as every other day of the week knowing you should never knock or ring the doorbell (that was code for rookie at the door) but just walk in because, well, it was your home…just don’t sell it.

As I write this, we are on our way across America to visit supporters, family, and raise up new partners in ministry so our support is at 100% anticipating ministry in Hawaii.  I’m typing on my MacBook, plugged into the truck power supply and my iPhone is my hotspot to the world.  This post was uploaded to the web on HWY 53 north of Duluth, MN while Penny drives along at 65 mph.  We truly live in a different world today don’t we?  And for that very reason I believe that we will continue to stay in touch, though if you decide to visit us in the middle of the Pacific Ocean we will be overjoyed!

As always, here are some pictures to tell our story from Christmas to present.  Our next post will be about our time on the road!

Thanks for taking the time to catch up with us!  We leave you with a picture out front of the Ft. Drum Hospitality House with us now saying goodbye to NY and Aloha to Hawaii in the future!

God is Good!    All the time!  All the time…. God is Good!

It’s been a whirlwind two years at Ft. Drum but our time here is soon coming to a close.  We let Cadence Headquarters know a while ago that it would be helpful to move somewhere warmer in the future.  Sometime within our last two years in Alaska Penny began to struggle with an auto immune deficiency called Raynaud’s Syndrome and over time it has gotten worse, she really struggles with being cold.  If you would like to learn more about Raynaud’s Syndrome you can click Here.  So, Cadence kept that in mind and has been looking for a site that would be a good fit for both of us, the Hospitality House in Pearl Harbor is where they have chosen.  This will be a very bittersweet transition as we are humbly honored to direct the house in Hawaii but have fallen in love with our soldiers here at Ft. Drum.   While we are sad that our time in ministry is coming to a close here we are very excited about the couple who will be replacing us.  Brian and Cathy Hutchens have been with Cadence for 7 years, mostly at Ft. Jackson in South Carolina.   The Cadence ministry at Ft. Drum will be in good hands!

While our next endeavor may sound very utopian, there are some hurdles to clear.  Cadence will place us on a six month Home Assignment beginning March 1st in order to visit our current supporters and raise additional funds that will be needed for this ministry site.  While Hawaii is not cheap, it is a strategic and vital place of ministry to the military.  The island of Oahu has a huge military presence with around 40,000 soldiers and 14 different installations and all 5 branches represented within a close proximity:

Marine Corps: Marine Corps Base Hawaii (Kaneohe Bay), Camp H. M. Smith and Pu’uloa Range Training Facility

Army: Fort Shafter, Schofield Barracks, Wheeler Army Airfield (formerly Wheeler Air Force Base) and Tripler Medical Center

Navy: Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, NCTAMS PAC, Naval Magazine Lualualei

Air Force: Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Bellows Air Force Station

Coast Guard: USCG ISC Honolulu, USCG Air Station Barbers Point

After our home assignment, we will take over directorship of the Home Port Hospitality House.  If you would like to take a peek at this ministry you can learn more HERE.

Please be in fervent prayer with us during this transitional time as there will be many things on our plate to consider and accomplish before we are released Hawaii, Lord willing later in 2018.  We are so thankful for each of you who are our prayer and support team, we look forward to moving into future ministry with you in Hawaii.

 

– Mahalo!

Sometimes you have to marvel at the handiwork of God, or as David said: “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).  We saw Him working as he kept one of our soldiers safe after a horrible motorcycle accident right outside the Hospitality House.   Luke was stopping by to show off his new motorcycle when a vehicle behind him ran into the back of his bike at close to 50 mph.  His bike and the vehicle were severely damaged and Luke had to be taken to Syracuse Hospital about an hour away by helicopter.  Luke was sedated and intubated and spent the night in the ICU.  There is much more to the story but here is the ending, within 24 hours he walked out of the hospital and on the way back to Ft. Drum texted us to find out what was for dinner.  It was Friday night and Penny had made sweet and sour meatballs.  Luke walked into the house greeted everyone and ate dinner!  He has been recovering well and we are blown away that he didn’t have any significant damage.  Praise The Lord!

That was just one thing –  a tremendous thing, which we have seen lately.  We continue to see soldiers faith grow from their involvement at the house, they find community here and encouragement from the Word to grow and reach out to other soldiers on Garrison.  We recently said goodbye to five more soldiers and their family, as they PCS on to new Army posts.  We are looking forward to seeing how God will use them at their new duty stations.  Yet we continue to see new faces walk through the door weekly as our remaining soldiers invite new friends to the house!  It’s all bittersweet but we realize that this is the culture in which we live and work within the military.

The Beaudin family has remained busy:  Penny continues to mother soldiers, counsel, mentor, and teach life skills such as sewing and cooking.  She loves her interaction with the many ladies she pours her life into and continues doing Bible Studies with them.  Todd also continues to disciple and mentor soldiers,  has been busy working with the youth of Ft. Drum, the Chaplains, as well as renovation on the house.  He also has been doing some recruiting and teaching on missions for Cadence.  The House Bible study on Friday nights continues to go well and we will start into the book of Ephesians soon.  The girls continue to help out daily with chores to child care to being surrogate little sisters for the many who call this House their “home away from home.”

As always, here’s some pictures to fill in the gaps and show you our ministry to these awesome men and women!

 

 

Thanks for your support in prayer and finances!  We couldn’t do this without you and it’s our honor to partner with you in this ministry!  To God all the Glory!!

“So thankful for Todd & Penny!  Thank you for all the support and treating me like family, it means more than you’ll ever know.”  – from one of our soldiers

Summer finds us plenty busy with soldiers in and out of our home.  There is rarely a day we don’t have at least one if not a few at the house.  We are thankful they see this place as an oasis they can decompress from Ft. Drum and that they feel safe to just be ‘them.’

We have seen strong numbers throughout the summer attending our Friday night meal and Bible study with between 25 to 40+ in the house.  Our chaplains have also been active with us at the house as well which blesses us immensely.  Most soldiers come because they were invited by a soldier that already attends and we continue to encourage them to see this property as a tool to love on and build relationship with the ‘Joe’s and Jane’s’ they work with daily to share the Gospel.

We’ve been busy helping our chaplains where ever we can.  We lead a greeting/hospitality ministry at Sunday Chapel on Post, Emily and Todd are regular worship team leaders (Emily sings & Todd plays drums).  We also help with a single soldiers ministry and will be working with the Post VBS all next week.

At the house Penny has been working with around 6 ladies teaching sewing as a way to get to know them and build relationships as they talk about many things in life and Bible.  Both Todd & Penny continue to meet with soldiers for various studies and counseling weekly.  Todd has had the blessing of having one soldier come over regularly to help him get projects done on the house and property.  We just received a large financial gift that will allow AC to be added to existing forced air furnace so the house will soon have central air for the first time!  This may be lost on our Alaska friends but let me tell you, it gets really hot and humid here in the summer!  We still have two large projects we want to complete to see this full house renovation done.  You can learn about what they are HERE.

You should be seeing a letter in the mail soon from us including the picture above as a magnet for your fridge!  Please keep the prayers coming, we see hurt and PTSD symptoms regularly.  These precious people and families would appreciate it and so would we!

As always, we’ll leave you with some pictures of what we’ve been up to…

“I’m so glad this ministry and you guys are here.  I would be lost without it and not living for the Lord nor being a testimony to my fellow soldiers here at Ft. Drum.”   –  from one of our soldiers

It’s been a little while since I’ve updated you on the happenings around the Hospitality House.  Trust me, it’s not because we’ve been sitting on our hands!  We appreciate your ongoing prayers and support even when things get a little silent!

We’ve been waiting for the weather to warm up so we can continue working on the renovation of the Hospitality House.  The garage is still full of some of our boxes and it’s not heated so running equipment is hard outside in the snow.  Our plan is to complete the finish carpentry inside the house this summer.  We are waiting on a quote from a local business and we are praying they will deeply discount the supplies for our HVAC fix.  We are hoping to install central AC into the house as the summers get up to 100 degrees with 100% humidity and the house gets unbearable.  Cooking for a Friday night gets intense and I have to be on my “A” game to hold their attention sitting in the heat and humidity for Bible Study!  The main flooring of the house still needs replaced as well.  We can see the end of this epic renovation coming to a close soon pending on the cash to complete it.  Pray with us about that would you?

Penny and I have continued to be busy on Fridays preparing dinner and teaching through the Gospel of John.  We continue to do personal bible studies, counseling, and serve our soldiers, wives and children however we can.  We count it such a privilege to be here with them, to walk alongside them in their often very difficult situations.  We can both say that our work is truly a labor of love!  Penny has been very involved with PWOC the on-post weekly women’s Bible Study with over a 100 ladies and spending relational time with ladies sewing.  Emily and Kelsey continue to work with the children on Friday nights and help get the house ready.  We are so blessed to have their help and they have been doing a great job with upwards of 10 children.  Emily also sings with the Chapel Next worship team on Post occasionally, and we have been attending two services at Ft. Drum every Sunday.  The Traditional Service which attracts quite a few single soldiers and Chapel Next, which is more contemporary.  Both have been great avenues to build relationships with soldiers and their families and many attend the House on Friday nights.

Penny and I recently attended our annual east coast conference with Cadence in Asheville, NC.  We were refreshed and challenged by our leadership!   Once we got back we shared with our military family here at the H.House our vision together for ministry.  We reminded them that the verse (see below) they walk past as they come into the house is a reminder for us all.  It is our pleasure to pour into their lives but it also reminds them of their need to pour into the lives of the “Joe’s” they work with everyday.  Utilizing the H.House as a tool to minister to them as a safe place they can hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Living and sharing the Gospel in a military environment is tremendously challenging but we have full confidence they can do it.  These men and women are the 1% of our population that answer the call to serve and stand in harms way to protect us and our freedom.  They are the ideal people to task with the Great Commission sharing the gospel wherever the Lord, through our military, sends them around the world!  Pray for them, will you!

Thanks for taking the time to catch up with what is going on here at Ft. Drum!  We ask that you specifically pray for the Gospel to be advanced through our soldiers!  Pray that God will use the Beaudin family daily in their lives to love them and instruct them as we work together to reach the lost for Christ!

There is much happening at Ft. Drum with our soldiers!  Block Leave (Holiday Leave), JRTC (Month long training at Ft. Polk), TDY’s (Temporary duty assignment/training) and preparation for Deployment.  The pace is crazy busy and these families feel it.  Sometimes Penny and I long for the days of church ministry when people pretty much stick around for large blocks of time, not so with military life, but we wouldn’t trade it!  Of course this pace makes life hard for our soldiers and wives but it’s especially hard on the children, they sacrifice much.

Penny and I continue to pour into anyone who will allow us to do so through friendship, mentorship, and discipleship and our calendar is full.  Todd is currently teaching through the book of John on Friday nights which has been rich.  Depending on what is going on with our soldiers schedules we’ve been averaging anywhere from 20 to 40 people at the H. House for a “home cooked meal,” Bible Study, and Fellowship.  Sometimes guys don’t leave until way after midnight, sitting around the table drinking coffee and talking about important issues in life and faith.  Sometimes guys crash in the basement instead of heading back to the barracks.

As you look through the pictures below would you look for prayer opportunities and keep us all in prayer?  There is so much more I wish I could share with you but won’t because of confidentiality, but please know that there is a lot of deep hurt in the lives of many military families and singles.  We all covet your prayers and remember our Chaplains.

We thank each of you for your continued support!  As the weather starts to warm up we will continue with renovations on the Hospitality House.  If you would like to know where we stand with the renovation please click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the page where it talks about the house renovation!

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you for your prayers and support!  We LOVE being in partnership with each of you who pray and financially support this awesome ministry.  May God continue to do awesome things through all of us!

The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy!  Psalm 126:3

As you prepare to celebrate the day our Savior was born this week, the Beaudin family would like to wish you a Merry Christmas!  We are ready with anticipation for Christmas Day as we celebrate along with our soldier friends & family who cannot get home for Christmas this year.  Would you all do us a huge favor?  Would you include us all in your Christmas dinner prayer?  I know it would mean a lot for the families and soldiers who are here at Ft. Drum and also all those who are deployed downrange.

We want to thank each of you who pray for us here at Ft. Drum, thank you as well for your financial gifts to God who sustains us daily!  We couldn’t do this ministry without each of you, your prayers are felt so please keep up the good work!

Here is what you can pray for:

• Soldiers with PTSD & TBI’s that are battling it.
• Those who can’t get home for Christmas.  This is a dark time of the year for many who do not know Jesus as their Savior as they sit in their barracks not willing to come out to the Hospitality House.  Pray that they might hear about us and be encouraged to join us for Christmas!
• Pray for our families who are PCS’ing or have already done so.  That they would find solid churches and strong fellowship & discipleship with other believers wherever they may end up.  That they might be missionaries to lost soldiers they work with everyday.
• Our Chaplains and their families, for their battle everyday as they laboriously work to share the Gospel with lost soldiers.  Pray for their wives and children as well, I believe their plate is twice as full as a civilian pastors family.
• Pray for Todd as he prepares to teach the Scriptures, for Penny as she cooks, for both of them as they invest into soldiers and soldiers wives, for Emily as she seeks direction for the future, and for Kelsey as she makes new friends because those she now has are PCS’ing soon.
• Pray that the Beaudin family might be used in mighty ways for our Lord in 2017.

We’ve certainly been busy this year investing into the lives of our soldiers and building them up through Bible Study, discipleship, mentorship, and counseling.  Here’s some recent pictures for you to see what we’ve been up to lately!

We wish you and your family a blessed Christmas!

-Todd, Penny, Emily, & Kelsey!

Today a year ago Tim & Bobbi Bettger picked us up from the Syracuse airport and after a short drive we arrived on the mission field here at Ft. Drum!

 A lot has happened in one year and we want to rejoice with you all who partner with us in prayer and financial support to give glory to God!  We have entered into the lives of many soldiers and their families here, we’ve seen God do great and wonderful things in their spiritual lives.  We have laughed, cried, rejoiced, and mourned with our troops, and we have been a refuge and a home away from home for many.   One great take-a-way from this year has been how quickly people come into our lives and how unbelievably fast they leave.  That’s Army life, sigh!  So as we round the calendar track into our second year it has become apparent what our primary goal is, to preach the Gospel of Jesus by word and deed & and be about quick discipleship.  We have seen a great turnover of faces in just one year so whatever we do, it must be with purpose to prepare these men and women for wherever the military will send them next.  Sanctification, purpose of life, living out our Christianity among the lost and drawing the lost to a lifesaving relationship with Jesus.  These are the things that matter most when you don’t have much time.   We endeavor to disciple and mentor our soldiers in and out of our home.

On top of this, as you’ve seen this year has been very busy with the renovation of the house.  We have seen great things happen and seen God’s people rise up to provide along the way!  We can now see the end of the tunnel but we are not out of the tunnel just yet.  I would like to ask all of you who are cheerful givers to our Lord to consider helping us finish this project.  Todd’s personality drives him to complete what has been started and we are so close.  We will labor to finish our Lord’s house here at Ft. Drum as it is stewarded by us and Cadence International.  We will give you a list of things below that we still need to finish and ask that you prayerfully consider what you might be able to do.  Please know that a gift of $5.oo is just as grand as a gift of $5000.00 but more than anything, as the Apostle Paul addressed the Corinthian church:  “The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.  Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.  And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.”  2 Corinthians 9:6-8

• Miscellaneous supplies to do finish work on the house, such as trimming out the windows, building book shelves in the office, master bedroom closet shelving and rods, paint, bathroom faucets, shades and curtains for windows, etc: $1800.00
• Kitchen update, fix refrigerator, buy a gas stove range, a few cabinets, new hinges for existing doors, new formica counter top material & paint.  $2500.00
• New flooring on the first floor of the house.  This is the busiest area of the home and the flooring is worn out.  We would like to install a hardwood product that can be refinished over decades and will fit this old craftsman style home.  Materials and install approx: $5500.00
• Insulation for attic, rafter baffles, rental of insulation blower:  $600
• HVAC work including the possibility of AC, duct work, removal of electric base board heat with more natural gas forced air so our utility bills will be significantly less.  We would like to replace the wood stove in the basement with a natural gas fireplace that is thermostat controlled.  We don’t have hard numbers on all this yet but might be around $10,000.00
• New living room furniture and a custom farm style table & benches in the dining room to replace old and worn out furniture: $3000.00
• Basement flood prevention and installation: $3000.00

This is what’s before us right now.  Each item is important but the ones in red are at the top of the priority list.  Because the house is under construction most of the week as we work on it with power tools everywhere, we have not unpacked the majority of our boxes to settle in and make this home our home yet.  We didn’t feel it was wise with the magnitude of renovation that needed to be done as things get in the way and have to be taken down off walls.  It’s hard to post about all of this but since you are in ministry partnership with us we also know that when a need is not known – it can’t be provided for.   If after prayer, you would like to cheerfully give you can click HERE.

All in all, the Beaudin’s give two thumbs up about life and ministry in Upstate New York. Yes, we miss all our friends in Alaska and elsewhere in the states but we feel your prayers and we appreciate the financial sacrifices you have made, your love, and encouragement for our family.  Here’s to the next year on the field at Ft. Drum!  May it be an awesome year of hearts changed and discipled for the Glory of God!  May our soldiers also be missionaries wherever the wind blows them!

As always, here’s some pictures to share with you!

Thank you for taking the time to catch up with what we’ve been up to!  We appreciate your thoughts and prayers!

Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Jesus.                                     – 1 Thessalonians 5:18

To all of our prayer and financial supporters who partner with us in this work with our servicemen at Ft. Drum.  We hope you all are still praying for us as you see your house key on your keychain.  We pray and thank the Lord for you when we see ours.  Thank you for your faithfulness.

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.  Philippians 1:3-6